Milestones Early Learning Cootamundra and the wider team at Affinity Education Group recently celebrated a special milestone for Centre Manager, Danielle Wilson-McCaffery. 

Danielle has recently been recognised for her long service at her centre, having worked her way up to Centre Manager and gaining many qualifications along the way. Area Manager, Karen Pollard and Affinity Education CEO, Tim Hickey were thrilled to be able to present this award to Danielle as a formal recognition for her many years of outstanding work as part of the Affinity Education family.

Area Manager, Karen Pollard said “We are so lucky to have such dedicated and talented staff working in our Centres. The culture here at Affinity really encourages employees building up their skill set and progressing in their career – and Danielle is a perfect example of this at work!” 

We sat down with Danielle to find out about her past 12 years with us!

What was your first Early Childhood Education role? 

I worked three days a week in an inclusion support role. In this role I met a little boy who contracted CMV in utero 12 years ago who has faced so many challenges in his life. I still keep in close contact with his family now that he is 15 years old! Having such a close relationship with him and his family, I became and still am the biggest advocate for CMV awareness – especially in our industry.  

When did you decide to make Early Childhood Education your career?  

I was inspired when completing my work experience while in High School, and at 18 years old I decided that this was the role for me. I was also inspired by my Nan who was a former Centre Manager, as she had so much passion for her role and loved being part of the community.  

Have you faced challenges along the way? 

Balancing my study with my workload was especially challenging as I was completing my Bachelor of Teaching while working as Lead Educator and Assistant Centre Manager.  Despite these challenges I have received so much support by all the educators working at my centre as well as my State and Area Manager. 

What have the ‘steps’ in your career pathway been?  

When I commenced employment at Milestones Early Learning Cootamundra, I had my Certificate lll in Child Care and worked in an inclusion support role. This progressed to Assisting Educator, where I began and completed my Diploma within 6 months. After this, I became a Lead Educator and Assistant Centre Manager. While in this role I decided to complete my Bachelor of Teaching as we really struggled to attract Early Childhood Teachers to a small country town. After I graduated, I became the Centre Manager, a role I have now been in for five and a half years. 

Tell us about your centre – what do you love the most about it?  

I love the culture we have built here at our centre, between the educators as well as our families and children. We are a giant family as we have so many long-standing educators at the centre which I am proud of. It’s so rewarding to see how the educators at this centre have also progressed further in their careers during their time here. 

What do you think the children enjoy most about their days at your centre?  

The relationships they have built with their educators and peers as well as the opportunity to connect with nature through our Bush Kindy programs, child-led project-based learning opportunities. 

What benefits do you see for your centre in being associated with Affinity Education Group? 

We have the expertise and guidance of people at our Centre Support Office who help and assist us in the everyday running of our centres. There are opportunities for professional development for not only Centre Managers, but our whole team of educators.

Over the last few years our centre has evolved so much, reaching a whole new level, thanks to the hard work of the entire Affinity Education team. We are so fortunate to have such a close community of centres within our area where we can pick up the phone and contact each other about anything. Having this level of support from colleagues in the same role, as well as from our Area Managers is so beneficial.  

Why have you chosen to stay with Affinity Education for this length of time in your career?  

I’ve chosen to stay with Affinity Education throughout my career in early education as there have been so many opportunities available to me to build up my skills, gain expereinec and further progress my career. Affinity really give us the opportunity and tools for success. The emphasis on making goals and career progression really shows educators that they can achieve and work towards anything. 



Learn about more about the career opportunities and paths available at Affinity Education.