Parent Involvement

Community is very important to us at NNS and we strongly encourage and welcome family involvement and support. Recognising and knowing that families are their child’s first and most influential teachers, we work in close partnership with families, knowing the incredible rewards that come from working together. We also welcome you to spend time with us, sharing a special passion with the children, participating in fundraising and social events, sharing your ideas at our termly parent/teacher evenings, joining our Management Committee or joining us on school excursions.  Many opportunities will present themselves where you can get involved in helping out the preschool and our community. As Loris Malaguzzi stated, “The environment should act as an aquarium which reflects the ideas, ethics, attitudes and culture of the people who live in it”.

Management Committee

We are a community based preschool governed by a volunteer Parent Management Committee, which, together with the Co-Directors, govern and lead with a shared united vision, inspired by our philosophical approach to early childhood education. We are committed to the provision of inclusive, high-quality education with affordable fees, focusing on continual improvement to ensure long term viability and the wellbeing of the preschool for years to come.  Committee members are directors of the organisation for a two year term with the possibility to continue, and are elected at our Annual General Meeting held in March each year. Roles include chair, vice chair, secretary, treasurer, staff liaison officer and directors. The Management Committee meets twice a term at the preschool and, through taking on the responsibility of governing this very precious preschool, strong friendships and commitment to the preschool are made.

Fundraising Committee

 The NNS Fundraising Social Committee is run by a volunteer group of parents.  The primary aim of the committee is to raise funds for the preschool and organise social events for our families.  Each year we have one extraordinary major fundraising evening for parents, where the funds raised are used to enhance the preschool environment and resources for children.  All of these major fundraisers have raised extraordinary sums of money for our preschool – anywhere between $33,000 and $40,000 a year!  Examples of how the money has been spent over the past years are many, including the Melaleuca garden renovation, the construction of the Grevillea deck, the provisioning of an outdoor dunny as well as new IT resources for the children to use.  None of these are included in the fees and, without the fundraising efforts of our families and community, the preschool would not be able to offer the lovely environment and resources that it does.  The Fundraising Social Committee also organise a wonderful Family Fun Day at the beginning of each year to welcome our families.  This is lots of fun and has included activities such as face painting, badge making, magicians, jumping castles, firefighters, police and sporting visits, not to mention the coffee, cake stalls and sausage sizzle!  Our preschool prides itself on our sense of community spirit and we need our families to get involved, support and attend these events.  It’s a great way to get to know other parents and have fun at the same time.  The Fundraising Social Committee is elected at the start of each year and there is a handover from members from the previous year.  This is a role where you work very closely with each other and lifelong friendships can be made.

Room Parents

Our room parents hold a very important role within our community as they take responsibility for bringing together all of the families in their child’s class by arranging social events such as park visits after preschool and coffee mornings and dinner dates for parents, supporting children and families in forming and deepening their friendships.  Regular newsletters and emails from room parents adds to the sense of community whilst helping parents keep informed.  The room parents also support the teachers in their room, the Directors, and the Fundraising Social Committee when necessary.  It is an important role and one that is also very rewarding and, as in the Fundraising Social Committee, lifelong friendships can be made.

Other Ad Hoc Support

Whether it’s sharing any special talents with the children, participating in fundraising and social events, helping out with a morning tea or joining us on a school excursion, many opportunities will present themselves where you can get involved in helping out the school and our community.  We are always welcome to new ideas for engaging and involving our families and wider community.