Enrol
Our enrolment process
We have a ‘planned intake’ at the start of term 1 (end of January) every year. This is when the older children head off to school. We offer places for the planned intake in July the previous year (eg places for 2025 are offered in July 2024). Places are offered to families in the order that they joined the waiting list.
Places become available at other times throughout the year when circumstances change for other families.
We have a minimum two-day enrolment requirement per child. Attending for two days or more per week helps your child to feel comfortable, build bonds with their educators and to be able to happily immerse themselves in the learning programs.
To go on our waiting list, please click the link below. We will contact you to confirm your place on the waiting list.
If you would like to discuss your child’s enrolment, please contact us on 03 4216 0600 or at info@imaginationgarden.com.au.
Kindergarten
We operate a fully integrated kindergarten program, for 8 hours per day, every day, for 51 weeks per year. You can find out more about our kindergarten program here.
Our Fees
Imagination Garden fees are subsidised by the federal government’s Child Care Subsidy (CCS). The amount of CCS families receive is based on their estimated combined annual adjusted taxable income. See below for fee estimates.
‘Funded kindergarten enrolments’ receive a further discount of $2,050 per child per year (in addition to CCS).
We do not charge fees for public holidays. We only charge for days we are open.
How much CCS will my family receive?
The amount of CCS a family receives will depend on three factors:
- Combined family income
- How much work/activity the parents do
- The type of care a family chooses to use (Imagination Garden is ‘centre based care’)
There are several eligibility requirements for CCS. Nearly all families will be eligible for some CCS, but the rate and number of hours may differ according to individual family circumstances.
It is very important that you confirm your actual CCS eligibility before enrolling with Imagination Garden. We will support you to apply for CCS and we will confirm your out-of-pocket fees with Imagination Garden as part of the enrollment process. Applying for CCS can be complicated and confusing – don’t hesitate to contact us on 03 4216 0600 or info@imaginationgarden.com.au if you need some help applying for CCS.
Fee estimate
You can get an estimate for your Imagination Garden fees by reviewing our ready reckoners:
The ready reckoners are a guide only for the fees per child per day at Imagination Garden. More information about CCS (including how to claim/apply) can be found on the Services Australia web site.
Child Care Subsidy Activity Test
The number of hours of subsidised childcare families can receive is related to how many ‘hours of recognised activity’ (work, study, voluntary work, looking for work, etc) the families do per fortnight.
| Hours of recognised activity per fortnight | Maximum number of hours of subsidised childcare per CCS fortnight |
|---|---|
| Less than 8 hours | 0 hours if you earn above $83,820 24 hours if you earn $83,280 or below 36 hours - children enrolled in our '4-year-old' kindergarten program and Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander children, regardless of family activity |
| 8 hours to 16 hours | 36 hours |
| More than 16 hours to 48 hours | 72 hours |
| More than 48 hours | 100 hours |
Additional notes about Child Care Subsidy
- A ‘withholding percentage’ is applied to CCS. This means the government retains 5% of CCS to offset potential Centrelink debts incurred in the future. The withholding is released to families annually if there are no debts.
- All individuals are required to provide a ‘reasonable’ adjustable taxable income estimate when they claim (apply for) CCS. Where an individual is a member of a couple, the individual will need to provide an estimate of both their and their partner’s adjustable taxable income for that year.
- Individuals will also be required to provide a reasonable adjusted taxable income estimate for each new financial year.
More information about CCS (including how to claim/apply) can be found on the Services Australia web site.
Applying for CCS can be complicated and confusing – don’t hesitate to contact us 03 4216 0600 or info@imaginationgarden.com.au if you need some help applying for CCS.
