Annual Report 2019

Greater reach with Greater impact

VISION

Contributing to a sustainable society through being at the forefront of early and middle childhood education and care to empower and support children, families and professional educators.

StrategIc focus

ChIldren

Our promise to children and families is exceptional quality every day.

People

We are focused on people, realising their competency and potential.

CommunIty

We are stronger together, partnerships are developed strengthened and aligned.

SustaInabIlIty

Our programs are fully utilised, we are viable.

2019 Highlights

New Centres

In 2019 we increased our footprint, officially opening 2 new long day care centres in Canberra and Mayfield. We also proudly opened 4 outside school hours services co-located on school sites including both before and after school care as well as vacation care in North Sydney, Drummoyne, St. Marks and O’Connell.

Additional AMEP Sites

We have continued to open additional centres to support migrant families currently studying English. The Early Learning Centres provide a unique opportunity for children to participate in a program prior to school as well as connect parents together who often experience social isolation.

Program Foundations

We are proud to have developed our Program Foundations in collaboration with our educative teams. These foundations underpin the Gowrie NSW programs and their translation of pedagogical practices to support quality early childhood learning environments.

Partnerships

Gowrie NSW have a long tradition of partnering with other organisations to achieve great outcomes for children and families. In 2019, we have renewed and strengthened our existing partnerships as well as continued to form new ones – deeply understanding we are stronger together.

Tessa Hoser

Chair of Gowrie NSW

Last year’s report highlighted the significant increase in the reach and impact of a range of our services – we had gone through a period of quite rapid growth. This year has seen organisational change and consolidation, with moderate expansion and further development and implementation of our strategic intent.

NIcole Jones

CEO of Gowrie NSW

As the new CEO I have been privileged to listen to the stories of our people who go above and beyond daily to enrich the lives of young children and their families. We strive to be connected and embedded in each one of the 38 communities we now work, and just as in 1940 – as an authentic not for profit we are deeply passionate about making a difference in the world now as we were then.

Our Program Foundations

This year we developed the Gowrie NSW Program Foundations.

The document outlines the four foundations of Gowrie NSW programs: Empowerment, Respectful Relationships, Intentional Play-Based Teaching and Practitioner Inquiry.

Gowrie NSW programs have always had a strong philosophical foundation. We are clear about why and what we do to create quality early learning and middle childhood learning.

Created collaboratively, our Program Foundations document will continue to inform pedagogy and practice at Gowrie NSW for years to come.

Empowerment

Gowrie centres work from a strength-based approach that respects the experiences and knowledge of each child, family and community. Communities, families and children are viewed as strong and capable and are supported to be self-empowered. The curriculum demonstrates respect for children’s ideas, decisions and choices.

RESPECTFUL RELATIONSHIPS

Relationships and strong family and community engagement are central to the Gowrie NSW curriculum. Educators are respectful of children, families, communities and other professionals. They value diverse perspectives, priorities and concerns and build collaborative partnerships with families and strong connections with local communities. Educators are intentionally attuned to individuals and small groups of children.

INTENTIONAL PLAY BASED TEACHING

Since its inception, Gowrie NSW learning spaces have been designed to facilitate play-based learning. Learning environments are designed to facilitate exploration, hypothesising and discover. Educators continue to plan based on the information and insightful knowledge from observations of children and are intentional in their interactions.

PRACTITIONER INQUIRY

The Gowrie NSW curriculum is underpinned by a strong research base. Research has been a key part of Gowrie since the establishment of the Erskineville centre in 1940 as a demonstration child research centre. Gowrie NSW educators today are continually questioning, reflecting on and reconsidering their own practice and implementing and evaluating changes. They are change agents for impactful early childhood education and care practices and advocates for children and the early childhood profession.

Early Education and Care

Our Early Education and Care services continue to build strong and lasting connections with each one of our Gowrie NSW children and families. This is achieved through high levels of retention of our teachers and educators which in 2019, well exceeded sector averages. Retaining great quality teachers and educators ensures attuned and consistent relationships, responsive and engaging learning experiences for children.

Out of School Hours Care

Our school age care service also delivered exceptional programs to our children and families. We are proud to have opened new services in both Sydney as well as regional locations helping us achieve to greater reach in more NSW communities.

