Our centre offers the NSW Government-approved "Start Strong" Preschool Program, providing 600 hours of quality preschool education annually for children aged 3–5 years. This program includes fee relief funding to make early childhood education more affordable for families.

Our Enhanced Learning Program for Preschool children focuses on:

• Numeracy & Literacy: Developing key skills for lifelong learning.
• Self-Regulation: Fostering emotional control and resilience.
• Social & Emotional Development: Supporting independence and building healthy relationships.
• Creativity & Problem-Solving: Encouraging curiosity and critical thinking.

With extended hours and a year-round program (excluding public holidays), our Preschool program is delivered by qualified Early Childhood Teachers committed to supporting your child’s individual development.

Additional Benefits Include:

• Government subsidy: Further reduces out-of-pocket Preschool fees in addition to your eligible Childcare Subsidy (CCS).
• Personalised Learning Plans: Tailored to your child’s unique needs.
• Rhythm and Resilience Program: Music and movement to improve emotional regulation.
• School Readiness: Preparing your child for a smooth transition to school.

We also engage with local schools and provide transition statements, ensuring your child feels confident and prepared for the next steps in their education journey. Stay connected with your child’s progress via our Xplor platform, which offers regular updates on their learning and development.

“Let the child be the scriptwriter, director and the actor in their own play” - Magda Gerber

Nursery Space: 6 weeks – 2 years

Learning starts from before birth, and our Educators have created a welcoming and nurturing nursery environment where each baby feels safe to explore and discover new things - through their senses, their communication and cues (body language, facial expression and sounds) and through experimentation. On any given day you can see the nursery children engaging in all types of play including sensory play, music time, story time and more. Every day provides a brand new, exciting adventure for our babies to support their development, learning and wellbeing.

Toddler Space: 2 - 3 years

Our teachers and educators encourage the children to learn through play to help enhance their sensory-motor development. This happens through carefully planned music, dance, games, role playing and reading experiences.

On any given day the Toddlers can be seen developing their numeracy by building a tower, sorting objects, pointing and identifying shapes and patterns and participating in counting songs and games.

Children in our toddler space are encouraged to participate in group play. Group play is important as it helps our toddlers develop important social skills such as, turn-taking, developing self-confidence and emotional self-regulation. Our skilled team helps children through talking, planning and role modelling.

Preschool Space: 3 – 6 years

Preschool is a unique time for learning with peers and developing skills for later learning including confidence and curiosity, important skills for starting school. Our play-based program has school readiness at its core, encouraging active engagement in learning and supporting a range of positive developmental outcomes including resilience, independence, critical thinking and creativity.

The oral language supports literacy learning and a child’s oral language ability is the best predictor for later success in learning to read and write. Hearing the sounds within a language is the first critical step for all literacy learning. Our team supports our Preschool children's literacy development by engaging in rich discussions, reading, storytelling, dramatic play and experimentation all of which introduce new vocabulary as part of everyday conversations.

Throughout the Preschool year, children use their language to share ideas, ask questions, express themselves, and connect with peers and adults in social settings.

Social-emotional skills, including the ability to self-regulate emotions, are supported through group learning experiences. Our team supports each child’s social and emotional development by labelling and talking about emotions and supporting appropriate responses as together, they engage in new and challenging situations. Our goal in the Preschool year is to prepare children and families for a smooth transition to primary school.

Our centre chef prepares and cooks nutritious meals daily, catering to the unique dietary requirements of every child. We believe that by encouraging active participation (such as growing their own fruit and vegetables, preparing, and finally cooking!) children learn to appreciate and understand the importance of healthy eating across a wide variety of food.

Our centre offers seasonal whole food-based menus – created to delight the fussiest eaters.

Hi my name is Erin, and I am the Centre Manager here at Great Beginnings Bathurst. I began my career in early childhood education and care in 1998 and started working at Great Beginnings Bathurst early in 2020. I have spent the last ten years as a Centre Manager. I hold a Bachelor of Teaching (birth – 8 years).

I have always enjoyed watching children learn, so that’s where my journey started. The more I learn about children’s development, particularly their brain development, the more I want to know. Leading a team of educators who are dedicated to children’s brain and whole child development is a highlight of my career. 

Children are their own unique selves right from birth. They are not incomplete vessels that we have to fill with knowledge and skills rather we are there to inspire and scaffold their world so that we can bring out the best in each child. Magda Gerber is my favourite theorist and her view that all children are born capable guides my teaching style. 

I grew up in Bathurst and have raised four children in this community as a mum and educator. I love the sense of belonging that comes from 20 years in the early childhood sector and seeing Bathurst grow and develop into a thriving town. Our centre will be a responsive and reflective centre that values the knowledge of our families, our place in the Wiradjuiri Country, our children and our future.

All childcare centres, including our centre, use the foundation of play-based learning to guide our experiences every day. With access to a range of age-appropriate learning resources, trained educators, and new experiences among friends, we set children up to thrive in an environment that is dedicated to learning. Children develop their curiosity, problem-solving, confidence and resilience at our centre, and we carefully plan play-based learning experiences around their interests and learning goals. Over time, you will see your child develop abilities such as language, motor movement, memory, concentration and social relationships all by partaking in these experiences - it's a truly incredible journey to witness!

We have a collaborative teaching approach within our centre. Our children are enrolled into a specific room, but our team works as a whole. We have people from multicultural backgrounds, new graduates and experienced educators who all bring different life skills and knowledge, so we draw on our strengths and interests to ensure children are provided with a rich and evolving curriculum. Although we are a new Early Childhood centre to Bathurst our team have worked together in various locations for the last 5 years. The team of educators at Bathurst pride ourselves on being respectful, reflective pedagogists who base our work on the relationships and trust of our families as well as the knowledge and expertise of modern evidence-based theorists. 

Our team understands just how important your children are to you and we ensure we take our responsibilities seriously. Great Beginnings has extensive policy and procedures in place to assist our team in protecting children in our care. You can read more about our commitment to safety here.

To support our families, we stay in contact with families through our all-in-one family app with regular emails and participating in online community awareness events such as the Teddy Bear Hunt and the Rainbow Trail. 

Erica our Chef often bakes additional cakes and slices for families to enjoy together of an afternoon and parents can grab a “cuppa to go” from our tea and coffee station located in our foyer. 

We believe that spending time during the initial stages of your child’s journey into our care reaps the benefits in the longer term so we like to offer the opportunity for lots of informal stay and play sessions so that you already have a rapport before you need to entrust us with the care of your child.

There is always someone on site that can assist with the challenges of enrolling a child to a new centre. Some families are confident and need little nurturing, but some families are hesitant, and we are willing to spend the time to work out what sort of help and support your family needs. 

I look forward to welcoming your family to our centre and answering any questions you have.