Kindergarten Inclusion Support Victoria: What the KIS Program Actually Covers

Your child has been offered a place at their local kindergarten, but you're worried about whether the program can meet their needs. Maybe they've just received a diagnosis. Maybe you've been told there's something called the "KIS program" but you're not sure what it actually provides — or whether your child qualifies.

Here's what you need to know about the Kindergarten Inclusion Support program in Victoria.

What Is the KIS Program?

The Kindergarten Inclusion Support (KIS) program is a Victorian Government initiative designed to support children with significant disability or complex needs to participate in funded kindergarten programs. It's administered digitally by Australian Healthcare Associates (AHA) via the KIS Portal.

KIS is targeted specifically at children who have:

• Severe disabilities or highly complex medical needs
• Needs that place them or other children at significant risk of injury
• Barriers to participation that cannot be addressed through standard kindergarten staffing

The crucial thing to understand is what KIS is not. It is not a one-to-one aide allocated directly to your child. KIS provides additional staffing resources to the kindergarten program as a whole, to support inclusive capacity and ensure children with complex needs can participate safely. The support goes to the setting, not to the individual child in the way a school education support worker would.

Who Qualifies for KIS?

KIS is genuinely targeted at the higher end of need. It is not a general disability support program for every child attending kinder with additional needs. Eligibility is based on the severity and complexity of the child's disability and the risk it creates in the kindergarten environment.

Families applying for KIS typically have children with:

• Significant intellectual disabilities
• Complex physical support needs
• Severe autism with behaviours of concern
• Complex medical needs requiring skilled management

If your child has moderate support needs — for example, ASD without high behaviours of concern, or a language delay — they are unlikely to qualify for KIS specifically, though the kinder may still access other DET inclusion supports and professional development funding.

How to Apply for KIS

Applications are made via the KIS Portal (kisapplications.com.au), managed by AHA on behalf of the Victorian Department of Education. Your child's kindergarten submits the application, not the family directly.

Steps in the process:

1. Talk to the kindergarten director — explain your child's needs and ask whether a KIS application is appropriate
2. Gather supporting documentation — current reports from paediatricians, OTs, speech pathologists, or early intervention services
3. The kinder lodges the application via the KIS Portal with supporting documentation
4. AHA assesses the application and determines whether to approve additional staffing hours

If KIS is approved, AHA arranges the staffing support. The amount of support allocated varies depending on the child's assessed needs.

The Transition from Kindergarten to Prep: What Happens Next

KIS funding is specific to the kindergarten setting. Once your child transitions into Prep at a Victorian government primary school, they move into an entirely different funding system — the Department of Education's Disability Inclusion model.

This transition is a high-stakes moment. Many families who received KIS support in kinder are surprised to find that Prep support is not automatic. The school system uses different eligibility criteria. In primary school, support is determined by:

1. Tier 1 — core learning needs met through the Student Resource Package (applies to all students)
2. Tier 2 — school-level funding for broad inclusive capacity
3. Tier 3 — individualised funding for students with complex, high-level functional needs, determined via a Disability Inclusion Profile (DIP) meeting

To access Tier 3 support in Prep, a DIP will typically need to be requested. This requires the school to have documented at least 10 weeks of adjustments, an active IEP, and an active Student Support Group (SSG).

Planning the Kinder-to-School Transition

If your child is in their final year of kindergarten (typically Four-Year-Old Kinder in Victoria, though funded Three-Year-Old Kinder also exists), the transition to Prep should be planned at least a full term in advance — ideally in Term 2 or early Term 3.

Key steps families should take:

Mid-year of kinder:

• Request a transition meeting with the kindergarten director to discuss your child's current supports
• Contact your preferred primary school's principal or student wellbeing leader to introduce your child's profile
• Obtain updated reports from allied health professionals (OT, speech, psychology) specifically noting educational recommendations

Term 3:

• The DET provides transition-to-school resources via the Transition Learning and Development Statement (TLDS), completed by the kinder teacher and shared with the receiving school with your consent
• Ensure your TLDS includes specific, functional language about the adjustments your child requires — not just diagnostic labels

Term 4:

• Confirm with the primary school that a Prep SSG will be established early in Term 1 of the following year
• Ask whether the school can request a DIP in Term 1 to ensure funding is in place before Census Date (the last school day in February)

The more documentation you bring to the transition, the better positioned your child is to receive support from day one of Prep — rather than spending half a year waiting for a profile to be processed.

The Victorian kinder-to-school transition is one of the most consequential moments in a child's educational journey. Getting the paperwork and meetings right early can mean the difference between adequate Prep support and spending Term 1 fighting to establish what your child actually needs. The Victoria Disability Support Blueprint includes transition checklists and SSG preparation templates to help you navigate both the kindergarten and primary school systems.

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