Out of School Hours Care

Our school age care service also delivered exceptional programs to our children and families. We are proud to have opened new services in both Sydney as well as regional locations helping us achieve to greater reach in more NSW communities.

Adult Migrant Education Program

This unique program upholds the rights of newly arrived children to Australia to participate in an early learning experience. In partnership with TAFE NSW we are able to provide more than a place for children but also a place of connection for families some of who are experiencing isolation, disadvantage and vulnerability. Our teams go above and beyond to support families to ensure they can live and thrive in the community they belong.

Inclusion

In partnership with KU Children’s Services and Include Me, Gowrie NSW is proud to support a diverse group of early childhood services in their journey to include all children in their service. Inclusion and children’s rights is at the essence of what Gowrie NSW is all about. The Inclusion Agency and Aboriginal Cultural Hub work closely with long day care services in far reaching corners of NSW to ensure they are equipped to increase children’s participation in and early education regardless of circumstance.

Inclusion

In partnership with KU Children’s Services and Include Me, Gowrie NSW is proud to support a diverse group of early childhood services in their journey to include all children in their service. Inclusion and children’s rights is at the essence of what Gowrie NSW is all about. The Inclusion Agency and Aboriginal Cultural Hub work closely with long day care services in far reaching corners of NSW to ensure they are equipped to increase children’s participation in and early education regardless of circumstance.

Education Hub

In 2019, we continued to share our quality expertise by providing professional development to the wider education and care sector. The roots of this part of Gowrie’s work grew almost 80 years ago in the establishment of our Erskineville demonstration centre.

Financial Snapshot

The financial results reflect our investment in our footprint, our people, implementing new systems and upgrading our services and environments for children. The challenges of current market conditions, changes in the Commonwealth funding package created a complex environment for our centres and some of our regional services.

Gowrie NSW remains financially viable with strong reserves and clear strategy for the future.

Where we spent our dollars in 2019

Administration expenses

Fee for service expenses

Depreciation and amortisation

Impairment

Occupancy costs

Salaries and employee benefits

Where our dollars came from in 2019

Adult Migrant English Program

Inclusion Agency Program

Early Education and Care plus
Outside School Hours Care programs

Professional learning and consulting services

Other income

Download the Audited Financial Statement

Where will 2020 lead Gowrie NSW?

In 2020 Gowrie NSW will celebrate 80 years as an organisation. A remarkable milestone, where we will honour the rich heritage which is grounded in research regarding best practice, programs led by experienced qualified teachers, and values of rights, integrity and social justice. These were our founding values and they still resonate strongly today. As we reflect on our past and the people that have blazed the trials before us – we also look to the future and how we support children today and tomorrow.

In 2020 we will continue to invest in our people not only through our professional learning programs but also supporting them to be co-constructors of knowledge as we embed our Program Foundations – the teaching principles that underpin our programs. We will research these foundations through practitioner enquiry and create evidence loops which will link closely with our Education Hub’s professional offerings to the sector.

We will build on our previous work of our Reconciliation Action Plan reviewing and thinking deeply about a new Innovate RAP. We are acutely committed to this work and its authentic translation into actions and words. It must be contextual to each community we are working in, and we will work hard to ensure this work is authentically embedded every day.

We have an ongoing commitment to continue to intorduce systems that help the whole organisation be more efficient and promote innovation. This will support our sustainability well into the future.

We are excited to be creating the next footprints into the future and shaping the history of Gowrie NSW, with a sharp eye on what matters in the here and now, to ensure we delight in the moment with children, families and our people.

As an early learning organisation for nearly 80 years, Gowrie NSW will continue to have a sharp eye on the future as well as making a difference every day in 2020.

GOWRIE NSW IN 2020

In 2020 Gowrie NSW will celebrate 80 years as an organisation. We will celebrate our rich heritage which is grounded in research regarding best practice that focuses on the whole child, programs led by experienced qualified teachers, and values of integrity and social justice. These were our starting values – but all still resonate strongly today.

Our people underpin everything we do at Gowrie NSW – in 2020 we will invest significantly in the systems that support them to be the best that they can be.

