HEAD START BIRTH TO AGE 5 – NOW ENROLLING!

Center based preschool program for ages 3-5

    • Sites located in Southbridge and Webster with new classrooms just opened in East Brookfield and Leicester.
    • Dynamic program to get your child ready for school.
    • Focused on language, literacy, social & emotional development.
    • Breakfast and lunch served daily.
    • Full day, half-day, year round and school year classrooms available.

This application is for NEW APPLICANTS ONLY if YOU or your CHILD have previously attended Head Start and have filled out forms with one of our case managers please contact the center at 508-765-4738 and ask to be directed to one of the case managers. DUPLICATE or INCOMPLETE applications will delay the process. Reminder: you can attach / upload documents to this application. Please have proof of income and your child’s birth certificate ready.

See what our families are saying about how much they love our Head Start program:

Hear from other parents, teachers and children about the impact WCAC’s early education & care programs have made on them HERE.

Please note: WCAC’s Head Start program serves income-eligible families from the communities of Brookfield, Charlton, Douglas, Dudley, East Brookfield, Leicester, Millbury, Oxford, Spencer, Southbridge, Sturbridge, Warren and Webster.

(Worcester residents should contact  (508) 799-3237 for information about the Head Start program offered through the Worcester Public Schools. )


The Worcester Community Action Council’s Head Start program currently serves over 200 children, ages 3-5, and their families in four centers –

  • 25 Cole Avenue, Southbridge;
  • 116 School Street, Webster;
  • 410 East Main Street, East Brookfield and
  • 70 Winslow Avenue, Leicester

Full day, full year; full day, school year; and half day, school-year options are available. The center-based programs provide developmentally appropriate curricula, health and nutrition services, breakfast, lunch and snack, special education opportunities, and family services.

In the event of inclimate weather, WCAC’s Head Start centers will follow public schools in the town the center is located in terms of delayed openings and/or closures. Follow the agency’s social media channels for updated information.

All classrooms are nationally accredited by the National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC). Services are provided at no charge to families meeting income-eligible guidelines.

Parents are considered the primary educator of their children. Parents are therefore strongly encouraged to become involved by attending trainings and workshops, volunteering in their children’s classrooms and becoming members of parent-center committees and policy council.

Head Start Parent Handbook 2023