Children's Services
Hampton Park Community House - It's all about the kids......
PHILOSOPHY
At Hampton Park Community House, our local First Nation’s community tell the popular story of a birthing tree, said to be the large gum tree out the front of the House. The tree is a significant symbol of the deep history of this place which has welcomed children and families for millennia. As custodians of this House and our Children’s Services, we continue this long legacy. Like the tree that provides our House with shelter and place to come together, we as a community protect and nurture our children and each other now and for generations to come.
Our Children’s Services has strong roots in a rich and culturally diverse community that believes:
- all children have the right to experience quality childcare and education
- each child is an individual with unique abilities, possessing their own potential and offering an important voice to their learning experiences
- the strength of the local community in its cultural diversity, relationships and unity are the foundations for excellent care and learning for all children
- the learning environment must be welcoming, fun, play-based, safe and supportive and actively involves parents, carers and families
- children, their families and community are connected by the activities, learning and play at the House and this is based on respectful relationships,
- acceptance and a strong sense of belonging.
There are three foundational pillars that underpin our Children’s Services Philosophy:
- Our community, families and social connections – by working together we build a strong and loving community who shares stories that bind us together
- Children’s physical and emotional wellbeing development – by building resilience, love and respect for ourselves and each other
- Learning through belonging – by enabling the children to engage in the community and environment around them.
OBJECTIVES
The philosophy is implemented by the following goals:
- To offer a flexible program that responds to the care and recreational needs of the children.
- To provide a learning environment for the children that:
- is both safe and challenging for the children
- fosters children’s individuality,
- recognizes individual needs and
- promotes the physical health and wellbeing of the children.
- To ensure that the program accurately reflects the needs of children and parents by:
- acknowledging the importance of parents’ contribution to the program
- encouraging comments and feedback from all parents/carers
- acknowledging and being aware of the cultural background of families
- To meet the National and Quality Assurance Standards for Out of School Hours Care.
Our welcoming environment and friendly staff, offer activities and childrens programs that our community value and need
We offer programs specially designed to help those most at risk and programs to help keep our young people engaged in a meaningful way. Programs designed to educate children through different types of care, ranging from Occasional Care right through to After School until they start high school.
Child Safety Statement
We want children to be safe, happy and empowered.
We support and respect all children, as well as our staff and volunteers.
We are committed to the safety, participation and empowerment of all children.
We have zero tolerance for child abuse, and all allegations and safety concerns will be treated very seriously and consistently with our robust policies and procedures.
We have legal and moral obligations to contact authorities when we are worried about a child’s safety, which we follow rigorously.
Hampton Park Community House is committed to preventing child abuse and identifying risks early, and removing and reducing these risks.
Hampton Park Community House has robust human resources and recruitment practices to reduce the risk of child abuse by new and existing board members, staff and volunteers.
Hampton Park Community House is committed to regularly training and educating our board members, staff and volunteers on child abuse risks.
We are committed to the cultural safety of Aboriginal children, the cultural safety of children from culturally and/or linguistically diverse backgrounds, and to providing a safe environment for children with a disability. We have specific Policies and Procedures in place that support our board members, staff and volunteers to achieve these commitments.
We offer 3-4 year-old Kinder, Occasional Care, Out of School, and Vacation Care.
For enquiries please contact Children Services on 8768 8342 or 0466 099 243.
Hampton Park Community House is committed to the cultural safety of Aboriginal children
We are committed to:
- actively supporting and facilitating participation and inclusion of Aboriginal children, young people and their families within our service
- the safety, participation and empowerment of Aboriginal children
- providing an educational program that strengthens Aboriginal children’s culture and identity
- actively supporting and encouraging Aboriginal children to express their culture and enjoy their cultural rights
- supporting Aboriginal children and their families to identify as Aboriginal without fear of retribution or questioning
- supporting Aboriginal children to maintain connection to their kinship ties, land and country
- supporting Aboriginal children to be taught their cultural heritage by Elders
- facilitating regular training and education on Aboriginal cultural and cultural safety
- establishing policies, procedures, systems and processes to create a culturally safe and inclusive environment and meet the needs of Aboriginal children, young people and their families.
- This statement was reviewed by Victorian Aboriginal Education Association Incorporated