"As soon as we stepped into Gum Nut, we knew our son would love it - we were embraced with warmth and the set up brought back fond memories of how fun our kinder used to be and should be!  Our son started in the Koala room and I will always be grateful for the nurturing care and love from the educators who made every morning drop off reassuring and easier.  Pick up time was something I looked forward to as I loved finding him absorbed in fun and play somewhere.  Our son was previously a risk averse child in the playground but I recall observing in amazement the confidence he quickly developed just being in Gum Nut's encouraging environment.  No question was ever unanswered if I needed a recount of our son's day, as all educators knew each Gum Nutter well - their genuine passion for care and knowing the individual child are undeniable.  Our son's time in Magpie / 3yo kinder was filled with fun activities and an impressive wealth of knowledge - he came home always eagerly telling us ways to save our planet and endangered wildlife, the many different cultures and celebrations, heroes (like Junko Tabei being the first woman to climb the highest mountain!!), social etiquettes and how to self manage different emotions.  4yo Kinder encouraged independence and besides building on what he learnt from his time in Magpie, he embraced adventure, learning and nature together through the Explore & Learn program, and not to mention how much enjoyment there was with the incursions and excursions.  Our son was well prepared and ready for school, finishing Kinder with a most beautiful graduation ceremony.  My son gained invaluable life skills at Gum Nut - his experience and journey here was truly a positive and memorable one.  As much excitement as it was to start school, it was hard to leave this community, a place that felt like a second home for the children - the relationships my son developed with his educators and his peers were very special. Thank you Gum Nut for playing such an important part of our story and journey." - Jacqui L.

"Both our children have been extremely lucky to have such nurturing, fun, and exciting learning years at Gumnut – over the course of a decade! Despite being very different children, they have felt deeply connected to the environment, carers and opportunities to build long lasting friendships. Gumnut also offers exemplary support for the family unit all while accommodating the needs of the child, offering them the ability to adventure whilst preparing for school and developing skills that will take them out into the world.  We have loved being part of the Gumnut community – we couldn’t be more grateful to the whole team!" - Fiona. H

"Our son enjoyed a thoroughly wonderful and fruitful time.  As parents, all we hoped was for a nurturing group of carers that would genuinely care for and support our child during his time at childcare and kinder.  He experienced that and more - he was provided a natural balance of playing with a growing group of friends, improving motor neuron skills and scholastic learning.  He has come away from his time at Gum Nut with a great foundation of social skills and environmental knowledge that will hold him well as he grows older.  It was an easy progression for him to go to school after his time at Gum Nut, for which we are grateful.  We are also warmed by the relationships he has built with his educators; he is just happy to see them as they are to see him to this day.  I would wholeheartedly urge any local parent to strongly consider giving your child the opportunity to experience childcare and kinder at Gum Nut." - Mike. C

"It is difficult to express our gratitude towards the exceptional way you provided care for Audrey and Elise over the past 12 months, and it fills us with great sadness that we need to move Elise to a different Kinder programme so that she won’t be able to participate in your wonderful Explore & Learn programme.

Gum Nut is a very special, wonderful place for children inside and out. We consider it a true childhood sanctuary because you have created an environment in which children’s needs, happiness and wellbeing are the forefront of everything you do underpinned by your omnipresent focus on play and nature. Gum Nut has quickly become a second home for Audrey and Elise and it filled our hearts with so much joy to see how happy, confident and comfortable they felt at Gum Nut and how they were able to easily form special friendships.

We miss you already and will forever treasure Audrey’s and Elise’s gum nut memories in our hearts and sing your prayers everywhere we go. We will try attend as many gum nut events as possible to somewhat remain part of the lovely Gum Nut Community you have created." - Anne. R

"We are so grateful for our experience with Gum Nut Preschool and Childcare. From Day 1, our child (who was then 11 months old) was welcomed by warm, genuine educators who had a flexible and individualised approach to his care. Over the past 5 years that has continued, and he has developed incredibly positive relationships with educators and peers, and learned invaluable life skills. Everyone says that Gum Nut is like an extension of your family and that has certainly been true for us." - Richelle. P

"Over the 9 years we have seen an already remarkable preschool and child care centre blossom into an exceptional one!

Staff has remained constant (and energetic), in fact there are over 4 staff who were on board when we started and countless others who have been working for 3 years or more. Gum Nut fosters a happy, adventurous and a supportive learning setting and passionately promotes an awareness of the environment and current issues, namely endangered wildlife, water and recycling. Excursions and incursions are consistently organised to engage already curious minds in a range of exciting activity. Our Gum Nut journey has been a positive one and has contributed to the preparedness of my 3 children for school and life!"  - Mary. G

"My daughter attended Gum Nut Preschool and Child Care for over 5 years, finishing in the kinder program last year. The entire time she was there I felt happy and comfortable with the care and attention she received. The staff are unbelievably welcoming and nurturing not just to me and my daughter, but my whole family. The centre has a strong focus on supporting environmental causes and raising awareness for issues in the local community and also overseas. The children felt a great deal of satisfaction supporting and learning about these causes, something I hope will stay with them all for a long time. My daughter also learned Mandarin and Italian from her teachers which she loved. She formed very special friendships here which were made easy by the constant opportunity to participate in social events (picnics, concerts, excursions, parties etc). Her love of the teachers was also obvious, most of who had known her since she was a baby. Their happy and positive attitudes were always a sign to me that they were well supported and truly enjoyed their jobs and the team they are part of.
Overall, I cannot recommend Gum Nut more highly. I am so fortunate to have had this as our introduction to early learning and will continue to promote it wherever possible." - Kester. N

"We feel really lucky to be part of the Gum Nut community. We love that the centre has a child-led approach and a focus on outdoor play and the natural environment, as well as supporting important causes in the community. The staff and educators are kind, supportive and flexible. And we can tell they tap into the needs of our little one so he feels safe to explore, play and thrive.” - Laura. I