We are establishing a 100-place Early Childhood Education and Care centre for families in our community, opening in 2018.

The Institute is committed to attracting, developing and retaining the best and brightest workforce, in order to deliver positive health outcomes to our community. Access to adequate childcare is one of the most significant barriers to ongoing career advancement for our workforce. 

Benefits of the centre

It is expected that the Early Childhood Education and Care centre will result in significant benefits for the Institute and its families including:

• Increased and earlier return to work post maternity leave
• Reduced turnover and improved employee morale
• Reduced absenteeism
• Enhanced reputation and access to a broader talent pool

We believe the establishment of an on-site childcare centre at our medical research institute will lead to more discoveries that will improve health outcomes in Australia and globally.

Centre facilities

The five-storey, multi-purpose Early Childhood Education and Care centre will be located in the forecourt of our Parkville campus. It will include: 

• A flexible, multi-purpose space suitable for combined activities, play groups, health and consultation services

• Six large rooms serviced with bathrooms, staff rooms, arts spaces and storage areas

• Access to shaded, external play areas

• Long day care and an early learning centre incorporating three-year old and four-year old kindergarten programs 

• The opportunity for play groups, health and other services

Services provider

The Institute has appointed FROEBEL Australia to operate the Early Childhood Education and Care Centre.

FROEBEL is a boutique not-for-profit provider of early education and care services with a strong focus on bilingual education and early STEM inquiry-based learning programs. FROEBEL’s services in Australia have all been assessed and rated at ‘Exceeding National Quality Standard’.

The Centre’s team of educators will be trained in FROEBEL’s Little Scientists professional development program, designed to ignite young children’s natural curiosity through inquiry-based learning, child-led discovery and age-appropriate, playful STEM exploration. The program has recently been endorsed by the Australian Government under the National Innovation and Science Agenda.

The Institute is committed to reconciliation and creating meaningful integration of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander culture into all aspects of the organisation. FROEBEL shares this commitment and will be integrating Indigenous culture and history into the curriculum.

Specialising in state-of-the-art bilingual early learning concepts, FROEBEL will also introduce German as a second community language at the Centre. Whilst English will be the main language of the service, a number of German-speaking educators will work with the children in German, all day, every day.

From 2018, families will be able to sign up for the waiting list directly through FROEBEL’s online registration platform. Details will be provided in due course.

More information

• Read more details about the partnership on FROEBEL’s website
• For enquiries about placements email childcare@wehi.edu.au 
• Read the joint statement released by the Institute and FROEBEL Australia