Mallacoota Kindergarten was damaged significantly after heavy rainfall in January 2020 and rendered uninhabitable. It had already suffered damage from smoke and ash during the New Year's Eve bushfires that destroyed dozens of homes in Mallacoota and isolated the community for many days. Owned by the East Gippsland Shire Council and operated by YMCA Ballarat, the existing Mallacoota Kindergarten facility has about 24 children are enrolled across 3 and 4-year-old kinder for the 2021.

On 27 February 2020, the Minister for Education announced up to $2.5 million to establish or reinstate a new kindergarten in Mallacoota as soon as possible.

Once complete, the community will have a new, modern kindergarten facility, with new playground, landscaping, and car parking, on the Mallacoota P-12 site. This co-location will offer benefits for children, families, and the staff of the two education services.

The Cultural Heritage Report has been released and can be viewed in PDF and WORD.

A list of Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) can be viewed in PDF and WORD.

As a next step in delivering the kindergarten, we are seeking community feedback on its playground and outdoor spaces. Following initial community feedback, we are committed to delivering the building to a BAL 40 bushfire rating. This may influence the materials used in the design of the landscaping and playground.

Please complete the survey below to have your say on the new Mallacoota Kindergarten playground and outdoor space. The survey will run from Monday 17 May – Monday 7 June 2021.

If you require assistance completing a survey over the phone, or would like a survey posted to you with a postage paid return envelope, please contact the VSBA on 1800 896 950 or email vsba@education.vic.gov.au

In April 2021, the Minister for Early Childhood and the Minister for Education approved the Department of Education and Training’s recommendation that the Mallacoota P-12 College become the location for the new Mallacoota Kindergarten.

The recommendation was informed by stakeholder feedback, listening to the views of the community and the outcome of cultural heritage site investigations.

We will continue to engage with the community and project stakeholders as we deliver the new kindergarten for Mallacoota.

Thank you for joining us at the information session on Monday 22 March at 7:30pm via Zoom with Dr. Rob Gordon and facilitator Gillian Hayman, to discuss the results of cultural heritage investigations, the importance of the Aboriginal Heritage Act 2006 and next steps for the project.

Following the information session, we will provide the information gathered during consultation and the site assessments to the Minister for Early Childhood and the Minister for Education for final decision.

Based on the finding of the cultural heritage investigations and the Department of Education and Training’s commitment to the Aboriginal Heritage Act 2006, we will be recommending the school site, Mallacoota P-12 College, as the location of the new Mallacoota Kindergarten.

The Cultural Heritage Report has been released and can be viewed in PDF and WORD.

A list of Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) can be viewed in PDF and WORD.

Thank you to everybody who joined the VSBA, Bushfire Recovery Victoria (BRV) and trauma recovery specialist Dr Rob Gordon at the community information session on Saturday 29 August via Zoom.

The event provided an opportunity to discuss the options, opportunities and concerns detailed in the What We Heard report.

The next step in the process is to undertake further cultural heritage assessments on both proposed sites to ensure protection of Aboriginal cultural heritage in the area.

We have now collated the comments and feedback into a summary of the event and a list of frequently asked questions.

These documents are available to download under the Community Information tab here.

The online survey closed on Tuesday 16 June 2020. Thank you to everybody who completed the survey.

Once the survey closes we will compile the data into a What We Heard report which will be available to view here.

The report will help influence the design of the new playground and outdoor spaces