At our centre childhood is celebrated. When they play and explore, children's imagination and curiosity is sparked – they enjoy learning, and are inspired to continue learning more.
At KU Faulconbridge, our play-based program intentionally provides opportunities and activities based upon the Early Years Learning Framework, for your child to discover and pursue their own interests and strengths.
We believe partnership with families is fundamental and continually look for ways for families to have an active involvement in their child’s learning journey. By valuing strong collaborative relationships, we aim to create a place where learning is valued and fostered.
Our centre is a welcoming and nurturing space where each child is immersed in a rich tapestry of educationally interactive experiences – a space where children are supported to be their own, unique selves, growing and developing a sense of belonging and empowerment.
Our program offers children the opportunity to engage in a wide variety of learning experiences and activities, each specifically designed to promote children’s confidence as capable, active participants in their own learning. Children are presented with a range of activities including gardening, arts and crafts, music and movement, physical play, block building, sand and water play, science experiments, early numeracy activities such as counting and measurement, and early literacy activities such as reading, drawing and writing.
We greatly value the strong relationships between our staff, children and families, and we look forward to the opportunity of including your family in the life of our centre.
We Focus On
In addition to the high quality well-rounded programs we offer, all KU centres are also encouraged to develop an area of focus.
At KU Faulconbridge, we focus on the Circle of Security and the Educaring approach.
We incorporate this into our program through our approach to transitions. There are several stages of transition children experience, from orientation, to when they arrive in the morning, to their transition between rooms and finally their transition to school. We support the children by including two terms of orientation visits to Faulconbridge Public School and ensuring our teachers meet with the children’s new teachers to pass on information.
We feel that the children benefit from this focus, because both the Circle of Security and the Educaring approach provide solid research for how we as educators can help support children to become competent, focused, involved, cooperative, resourceful, initiating, confident, aware, secure, attentive, curious, exploring, interested and inner-directed. In addition, children are supported to develop the disposition and skills that will help them become lifelong learners.
Our Quality
Our centre has been independently assessed by the NSW Department of Education under the National Quality Standards, and are proud to be rated as Exceeding the National Quality Standard.
However what matters most is what our families think...
“I know that working within childcare and education is incredibly challenging and all of the staff at KU Faulconbridge are doing an amazing job. We truly feel that our children are in a safe and encouraging environment, not only physically but emotionally.” - KU Faulconbridge parent
“How grateful we are for the first class care the kids get at KU Faulconbridge. It is exemplary. Thanks to all the wonderful teachers at KU Faulconbridge.” – KU Faulconbridge parent
Our Environment
Each KU centre is unique. The best outcomes for children are created within relationships and interactions between children and staff, and children and their families, not within four walls. We work hard to create beautiful, interesting, homelike learning environments for children – whatever our setting.
KU Faulconbridge is an architecturally designed facility, located on the school grounds of Faulconbridge Public School. The before and after school care and vacation care operates across the oval in the school hall, making it easy for families to manage the logistics of their children being in different places. The teachers at the school also bring their children to KU Faulconbridge, so there is a wonderful sense of community.
Our playground is designed to maximise the use of the natural environment and allow children to play and explore as they would in their own backyard. We offer stimulating activities that arouse children’s curiosity and encourage them to choose from a variety of planned experiences, expanding their learning potential. Our playground includes natural elements such as sand, water, grass, mud, leaves and twigs, and we also offer gross motor experiences such as climbing, jumping and physical play. We foster the holistic development of each child so they feel inspired to create, imagine and play.
Our Reconciliation Action Plan
KU was proud to launch its inaugural Innovate Reconciliation Action Plan (RAP) in 2016. At KU Faulconbridge, we began our journey to develop our centre’s RAP in 2018 and we are proud to launch it now. Please view it here.
Other Features
Child Care Subsidy
Cooked Meal
Designed Centre
Extended Hours
Hat and Sunscreen
Lunch
Transition to School
Play-based Learning
Parking
Outdoor Play
Nappies
Storypark
Education for Sustainability
Child Care Subsidy
The centre is an approved service for CCS, therefore fees may vary depending on individual circumstances.