In 2020 we will embed our Program Foundations to articulate the practices and teaching principles that underpin our programs. Researching this through practitioner enquiry will contribute to evidence loops and will link closely with our Education Hub’s professional offerings to the sector.

We will build on our previous work of the Reconciliation Action Plan reviewing and thinking deeply about a new Innovate RAP. We are deeply committed to this work and its authentic translation into actions and words. It must be contextual to each community we are in…

CEO’s Report

Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Aliquet porttitor lacus luctus accumsan tortor. Diam donec adipiscing tristique risus nec feugiat in. Nec feugiat nisl pretium fusce id velit ut. Adipiscing commodo elit at imperdiet dui accumsan. Cum sociis natoque penatibus et magnis. Dui accumsan sit amet nulla facilisi morbi tempus. Eu facilisis sed odio morbi quis commodo odio aenean. Risus ultricies tristique nulla aliquet enim. Tellus rutrum tellus pellentesque eu tincidunt tortor aliquam nulla facilisi. Enim ut sem viverra aliquet eget sit amet tellus. Cras adipiscing enim eu turpis egestas pretium aenean. Arcu bibendum at varius vel pharetra vel. Pellentesque diam volutpat commodo sed egestas egestas fringilla. Amet mauris commodo quis imperdiet massa tincidunt nunc pulvinar. Malesuada fames ac turpis egestas sed tempus urna et.

Ipsum consequat nisl vel pretium lectus. Praesent tristique magna sit amet purus gravida quis. Quis hendrerit dolor magna eget est lorem ipsum dolor. Ut venenatis tellus in metus vulputate. Et malesuada fames ac turpis egestas maecenas pharetra. Sit amet nisl suscipit adipiscing bibendum est ultricies integer quis. Vel facilisis volutpat est velit. Quisque id diam vel quam elementum pulvinar. Diam in arcu cursus euismod quis viverra nibh. Egestas erat imperdiet sed euismod. Ac odio tempor orci dapibus ultrices in.

CHAIRPERSON’S REPORT

Last year’s report highlighted the significant increase in the reach and impact of a range of our services – we had gone through a period of quite rapid growth. This year has seen organisational change and consolidation, with moderate expansion and further development and implementation of our strategic intent.

We appointed Nicole Jones in February 2019 as Chief Executive Officer and she has already made a significant contribution to the organisation in many areas. Nicole has worked with the Board to identify 3 horizons in our strategic intent, focusing on four key pillars:

People – our people underpin all of our work at Gowrie NSW.

Quality – our promise to children and families is exceptional quality every day.

Connectivity to Community – partnerships developed, strengthened and aligned – we are ‘stronger together.’

Sustainability – our programs being fully utilised means we ensure viability. Gowrie NSW remains a viable organisation, although in 2019 we experienced challenges, with our financial results reflecting:

approximately $2 million of investment, supporting growth and continual improvement in our people, centres and systems
the complexity for our families of changed government funding arrangements
the funding challenges of the new AMEP contract
lower percentage returns on our investment portfolio
the impact of changes in some accounting standards.

Our Values continue to underpin everything that we do at Gowrie NSW, whether that is:

Inclusive – through the work of our Inclusion Agency and our Aboriginal Cultural Hub
Purposeful – development of our Program Foundations as the fundamental basis for our work in educating the youngest members of our society
Integrity – commitment to innovation, including in our Reconciliation Action Plan
Caring/authentic – our work with a range of communities and partner organisations, embedding Gowrie as it has been over the past nearly, 80 years.

On the Board, we have conducted a skills assessment and gap analysis and have developed a succession plan to ensure depth, breath and diversity are maintained. We have transitioned the Chairperson role, with Sean Parker being appointed as of 21 November 2019.

It has been a privilege to chair Gowrie NSW and I look forward to an exciting year ahead, with Gowrie NSW celebrating its 80th anniversary and continuing to focus on exceptional quality every day.

Tessa Hoser

Tessa is a non-executive director with professional experience in governance, compliance, legal and regulatory issues. Her industry experience includes banking, financial services, commodities, property and investment funds. Tessa has had leadership roles as a law firm partner (now retired) and in relation to diversity, gender equity pay and mental health initiatives.

