Welcome
Welcome to St Stephen’s Preschool. We hope you find lots of interesting and helpful information about our preschool on this site.
As a starting point here is a “snap shot” of our Preschool.
We…
- are open from 8.30 am and 4 pm during NSW public school terms.
- offer fee reductions for low income health care card holders, ATSI families and families of children with disabilities.
- are proudly rated Exceeding under the National Quality Standards.
- value, promote and facilitate high quality interactions between children, staff and our families.
- our Child:staff ratios are significantly above the regulatory requirement.
- have highly experienced, passionate, university trained Early Childhood Teachers, Diploma and Certificate three qualified educators.
- have an Inclusion Support Team including a Special Education Teacher and a Social Worker/Behaviour therapist who work in conjunction with our team and families to ensure that the children are receiving the most relevant and appropriate supports.
- are a Community Based, ‘not for profit’ Preschool. Each year our Board of Management is elected at our Annual General Meeting and comprises members of St Stephen’s Church and preschool family members.
“At St Stephen’s it is our belief that it is our role and responsibility to champion the rights of children above all else and that underpins all that we do.”
Our Preschool sits on the land of the Durag and Guringai people, the traditional custodians of the land. We pay respects to elders past, present and emerging.
Welcome from Our Acting Director Yvette Karwaj
Our Preschool has been a part of the local community for over 50 years (est 1972) serving as part of the Christian ministry of St Stephens Anglican Church. We proudly sit on Darug and Guringai country as we serve our God and local community.
We provide a quality educational learning framework that enriches every child in collaboration with families and the wider community. The Early Learning Framework (EYLF) drives all that we do at Preschool and recognises that all children’s learning is ongoing and prepares them not only for School but will set them up to be lifelong learners.
We value the whole child- the spiritual, physical, emotional, social and cognitive child. Our desire is for your child to feel valued and for them to develop a sense of ‘belonging, being and becoming’ while attending our Preschool.
We believe that all children should know, feel and believe that they are important, special, valued and safe.
Yvette Karwaj (Acting Director)
There is a virtual tour below for you and we have scheduled in person “tour times” available during the term. If you are would like to join a tour please contact the Preschool office for details.
What Parents Say
“We have had the most wonderful experience with St Stephens preschool, and it has been a second home to our child. The love and care that she has received from the staff have been nothing short of exceptional. We truly appreciate the dedication and friendliness shown by the teachers and caregivers at St Stephens. She has thrived under your nurturing environment, and we have witnessed tremendous growth and learning during her time at the preschool.
We want to express our heartfelt gratitude to the entire staff at St Stephens for creating a safe, loving, and enriching environment for her. Their teaching strategies have been outstanding and we are impressed with how much our child has learned and grown in their care. We will always cherish the memories made here.”
IrisI cannot recommend St Stephens highly enough. There’s a saying amongst staff and families at the preschool; “once a St Stephens family, always a St Stephens family”, and it reflects how welcoming, supportive and caring the staff have been to our family over the four years my two children attended there.
The effort that the teaching and office staff make to ensure that preschool is a fun, caring and nurturing environment is evident every day. Play based learning with a combination of structured group time and free play at ‘stations’ set up with thoughtful and cleverly designed intentional learning opportunities nurture the children’s development, including gross and fine motor skills. But it’s the ability of the staff to so quickly get to know your child, recognise and understand their strengths and developmental needs, and to develop their social skills that I’ve valued most. All of these things create the best environment for developing the children’s school readiness.
My daughter went from being child who was easily overwhelmed by any change in routine to a confident leader who is resilient and thriving at school. My previously shy son has become a much more confident child socially, and is developing his fine and gross motor skills in readiness for kindergarten. Both kids talk with enthusiasm about their time at preschool, and happy children who also have the social skills, confidence and readiness for their schooling years is exactly what we hoped preschool would deliver for our kids.
SarahI wish my child could have joined St Stephens Pre School last year .She absolutely loves the school and all the staff are amazing.It is her favourite place to go and she enjoys every minute of it.
Cyndi
