ChildcareScout

Childcare centres in Essendon VIC

ChildcareScout lists 22 ACECQA-approved education and care services in Essendon, VIC. Of these, 22 are centre-based and 0 are family day care. 5 currently hold Exceeding NQS or Excellent overall ratings, and 17 are Meeting NQS; 0 have no published overall rating. The average ChildcareScout Score among scored services is 87. Fees and vacancies are not published by ACECQA, so they appear as Not available. Register data on this page was last imported 26 Aug 2026.

Melbourne city hubNear meFees & CCSData sources
Services
22
Centre-based
22
Family day care
0
Avg score
87

NQS rating distribution

  • Excellent0
  • Exceeding NQS5
  • Meeting NQS17
  • Working Towards NQS0
  • Significant Improvement Required0
  • Not published0

Essendon vs nearby vs VIC

Compare published NQS shares and average ChildcareScout Score for Essendon, nearby indexed suburbs, and Victoria.

Exceeding / Excellent %

  • Essendon22.7%
  • Nearby suburbs19.5%
  • VIC21%

Meeting NQS %

  • Essendon77.3%
  • Nearby suburbs65.9%
  • VIC68.4%

Avg ChildcareScout Score

Bars zoomed to 83–88 so small gaps are visible

  • Essendon87
  • Nearby suburbs85
  • VIC86

Service counts in each area

  • Essendon22
  • Nearby suburbs41
  • VIC5,017

Shares use published ACECQA overall ratings. Nearby is the average of indexed suburbs closest to this place. Fees and vacancies are not included. Bar lengths use a compressed scale so large state totals don’t hide local counts.

Services in Essendon

Nearby suburbs

Compare suburbs

Postcodes: 3040

Source freshness: 26 Aug 2026

Waitlists guide · Score methodology

Frequently asked questions

How many childcare services are in Essendon VIC?
22 ACECQA-approved services are listed in Essendon, including 22 centre-based. 5 of them hold an Exceeding NQS or Excellent rating. Daily fees are not published in the national registers, so contact each service for current fees.
Which childcare in Essendon has the highest ChildcareScout Score?
Explorers Early Learning - Essendon (Exceeding NQS) currently ranks first in Essendon on ChildcareScout Score, which weighs NQS quality, information completeness and location. It is a ranking aid, not an ACECQA rating.
How does childcare quality in Essendon compare with VIC?
23% of services in Essendon are Exceeding NQS or Excellent, compared with 21% across VIC and 20% in nearby suburbs.
Is Essendon near other childcare areas?
Essendon is closest to the Melbourne hub. See the Melbourne childcare page for a wider radius search and the nearby-suburb comparison on this page.