Between 2008 and 2021, the Australian Government funded state and territory governments to provide quality preschool programs through the Universal Access National Partnership (UANP).
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What is a national partnership?
A national partnership is an agreement between the Australian Government and state and territory governments.
What is the Universal Access National Partnership?
The UANP aimed to ensure every child could participate in a quality preschool program 15 hours per week (or 600 hours per year) in the year before school.
The preschool program should be:
- delivered in accordance with the National Quality Framework (NQF)
- in a form that meets the needs of children, parents and the community, and
- affordable.
UANP funding benefited about 350,000 children each year and supported about 12,000 preschool services nationally.
The Council of Australian Governments signed the first UANP agreement in 2008. UANP agreements ran until the end of 2021.
From 2022, a new four-year national reform agreement will continue to fund and strengthen the delivery of preschool.
How was progress monitored?
The Australian Bureau of Statistics collects data about early childhood education and care annually.
We use this data to monitor progress under the UANP.
The national reports highlight steady improvements in preschool participation since 2008.