​Mulberry Garden Early Learning Centre (Family Day Care Scheme) endeavours to provide excellent home-based education and care to families and children, and assistance and guidance to family day care educators registered through the Mulberry Garden Scheme, in accordance with the National Quality Framework. This includes using the approved learning frameworks, the Early Years learning Framework (EYLF), and the My Time Our Place framework for school aged children (MTOP). We will abide by the Education and Care Services National Regulations and Nation Law, and other relative legislation, including, but not limited to, Workplace Health and Safety Act, and the Child Protection Act.  We believe diversity, sustainability, and ongoing learning and reflective practice are essential to the Early Childhood Education and care Industry. Mulberry Garden Early Learning Centre’s core values in conjunction with the Principles of the EYLF provide the core structure for all decision making.
 
 The Service and registered educators will collaborate to provide home-based environments that promote the health and safety of the families, children, and community members who use them. Together the service and educators will ensure the design of the facilities are appropriate for operation. Coordinators and educators will maintain service facilities, furniture and equipment and ensure they are safe, clean, and appropriate for use. Family Day Care Educators and Coordinators will ensure the physical environment promotes competence, are inclusive and supports the access of every child, as well as play-based learning and exploration. Indoor and outdoor environments engage every child in quality experiences in both built and natural environments. Educators create a physical environment that nurtures and support children in their learning and enables them to become confident individuals who are socially and environmentally responsible members of our community.
 
Our Service’s primary focus is the health and safety of the children enrolled with the Mulberry Garden Scheme. The service, Coordinators and educators will work in conjunction with families, children, and the community to ensure each child’s health, safety, and protection is supported and promoted. To do this we will ensure the development and review of appropriate policies, procedures, and practices are in place to support, the wellbeing and comfort, healthy lifestyle, supervision, incident and emergency management and protection of each child.
 
We will seek input and encourage engagement from families and the wider community to contribute to service decisions, as we form collaborative partnerships and respectful relationships, and honour parent’s role as the child’s first and primary educators. We will endeavour to ensure families are supported and parents’ views are respected, while supporting children’s access and participation.
 
Educational programs will be developed using an approved learning framework, be child centred and provide learning opportunities that enhance each child’s learning and development. Practice will ensure educators facilitate and extend on each child’s learning and development through intentional teaching, responsive teaching and scaffolding, and child directed learning, which reflects the needs and interests of each child. Educators and Coordinators will take a planned and reflective approach to the implementation of the program for each child and will continue an ongoing cycle of assessment and planning. Educators will critically reflect on each child’s development and learning which will drive program planning and implementation. Educators, families, and children will be apart of the ongoing process and educators will continue to inform families of their child’s progress.
 
 
Staffing arrangements will be reflective of the minimum qualifications and ratios set out in the National Regulations. The service and Coordinators will ensure the organisation of educators enhances children’s learning and development, and that every effort is made to ensure the continuity of staff. Management, service staff, educators and assistants will exude professionalism, engage in respectful, ethical, and collaborative relationships, and ensure professional standards guide practice, interactions, and relationships.
 
Educators engaged with the service will build respectful and equitable relationships with each child and ensure they are maintained. Educators will ensure their interactions with children are positive, responsive, and sensitive, while ensuring the dignity and rights of every child is preserved. Educators will support children to self-regulate, collaborate, learn from, and help each other. Educators believe in all children’s capacities to succeed and hold high expectations for their achievement in learning.
 
Mulberry Garden believes that effective governance and leadership promotes a positive organisational culture and professional learning community. We aim to ensure our management systems, and service roles and responsibilities are clearly defined, understood, and support effective decision making and operation of the service. We are driven by continuous improvement, professional development and support our educational leaders in the development and implementation of educational program, assessment, and planning cycles.