Cooked Meal
The centre has a chef and provides a seasonal menu with freshly cooked food, including morning tea, lunch, afternoon tea and a late snack.
Designed Centre
The centre has been recently renovated and refurbished.
Extended Hours
The centre provides extended hours of care and operates a minimum of eight hours a day.
Hat and Sunscreen
As part of the centre’s duty of care in minimising exposure to Ultraviolet Radiation (UVR) and promoting sun safe practices among children, families and staff, the centre provides each child with a KU hat and sunscreen is administered by staff where possible 20 minutes before commencing outdoor play.
Lunch
The centre provides a seasonal menu including lunch.
Transition to School
The centre offers a full preschool program and places a strong emphasis on programs which challenge and extend children’s abilities and confidence, aiding their transition to school.
Play-based Learning
Our high quality play-based programs are based on current research and are planned by experienced and qualified early childhood staff. Through play children learn the skills, knowledge, feelings and dispositions that provide a solid foundation for their life-long learning.
Parking
Parking for drop-off and pick-up is available.
Outdoor Play
The centre provides a natural outdoor environment designed as an active place for learning. We encourage children to develop an understanding about sustainability by exploring the natural world around them.
Nappies
All nappies are supplied by the centre and included in the fee.
Storypark
The centre provides a secure, private online communication portal called Storypark at no cost that is designed to document your child’s progress and learning and provide you with updates about your child.
Education for Sustainability
The centre has embraced a commitment to a more sustainable early education community, embedding sustainability into pedagogy and practice. We welcome families participation.
Trish Heeley
Director
Trish is a highly qualified university-trained early childhood teacher with over 35 years’ experience working in various settings with children and infants. She has been working at KU Faulconbridge since 2021.
She has a passion for sustainability, relationships with children and families and supporting educators’ professional development.
Our Team
Our team of early childhood educators are qualified, experienced, caring and highly motivated. All hold specialist qualifications in early childhood education. We believe that the positive interactions children have with our staff are the most important component of our high quality program.
The daily fees for 2023 at KU Faulconbridge Children's Centre are:
Infants: $138.00
Toddlers: $138.00
Preschoolers: $134.50
This is the full daily fee. If you are entitled to Child Care Subsidy, this will reduce the daily fee you are charged.
In an increasingly competitive marketplace, KU has remained very proudly a not-for-profit provider of quality education for more than 125 years. Like all early childhood education providers, our costs continue to be subject to market factors such as CPI, salary costs, Government funding and the requirements of the National Quality Framework.
Our fees are designed to cover the operational costs of delivering the unique KU learning experience, and to ensure KU can continue delivering those experiences for many years to come. Any surplus we may make is reinvested into our local staff, continually improving the quality of our services, and ensuring our long-term sustainability. KU does not distribute our profits to shareholders or send them offshore.
About Child Care Subsidy
Child Care Subsidy is the main payment to assist families with the costs of childcare. It is paid directly to the childcare provider and passed onto families as a fee reduction wherever families meet the criteria. The level of subsidy you receive, as well as the number of hours you will be subsidised, depends on your individual family’s circumstances.
If you do not already have one, you will need a MyGov account linked to Centrelink to claim any subsidy you may be eligible for, and to find out more information, please contact Centrelink on 136 150 or visit https://www.dese.gov.au.
NSW Start Strong Fee Relief
From 2023, the NSW government has provided additional fee relief funding, based on $2,110 per eligible 4 year old child attending a preschool program within a long day care service. This funding is applied as a weekly credit to the gap fee after CCS has been applied or to full fees where a family does not receive CCS. The Start Strong fee relief will not impact CCS entitlements.
Start Strong fee relief funding is for children who are 4 years old on or before 31 July 2023, and can only be accessed in one service. This could either be in a community preschool or long day care service. If you have a child who may be eligible, please discuss this with your service Director.
The NSW Department of Education requires parents to sign the ‘Fee Relief Declaration and Consent’ form at the time of enrolment. Your eligibility for Start Strong fee relief Funding is conditional upon signing this form.
