A community consultation being held at 7pm Tuesday on 17th Oct regarding the future management of the kinder.

Over the past few years, along with much of society, the requirements for volunteer kindergarten committees have become more complex with a variety of reforms and changes being introduced. Our committee has determined that with those changes, and many more to come, a conversation with the Flinders community is timely.

The challenges we face are not ours alone to bear, with the kindergarten being an important part of the Flinders community fabric for over 60 years. We believe that if we were to articulate the issues we’re facing, and the possible solutions, we can continue to have a successful local kinder for our families by addressing the issues together.

The commitment required to run a community kindergarten today is not unlike years gone by, however, there has been a shift in the types of people required to provide appropriate governance and management of the organisation. From financial management, HR, legal, early childhood education expertise, organisational management and more, the required skillsets are becoming increasingly difficult to find using volunteers from within the parent group, with the time commitment being the leading factor for commitment.

Financially, the kindergarten is under pressure with the current model and requires fundraising efforts to cover operational expenses which is less than ideal for future sustainability.

Considerations

Two options are being considered by the committee to ensure Flinders can maintain a healthy and vibrant kindergarten:

1. Adapt the responsibilities of committee members and review the staffing model to provide quality leadership and governance enhancements.
2. Move to an alternative management model for the kindergarten, using the Early Years Management (EYM) framework.

a. EYM’s are not-for-profit organisations who take over and assume all service and operational responsibilities of delivering a kindergarten.