At Affinity Education, we are proud to nurture a culture of excellence, where our people are encouraged and empowered to go above & beyond and deliver outstanding professionalism. For our educators and centre teams, this is reflected in the way we implement our curriculum and our commitment to providing safe, high-quality services for the children in our care.
In addition to our world-class curriculum and Lifelong Learning approach, we have a keen focus on quality – this is why most of our centres are currently Meeting or Exceeding the National Quality Standard! Our Quality Team are at the centre of this commitment. In 2021, our Quality Team is made up of nine industry professionals who collectively bring almost 180 years of education, training, assessing, teaching and regulatory authority experience to Affinity Education.
Our Quality Team is currently comprised of the following exceptional individuals.
Jodie McClelland heads up a national team of state-based Quality Advisors and supports the overall vision and execution of our internal quality process. In addition, Jodie leads the Assessment & Rating committee coordinating in-centre support, drawing resources from our management, education and centralised office teams.
Our Quality Advisors – Angie Beness, Anna Razak, Karen Turnbull, Kerri Stevenson, Meghan Webb-Wagg, Melanie Nour and Melanie Teunis – possess high levels of industry knowledge and work alongside our centres to achieve the best possible outcomes for children. And, importantly, they work closely with our centres during the ACECQA Assessment & Rating cycle.
Our Quality Coordinator, Tracey Ling, liaises with centre teams, advisors and management to provide an additional layer of support. She is our quality data expert and conducts regular analysis to identify areas of opportunity for further improvement and growth.
What are the key focuses of our Quality Team?
- Apply industry knowledge and experience to integrate best-practices in centres and achieve high-quality outcomes for children.
- Guide centres as they prepare for their ACECQA Assessment & Rating.
- Support centres as they continually work to improve their ACECQA Assessment & Rating.
- Coordinate resources and support in areas of management and education.
- Identify areas of opportunity for further improvement and growth.
Why do we focus on quality?
It is widely understood that the first five years of a child’s life are rich with learning experiences and growth and that these experiences lay a valuable foundation for all future learning and development. We are committed to providing every child with the highest possible quality care and education and, guided by the expertise of our Quality Team, we can see the positive result this is having in our community of centres.
How are we seeing improvements?
Through the tireless efforts of our Quality and Centre Teams, in 2021 we are proud to have more Meeting or Exceeding the NQS rated centres than ever before. 95% of our centres achieved Meeting or above in Quality Areas QA6-Collaborative Partnerships with Families and Communities and 92% QA5-Relationships With Children, respectively. Even following the increased requirements for Exceeding and Meeting ratings in 2018, Affinity Education had 119 centres achieve or maintain a Meeting or Exceeding overall rating.
Our Quality Team is instrumental in delivering tangible improvements in our centres. They are natural-born collaborators who thrive when assisting others and they are dedicated to ensuring positive health and wellbeing outcomes for every child. They have big-picture goals as well as laser-focus on the little details. But most of all – they are committed to inspiring and nurturing individuals to reach their full potential.
Our Quality Team truly embodies the Affinity Education values and the Affinity Way!
Want to learn more about Affinity's culture of quality and professionalism? Get in touch today.