PHILOSOPHY STATEMENT

Belonging

At Styles Street Children’s Community Long Day Care Centre we are a community of learners that strive to provide a welcoming, caring and stimulating environment where all children, families and staff feel a sense of safety and belonging.

Our image of the child

We view early childhood as a unique time to be respected and celebrated in the here and now, while also acknowledging the great importance this time has in laying foundations for future learning, health, and wellbeing.

We see children as competent and capable learners who are active and informed citizens who can contribute to their world and enjoy positive relationships with others. We support children to grow and learn by providing equitable environments and experiences, giving them opportunities to achieve learning outcomes and flourish into confident, caring, and creative individuals. 

Professional and dedicated staff

The core of Styles Street is our dedicated staff members. We acknowledge and value the commitment of management, team members and educators to the wellbeing of the children, as well as delivering quality early education outcomes. We strive to create an environment where all team members feel valued for their professionalism, commitment to lifelong learning and knowledge.

Learning through play

We are a community of playful learners where children can explore, wonder, and create through play and enquiry.  We value play as children’s work - it is through this medium that children learn and grow. Play can be spontaneously created by children or a planned experience, set up by our experienced teachers and educators. Our teachers and educators respond intentionally to children’s interests, wonderings, needs and ideas in play to support and extend on children’s learning and development.

Our passion for learning extends to us seeking learning opportunities to develop our own practices, knowledge, and environments.

Relationships with people and place

Relationships form the basis of our work in supporting children’s wellbeing and learning.  We take time to build respectful and collaborative relationships with children, families, colleagues and the wider community. Heading out the gate into community with the children strengthens their relationship to people and place.  

Holistic Wellbeing

We nurture children’s social, emotional, and physical wellbeing as we know they are important foundations for development and lifelong learning. A strong sense of wellbeing provides children with confidence and optimism which maximises their learning potential (EYLFV2.0: 2022).

Diversity and Inclusion

We welcome and celebrate diversity in all its forms, creating inclusive learning environments to optimise learning by all. We respect multiple ways of living, knowing, doing and being and value the benefits of diversity within each family, our school community and wider society (EYLFv2.0: 2022).

We challenge biases in our thinking, environment, practices, curriculum and interactions to create a community where everyone feels a sense of being and belonging and are supported for successful lifelong learning.

Towards Reconciliation

We respect and value the traditional custodians of the Gadigal and Wangal land we work, learn and play on. We are committed to work towards reconciliation by embedding First Nations histories, knowledge, cultures and languages within our program and practice. We think deeply and, where possible, connect with Aboriginal and Torress Strait Islander people about how to embed First Nation’s perspectives into our program and practice.

Eco conscious

We love the natural world. We see it is an essential part of our lives in Australia and so we craft learning experiences for children to fall in love with it too. Sustainability inspires our curriculum and influences the evolution of our centre. We are constantly working towards more sustainable practices, working closely with children and families to better our practices and build children’s knowledge and skills to care for the environment and country we learn and play on every day.

References

Australian Government Department of Education [AGDE] (2022). Belonging, Being and Becoming: The Early Years Learning Framework for Australia (V2.0). Australian Government Department of Education for the Ministerial Council.

Ann, Pelo (2013). The Goodness of Rain: Developing an Ecological Identity in Young Children. Exchange Press.

Scarlet, Red Ruby (2016). The Anti-bias Approach in Early Childhood. Multiverse Publishing.

Styles Street Children’s Community Long Day Care Centre is committed to the safety and empowerment of every child in our care and wider community. At our core, we value social, emotional, and physical wellbeing as the ultimate foundation for quality engagement in learning and life and maintain respect within all of our relationships and interactions. Our service is committed to providing an environment that fosters, health, development, culture, spirituality, self-respect, and dignity, free from violence and exploitation.

All children have the right to experience quality education and care in an environment that promotes opportunities to thrive with adults who safeguard and advocate for their health, safety, and wellbeing. Our service has a moral and legal responsibility to ensure that the rights and best interests of the child are paramount and provides training, resources and information and guidance to support this to all stakeholders. We have a zero tolerance of child abuse, and all educators, teachers and volunteers of our service are mandatory reporters who are required by law to report suspected child abuse and neglect to Government authorities, including the Department of Communities and Justice Child Protection Helpline (Phone: 132 111). All allegations and safety concerns will be treated seriously and in alignment with our policies and procedures.

Styles Street supports a partnership approach with families and acknowledges our shared responsibility for children’s health, safety, wellbeing, and development. We advocate for families to have active communication and participation in our programs. Along with families, Styles Street values the voice of the child. We aim to provide children ample, ongoing opportunities to express their views and perspectives around matters which effect their lives and consider these in a respectful, serious matter. Together, we create a culture and environment which has the best interests of children at heart.

We are committed to the cultural and linguistic safety of all children, with acknowledgment and recognition of the gap of access to early education and care effecting Aboriginal children. At Styles Street we are also committed to providing and maintaining safe environments for children who experience disability. We promise our children and the wider community that we will celebrate all children for the differences and put immense value on diversity.