Tessa joined the Gowrie NSW Board in November 2015 and became Chairperson in April 2017. She is a member of the Audit, Risk and Investment Committee, Business Opportunities Committee and the Performance, Remuneration and Nomination Committee.

Rodney Timm

Rodney brings over 30 years’ experience in construction and real estate including development, valuation and portfolio, property and facilities management. His sector specific property knowledge includes commercial offices, business parks, retail and shopping malls, affordable housing, student and key-worker accommodation, retirement villages, assisted living, life-style projects, community complexes and child care and education facilities.

He is the Chairperson of the Business Opportunities Committee and a member of the Performance Remuneration and Nominations Committee.

Sean Parker

Sean is a non-executive director with experience in finance, strategy and business development. He has previous experience as a CFO for a commercial childcare provider where he was also responsible for Legal, Risk Management and Information Technology. Prior to that Sean worked predominantly in the financial services sector.

Sean joined the Gowrie NSW Board in October 2016. He is the Chairperson of the Audit, Risk and Investment Committee and the Business Opportunities Committee.

Melly Sah Bandar

Melly joined the Gowrie NSW Board in August 2013. Melly has a broad background and a strong foundation in strategy, commercial, investment and financial planning.  A professional transformation executives in project and change management. Melly has more than 20 years’ experience in delivering business and financial transformation projects and has consulted extensively in this area for ASX 50 companies. Melly has worked in Australia, USA and Indonesia. Melly is a member of the Audit, Risk and Investment Committee.

Johan Palsson

Johan Palsson joined the Gowrie NSW Board in November 2017. He currently works as the Lead in the Global Category Growth team at ebay. Prior to this he was as the Head of E-Commerce and Head of Digital at Dan Murphys, within the Woolworth Group. Johan has a strong digital focus and vast experience across marketing for brands, and products as well as services. He has led a number of Transformation and change initiatives as well as overseen major system integrations and deployments in IT.

Sandra Gray

Sandra Gray joined the Gowrie NSW Board as a Non-Executive Director in November 2017. She currently works as Head of Early Years at Newington College, overseeing the Early Learning Centre, and, as Deputy K-2 of the Preparatory School. Sandra has strong educational experience across curriculum, pedagogy and practice. She brings a wealth of experience in Educational Leadership and is highly regarded for her professional relationships with all stakeholders. She is Chairperson of the Performance, Remuneration and Nominations Committee.

CEO’S REPORT

As the new CEO I have been privileged to listen to the stories of our people who go above and beyond daily to enrich the lives of young children and their families. We strive to be connected and embedded in each one of the 38 communities we now work, and just as in 1940 – as an authentic not for profit we are deeply passionate about making a difference in the world now as we were then.

2019 has continued to be a transformative year for Gowrie NSW. Growth in our footprint saw the opening of 2 new early education centres in Mayfield and Canberra as well as 4 new OSHC services and 5 new AMEP early learning centres on TAFE campus which has bought to life our vision of Greater Reach with Greater Impact. This expansion has resulted in our ability to provide high quality services to over 1500 families across NSW and ACT.

The investment in our footprint and systems is represented in our financials as we diversify our revenue streams. This past year has presented challenges as the changes to the funding package for families and increasing competitive markets has impacted our services.

I am thrilled we have developed our Program Foundations which nurtures our highly skilled experienced teachers and educator’s pedagogical expertise. Gowrie NSW has a long tradition of providing contemporary early childhood education that is informed by cutting edge pedagogical theory and research. Our Program Foundations signifies the cornerstone of our practice and honours the wonderment of childhood.

We have continued to honour our nations first people through renewed work on our Innovate RAP. I am proud of the collaborative work of the people involved as they reflect on where we have come from and where we are going. As an organisation we are deeply committed to reconciliation, therefore this work has taken great priority. We look forward to launching our new Innovate RAP in early 2020.

I would like to thank the Board who are instrumental in the stewardship of the organisation. Our voluntary Board has continued to offer support and guidance through 2019. Tessa Hoser has provided wonderful leadership as the Chair of Gowrie NSW since April 2017. As Tessa steps down as Chair we are delighted that she remains on the Board and key member of a number of our sub-committee.

