Centre of Excellence

Early Childhood Education and Care

Every Child Deserves the Best Start in Life

The TAFE SA Centre of Excellence in Early Childhood Education and Care is a national leader in vocational education and training (VET), dedicated to building a skilled, inclusive, and culturally responsive workforce that supports children, families, and communities across Australia.

About the Centre of Excellence

Established through a joint initiative between the Australian and South Australian governments, the Centre is based at TAFE SA’s Adelaide Campus and serves as a hub for research, innovation, and workforce development in the early childhood sector.

Guided by the recommendations of the Royal Commission into Early Childhood Education and Care, the Centre collaborates with educators, universities, industry stakeholders, and Aboriginal Community Controlled Organisations to co-design training that reflects real-world needs and supports inclusive practice.

Early Childhood Education and Care
Early Childhood Education and Care

Kickstart your Future: An Introduction to Careers in Early Childhood Education and Care in Australia  

TAFE SA is now offering a free, self-paced online short course that gives you a taste of what it’s really like to work in this rewarding sector.  Developed by TAFE SA’s Centre of Excellence in Early Childhood Education and Care, the course offers real-world insights into this rewarding career. 

Find out more and start this course

Current Initiatives

  • Professional Learning: Understanding Autism

    A new pilot program is launching to support educators working with autistic children, often before formal diagnosis. Certificate III students will engage in blended learning, combining online modules with face-to-face workshops.

  • APY Lands Methodology and Translation

    The Centre is translating early childhood concepts into Pitjantjatjara and embedding Anangu ways of learning into core training units for delivery across the APY Lands.

  • Professional Learning: Mentoring for Leadership

    A 10-week pilot program is underway to build mentoring and leadership skills, helping retain and grow talent within the early childhood workforce.

  • Degree Apprenticeship

    The Centre is developing new career pathways, including degree-equivalent apprenticeships, to support long-term workforce sustainability.

  • National Collaboration: Diploma Traineeship Uptake Enquiry

    The Centre is leading a national enquiry to improve uptake of Diploma qualifications, co-designed with Universities, Jobs and Skills Councils, unions, and other stakeholders. It also supports sector capability through training products and recognition frameworks.

View a full list of current initiatives

National Impact

The Centre is one of 20 TAFE Centres of Excellence being established under the National Skills Agreement, with a joint investment of $28 million over five years.

It aims to:

  • Lift skills and capability across the early childhood sector.
  • Accelerate commitments to Closing the Gap through culturally safe education.
  • Provide alternative pathways into the sector to meet urgent workforce demand.

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    • Based at the TAFE SA Adelaide Campus, the Centre serves as a leading hub for research, innovation and training for the sector.  It brings together educators, researchers, professionals to collaborate, share knowledge, and develop best-practice approaches, driving improvements and advancements in Early Childhood Education and Care training programs on a national scale.  

    • Located at the TAFE SA Adelaide Campus, the Centre is a leading hub for research, innovation and training in the early childhood the sector. It brings together educators, researchers, and professionals to collaborate, share knowledge, and develop best-practice approaches that improve training outcomes nationally.

      What are the key goals of the Centre

      • The Best Start for Every Child:
        Ensuring all children - regardless of location, background, or ability - have access to quality, inclusive early childhood education and care.
      • A Stronger and Skilled Workforce:

        By addressing workforce needs, the Centre will create pathways for people to enter, return to, or advance within the sector, building a compassionate and capable workforce commited to nurturing our youngest learners.
      • Commitment to First Nations People and Closing the Gap:
        Recognising First Nations peoples' 60,000 years of knowledge, teaching and learning and the wisdom that comes from being the world's oldest culture, we will collaborate with Aboriginal Community Controlled Organisations and partner to deliver culturally safe education that reflects First Nations knowledge, teaching and learning.

    • No, the Centre is not an early childhood centre. It is a knowledge hub and innovation hub with research and development team members. The centre will feature a purpose-built space and Playlab to run pilot programs for professional development and sector demonstration. These initiatives explore new delivery models and pathways into the sector.

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Early Childhood Education and Care Courses

Interested in studying Early Childhood Education and Care with TAFE SA?

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Latest News

Picture of two Early Childhood and Care Educators

Vocational Degree - Strengthening the Pathways for Early Childhood Teachers

The Centre of Excellence in Early Childhood Education and Care is committed to strengthening pathways for existing and emerging Early Childhood Educators.
Picture of a laptop with student interacting with short course page

Kickstarting Futures

The Centre has just launched a new ECEC taster short course, designed to inspire and attract the next generation of educators.

New Mentoring Program to Benefit ECEC Educators

The Centre launched its first training product, Effective Mentoring for Early Childhood Education and Care, at TAFE SA’s Adelaide Campus in July.
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