On Friday 12 November we hosted an official opening event and Family Fun Day at our newest, state-of-the-art early learning centre (ELC) in Kalgoorlie.
The new ELC, conveniently located on Porter Street, in the centre of Kalgoorlie, will open in a few weeks and will eventually accommodate up to 92 children, aged from 6 weeks to 5 years.
To mark the occasion, local elder Gary Cooper performed an interactive Smoking Ceremony and Welcome to Country for guests, including Deputy Mayor, Glen Wilson and State Member for Kalgoorlie, Ali Kent MLA, which was followed by cutting of the ribbon with our new President, Mr Chris Campbell.
After the official opening, local families enjoyed a Family Fun Day at the Centre, with a host of free activities, a tour of the Centre and meet our new ELC team.
The new Centre is an architecturally designed, natural home like environment where the focus is on learning and to help prepare children for school, an important aspect of our pedagogy.
“For example, the centre has a stunning central piazza, where children can come together to engage in multi age group experiences and learning. Our outdoor nature playground areas have been designed to stimulate challenge and encourage children to take risks in a safe environment,” explained the Y WA General Manager of Children’s Services, Shae Welch.
There is also a parent lounge in the centre, where families can stay, relax, perhaps complete some work or enjoy a coffee with friends.
We are also pleased to announce a three-year partnership with local business Northern Star Resources, which will provide substantial investment into the Kalgoorlie-Boulder community by way of local youth engagement programs and ensures the ongoing support of our new Early Learning Centre.
Speaking about growing the organisation’s vital community work, our CEO, Dr Tim McDonald confirmed “The Y is delighted to partner with Northern Star as this will benefit the whole community, something we value very strongly at the Y.”
“YMCA, now known as the Y, has been an integral part of the Kalgoorlie-Boulder community for over 100 years and it is an honour to be able to work with local partners to build upon the quality services we provide. For us, it’s identifying what the need is in the community and addressing those needs. Therefore, we will soon announce the youth engagement programs,” he explained.
The Y WA now operates twelve ELC’s across WA, including the Pilbara (where they partner with BHP and Woodside in the resources sector), Great Southern and South West.