Returning to work after having a baby can be a stressful and emotional time. Finding the right people to care for your little one can be even more difficult.
TG’s Child Care and Preschool are here to take some of the stress out of the process for families and, with their Armidale centre recently being voted best child care centre in the New England, it’s clear that their hard work is much appreciated by the community.
Armidale Centre Manager, Nik Saunders, believes that what sets TG’s apart is their community focus.
“TG’s Child Care is built by our beautiful families, children, the community and our educators,” said Ms Saunders.
“Trevor and Gayle, the ‘T’ and ‘G’ of TG’s Child Care have created a beautiful culture within our service by providing a fun and inclusive environment where we all live and breathe the TG’s way of ‘love, trust, respect, compassion and fun.”
In what’s been labelled the “TG’s Way”, rather than simply focusing on preparing children for school, centres have three foundation stones that they use to support children in their development.
The three foundation stones are:
- Building relationships
- Understanding our gifts
- Encouraging collective thinking
This philosophy, paired with dedicated and loving educators, and award-winning natural play spaces are no doubt what has allowed TG’s Armidale to exceed ACECQA’s national quality standards across almost all areas.
TG’s Child Care currently has 5 locations in NSW – one in Uralla, three in Wauchope, and Samuelson Crescent in Armidale.
With demand for childcare places across the region at record highs, they are very pleased to announce that a second centre will open on Kirkwood Street in Armidale very soon.
“TG’s is focused on expanding the center’s capacity to meet the growing demand for high-quality Child Care services in the region,” said Ms Saunders.
“This includes plans to open additional campuses such as the new TG’s Child Care Kirkwood Street, which will offer many families around region Child Care,” said Ms Saunders.
Their expansion will not detract from their commitment to support both staff and families alike, with a real dedication to staff development being another stand out feature of TG’s business model.
“We are committed to enhancing and supporting educators to upskill through professional development – By providing educators with a supportive environment, we have had over 17 educators upskill to higher qualifications,” said Ms Saunders.
“TG’s goal is to continue doing this by providing a supportive environment for educators to thrive and do their best.”
Ms Saunders has herself experienced the benefits of working with TG’s for an extended period of time.
“I’d like to thank, beautiful Meg who was my mentor, for taking the time and effort to support me and guide me to be the amazing leader I am today,” said Ms Saunders.
“I began with TG’s straight out of school in 2014 and I have never looked back.”
“My personal values are supported and shine through TG’s vision and philosophy… I have become the type of dedicated leader that all of my employees, can count on professionally and personally, with a strong supportive team anyone can shine.”
“I honestly, cannot picture myself being anywhere else or in any other career. TG’s is a huge part of who I am.”
TG’s Armidale is licensed to care for 75 children and covers ages 6 weeks through to 6 years.
They currently employ 26 educators, some of whom are being supported in gaining their qualifications, all the way through to fully qualified Early Childcare Teachers.
“I’m really proud of the huge diversity in age we have here in our educators, one of our trainees being the youngest at 15 and the oldest of 65,” said Ms Saunders.
“But we’re also all really ‘big kids’ ourselves, and we thrive on creating and providing a safe, caring, inclusive and fun environment for all.”
With a keen eye on the future of childcare in the region, TG’s knows that they wouldn’t be where the are today without the support of the community and want to continue to foster relationships throughout the region.
“I’m a big advocate of community engagement, my team and I have taken a proactive approach to strengthen the connection between TG’s Child Care and the local community,” said Ms Saunders.
“We’ve been involved in many local events like the Autumn festival, parenting workshops and educational seminars, incursions and excursions such as visiting the library, joining the community for events such as the flag raising ceremony at the UNE, and we even had a beautiful display at the recent Armidale Light Festival.”
In a nod to the community that supports them, Ms Saunders also wanted to extend her gratitude on behalf of TG’s.
“TG’s would love the opportunity to thank all of our beautiful families and the local community for always welcoming us and making us feel like a huge part of the community,” said Ms Saunders.
“Thank you to everyone who kindly took time out of their day, to vote for our amazing service – It is great to see the support and feedback from this amazing community.”
For more information about TG’s Child Care Centres, visit their website.
TG’s Childcare were voted by New England Times readers as the Best Child Care in the New England 2024.
See the other winners and more details about this promotion.