And last but certainly not least, I would like to extend a huge thank you to our Gowrie NSW teams who demonstrate an unwavering commitment to children, families and communities. Your work makes a significant difference in our world now and into the future.

Nicole Jones

NIcole Jones

Nicole Jones has over 20 years experience in the Early Childhood Education sector. Her wealth of experience ranges from her early years as an Early Childhood teacher to working in executive management for both local and state government.

Ms Jones is a passionate advocate for children and their rights and will build on the strong foundations of Gowrie NSW’s legacy to give children and educators opportunities to reach their full potential, in a creative and nurturing environment.

KrIstIe WIlson

Kristie joined Gowrie NSW in 2018. In her role as Executive Director of Programs, Kristie oversees Gowrie NSW’s Early and Middle Education and Care Centre programs, spanning, Early Education and Care Centres, Outside Hours School Care, Inclusion Service programs and the Adult Migrant English Program.

Kristie has strong educational leadership experience in organisational strategy, operations, curriculum, pedagogy and practice across the education sector. Kristie’s passion is to enhance education outcomes for children and their families.

Fiona Erhardt

Fiona Erhardt is an experienced senior manager who has primarily worked in a number of top 50 ASX listed companies within financial services, property, transport and logistics and more recently a start-up company. She is a Chartered Accountant and holds a Bachelor of Commerce and a Graduate Diploma of Applied Finance & Investment.

Michelle Richardson

Michelle Richardson is an early childhood teacher and graduate of Macquarie University. More recently Michelle has worked in senior leadership roles, supporting teams and individual educators in the crucial role they enact each day with children and their families.

Michelle oversees the Education Hub, Gowrie NSW’s professional learning program and provides pedagogical leadership across the programs of the organisation. Michelle is driven to ensure spaces for children and their families are deeply respectful, meaningful and connected places for children to uniquely be themselves and thrive.

Campbell Hedley

Campbell has worked in Legal, Risk & Governance roles for over 20 years in some of Australia’s largest companies in industries including Aviation, Recruitment & Talent Management, Finance and Corporate Agriculture as well as working with numerous not for profit and charitable entities. He has experience in both Australia and overseas, having spent 5 years in Hong Kong overseeing legal & risk across Asia.

Chair’s Report

Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Aliquet porttitor lacus luctus accumsan tortor. Diam donec adipiscing tristique risus nec feugiat in. Nec feugiat nisl pretium fusce id velit ut. Adipiscing commodo elit at imperdiet dui accumsan. Cum sociis natoque penatibus et magnis. Dui accumsan sit amet nulla facilisi morbi tempus. Eu facilisis sed odio morbi quis commodo odio aenean. Risus ultricies tristique nulla aliquet enim. Tellus rutrum tellus pellentesque eu tincidunt tortor aliquam nulla facilisi. Enim ut sem viverra aliquet eget sit amet tellus. Cras adipiscing enim eu turpis egestas pretium aenean. Arcu bibendum at varius vel pharetra vel. Pellentesque diam volutpat commodo sed egestas egestas fringilla. Amet mauris commodo quis imperdiet massa tincidunt nunc pulvinar. Malesuada fames ac turpis egestas sed tempus urna et.

Ipsum consequat nisl vel pretium lectus. Praesent tristique magna sit amet purus gravida quis. Quis hendrerit dolor magna eget est lorem ipsum dolor. Ut venenatis tellus in metus vulputate. Et malesuada fames ac turpis egestas maecenas pharetra. Sit amet nisl suscipit adipiscing bibendum est ultricies integer quis. Vel facilisis volutpat est velit. Quisque id diam vel quam elementum pulvinar. Diam in arcu cursus euismod quis viverra nibh. Egestas erat imperdiet sed euismod. Ac odio tempor orci dapibus ultrices in.

Financial Snapshot

The financial result, whilst a deficit in 2019, reflects our investment for a long and sustainable future:

Approximately $2 million of investment, supporting growth and continual improvement, in our people, centres and systems;
The funding challenges of the new AMEP contract;
Lower percentage returns on our investment portfolio; and
The impact of changes in some accounting standards