Early Childhood Teacher Incentives
Incentives to work in early childhood
Thinking about returning to early childhood teaching? Now’s the time!
Individual incentives of $10,000 are available for qualified Early Childhood Teachers (ECTs) to:
- reconnect with their passion for early childhood teaching by returning to the workforce after an employment break of 12 months or more; and
- move to South Australia from interstate or overseas.
Take your career further: Location Incentives
Location incentives are targeted to encourage qualified ECTs, including new graduates, to take up roles in pre-approved 3-year-old preschool partner services in regional, rural, remote and hard-to-staff communities.
By accepting an early childhood teaching role in a pre-approved Flying Start service, you may be eligible for a location incentive of up to $50,000. If you are moving more than 100km you may also qualify for a relocation supplement to help cover your moving costs.
If you meet the eligibility criteria for both types of incentives, you can receive both payments.
Incentives are available to early childhood teachers accepting roles in Flying Start Partner Services, that are pre-approved for the Incentives Program and meet certain criteria including vacancy duration, above-award wages, and retention supports
Flying Start Early Childhood Teacher Incentives Program
Information about the program, including eligibility requirements, is available in the guidelines below. For a summary of the application process please refer to the ECT Incentives Flyer.
To apply for an incentive, you must meet the following general requirements.
You must:
- have accepted a role in a partner service that is not a South Australian Department for Education preschool. Please note, the Department for Education offers incentives for teaching positions; to learn more visit the Departments teaching opportunities webpage
- apply for the incentive within 60 days of accepting a role
- be registered as an early childhood teacher with the Teachers Registration Board of South Australia
- provide confirmation from your employer that they will deliver a 3-year-old preschool program in 2026
- have not previously received a Flying Start Early Childhood Teacher Incentive payment
- be contracted for a minimum of 36 months in a teaching role at the partner service; and
- be a citizen of Australia or New Zealand or hold a permanent resident of Australia visa, or be eligible, or provide evidence of a visa application in progress, to work in Australia for the full duration of your employment contract.
You must also meet incentive-specific requirements, as detailed in the Guidelines.
Applications must be lodged online within 60 days of accepting a position.
If you are eligible and meet the criteria for both types of incentives, you can receive both payments.
Individual incentives of $10,000 are available for qualified early childhood teachers who are returning to the South Australian early childhood education sector after a break in employment of 12 months or more, or are moving to South Australia from interstate or overseas.
Between $10,000 and $50,000 is available to qualified early childhood teachers taking up a role in specific pre-approved Flying Start Preschool Partner Service in regional, rural, remote and priority locations, and relocating from other parts of South Australia, Australia or overseas. Pre-approved partner services must meet certain criteria including vacancy duration, above-award wages and retention supports.
Table 1: Locations incentives eligibility criteria
To apply | applicants | and meet at least one of these requirements: | ||||
Level 1 location incentive – $10,000 | accept a teaching role at a Flying Start partner service pre-approved for Level 1 location incentive payments | not working in the South Australian early childhood sector | OR | be a graduate early childhood teacher | OR | (if employed in the sector) not employed by the provider offering the new role and not working in any service in a SEIFA 1 or 2* quintile and new role must be more than 60 km from applicant’s current place of residence |
Level 2 location incentive – $50,000 | accept a teaching role at a Flying Start partner service pre-approved for Level 2 location incentive payments | |||||
If you are eligible for one or both types of incentive, you can also apply for a relocation payment, if you have evidence to show that you relocated 100km or more to take up the role.
The tables below show the milestone payment amount after you submit any evidence required to meet each milestone condition. The type of evidence needed is shown in the Incentive Recipient Agreement. It will be received and verified by the administrator.
Table 2: Individual incentives milestones
Category | Total value | Milestone1 Signed agreement | Milestone2 End of first 6 months | Milestone3 End of year 1 | Milestone4 End of year 2 | Milestone5 End of year 3 |
Individual Incentive | ||||||
Returning to teach in a 3-year-old preschool program in South Australia after an employment break of 12 or more months or moving to South Australia from another state or overseas | $10,000 | $4,000 | $3,000 | $1,000 | $1,000 | $1,000 |
Table 3: Location incentives milestones
Category | Total value | Milestone1 Signed Agreement | Milestone2 End of first 6 months | Milestone3 End of year 1 | Milestone4 End of the year 2 | Milestone5 End of year 3 |
Location Incentives | ||||||
Level 1 | $10,000 | $3,500 | $1,000 | $1,000 | $1,000 | $3,500 |
Level 2 | $50,000 | $17,500 | $5,000 | $5,000 | $5,000 | $17,500 |
Table 4: Relocation supplement
Category | Total value | Milestone1 Signed Agreement | Milestone2 End of first 6 months | Milestone3 End of year 1 | Milestone4 End of the year 2 | Milestone5 End of year 3 |
Relocation supplement | ||||||
Relocating 100-200km | $2,000 | $2,000 | N/A | |||
Relocating 200-500km | $4,000 | $4,000 | ||||
Relocating > 500km | $8,000 | $8,000 | ||||
There are steps that need to be taken before you apply for an incentive under this program. For more information about the application process, please refer to the ECT Incentives Flyer (PDF).
Step 1: Review eligibility requirements
You should review the Guidelines closely to find out important information and check that you’re eligible to apply.
Step 2: Gather evidence to support the application
This includes but is not limited to:
- an employer declaration form completed by your employer confirming the service and role you are employed in
- evidence showing you meet the eligibility requirements outlined above (for example, photo ID with residential address, Certificate of Teacher Registration from the Teachers Registration Board of South Australia (TRB SA); and
- if applicable, evidence supporting a relocation supplement (e.g. provide copies of utility bills, or rental agreements showing your name, residential addresses and dates).
Step 3: Submit your application
Submit your application within 60 days of accepting the role.
Applications for this program are assessed by an external administrator, in accordance with the eligibility criteria. Recommendations on whether applications should be approved are made to the OECD.
Incentives are limited, and applications will be prioritised based on the circumstances of the service and applicant. Priority will be given to:
- teachers taking on roles with higher working hours and for longer periods of employment
- permanent roles over fixed-term roles; and,
- teachers joining services that do not employ existing incentive recipients.
You will receive a response from the administrator, about the outcome of your application.
Incentive Recipient Agreements will then be entered into between you and the OECD. This Incentive Recipient Agreement is legally binding and outlines your rights and responsibilities.
You will be required to send evidence of your continuing employment details to the administrator at scheduled intervals to continue to receive milestone payments.
- Mini Gems Coober Pedy – Level 2 ($50,000).
An Early Childhood Teacher employment opportunity is being sourced for this site by McArthur recruitment. For more information, visit McArthur’s website. - Kin Kin Early Education Murray Bridge – Level 1 ($10,000)
- Gawler Community Childcare Centre – Level 1 – ($10,000)
This information will be updated regularly.
Information about the program, including eligibility requirements, is available in the guidelines below. For a summary of the application process please refer to the ECT Incentives Flyer (PDF).
To apply, visit https://workinecsa-cp.enquire.cloud/home.
For further assistance contact SAscholarships@busyatwork.com.au or by phone on 1300 050 509.
To provide feedback or to raise concerns, please contact the Workforce Policy and Innovation team within the Office for Early Childhood Development directly at OECD.ECWorkforceSupport@sa.gov.au