Our Philosophy

Firstly, we are proud to acknowledge the Wurundjeri and Boonwurrung people from the East Kulin region as the traditional owners of this land, and recognise the continuing connections to land, water, and community. We pay respect to Elders past and present.

EY@PP is a place where:

children feel happy, safe, nurtured, and surrounded by warm, responsive relationships
families feel welcome and supported
community members can meet, build connections, and develop a strong sense of community.

Our Vision is for strong and cohesive community in which children are central and families are supported.

Our Mission is to work together to deliver accessible, high quality, integrated, community-based early childhood services that maximise child and family wellbeing, and build or strengthen community connectedness.

Our Mission

To work collaboratively with children, families, other early childhood services, local primary schools, maternal child health and local community to ensure high levels of learning for all children.

To engage in a collective inquiry for best practice in teaching and best practice in learning.

We take a strength’s-based approach to children’s learning, focusing on what they can do, what they are progressing towards, what they are developing and provide the time and support to cater for children’s individual needs.

Child Centred

We value a play-based learning environment, rich with social interactions that integrate play and learning.

We promote children’s agency, enabling them to make choices and decisions that influence events in their day. This develops their self-worth as capable and competent contributors to their learning and reiterates to them our belief in their ability to make decisions and to do things independently.

Our play base program offers a range of open-ended experiences and materials which encourage the children to self-select, transform the physical environment and play independently. Our practice ensures that children have extended periods of play and learning without interruption.

Supporting Families

Early Years @ Phoenix Park community ensures that families have the opportunity to be involved in the service and contribute to service decisions. The expertise of families is recognised and they share in decision making about their child’s learning and wellbeing.

Educators exchange information regularly with families, sharing knowledge about their child and working towards a shared goal of reaching their full potential.

Early Years @ Phoenix Park has a partnership with our onsite Maternal and Child health Nurses, who share with us their knowledge and expertise around child development, milestones, and referrals to other experts and practitioners in early childhood fields, such as paediatricians, occupational therapists, speech therapists, and social skills groups.

Building Communities

Early Years @ Phoenix Park is situated in a community hub. We are very fortunate to have the Phoenix Park play ground on our door step, as well as the Phoenix Park library and the Phoenix Park Community centre, which have welcomed us the use of their facilities. We have also built strong partnerships with other local children centres, local primary schools, and the Urban Forest Reserve where our children go out on country.

The children at EYPP spend lots of time in the community, even our littlest learners are often seen out and about in our four-seated stroller visiting local cafes for a baby chino, rolling down the hills of Treyvaud Memorial Park, or purchasing resources from Chadstone shopping centre. It is an expectation that the children at EYPP are not only heard, but are seen in the community too, so we plan many excursions big and small.

Working Together

Collaborative partnerships with families are built in an environment of mutual respect, trust, and honesty, which is established through effective communication.

We recognise that supporting strong relationships with our families is a powerful way to improve children’s educational, health, and wellbeing outcomes.

We support families in their parenting roles, and their values and beliefs about child rearing are respected. We recognise the expertise of families and invite them to share in the decision making about their child’s learning and wellbeing.