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Good Shepherd Child Care Services + Kindergarten

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    Long Day Care

    6:00am - 6:00pm

  • icon-kindergarten

    Kindergarten

    8:30am - 2:45pm

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    Before School

    6:00am - 8:45am

  • service-after-school

    After School

    2:45pm - 6:00pm

  • service-vacation-care

    Vacation Care

    6:00am - 6:00pm

Good Shepherd offers long day care, kindergarten and outside school hours care in a purpose-built centre that provides children with a unique learning environment designed to encourage creativity and exploration and reward curiosity.

In our long day care and kindergarten your child will enjoy our natural outdoor play spaces, our dedicated music and art rooms and restaurant with alfresco dining. In our music room the children experiment, making different sounds and working together with their educators. During outdoor play children enjoy running freely on real grass, perfecting mud cake recipes in our mud kitchen, watering and caring for our pineapples and tending to our native bees. In our restaurant and alfresco dining area the children will learn to serve themselves, clear their plates and to separate out their green waste for our worm farm.

In our long day care we care for children from six weeks and offer a Queensland Government approved kindergarten program for children in the year before prep. We supply all meals, wipes, sunscreen and cot linen. All you need to bring is nappies, a hat and a spare change of clothes. We offer nutritious, age-specific meals for morning tea, lunch and afternoon tea. All meals are prepared on site daily by our cook and approved by nutrition Australia. We are supportive of special dietary requirements including food allergies and welcome families to discuss their child’s needs with us.

Our outside school hours care offers before school care, after school care and vacation care for children from prep to grade seven. We offer a flexible and child initiated program with educators incorporating children’s ideas, cultures and interests when planning each day’s experiences. Our team will drop off and collect children from Good Shepherd Primary School each day. Children are offered a healthy breakfast and after school snacks, which they help prepare.

Our centre strives to foster an environment that celebrates diversity. We encourage children to value and respect the individual uniqueness, spirituality and contribution of others.

  • centre-address-icon
  • 58 Opperman Drive
  • Springfield Lakes QLD 4300

Celebrating Diwali

Many of our families were preparing to celebrate Diwali in November. The children couldn’t help but bring their excitement for the Hindu new year into the service. So, our educators helped them share this important ritual with their friends by having the children watch videos and talk about what Diwali means to our families who were celebrating it. Each of the children also made their own lantern and Diya to light up our centre for the new year.

Busy with bees

The kindergarten children received a special visit from the Ipswich City Council to teach them about native bees and provide us with our very own hive. The children prepared for the visit by investigating the life cycle of bees and discussed bee hives with their teacher. When the hive arrived the children were very eager to observe it up close, realising they couldn’t see the bees they all wanted their chance to hear them buzzing. The bees now have a home on our upstairs verandah and the children continue to visit them regularly to see how they are going and hear them buzz. We hope the bees will soon produce honey for the children to taste and cook with.

Our solar space expert

Our centre has been designed as a flexible, child centred space where we give children a ‘voice’ in the daily program by following their interests. When one of our educators noticed one the kindergarten children had a keen interest in the Super Moon, our teacher suggested he share information with the class about the Supermoon and solar space during show and share. This was a great opportunity for him to be the expert for a day, sharing his passion and new found knowledge with his teacher and friends while developing his confidence presenting in front of a group.

In sand and construction zones, children engage in imaginative play with loose objects, exploring a diverse range of natural materials such as sand, sticks, leaves, and water.

Blocks, wooden shapes and other building materials provide an opportunity for children to express their ideas, create and collaborate, developing socially through play.

In our natural outdoor environment children explore and create new things every day.

"Thank you for the wonderful job you all do! Thank you for treating our children like they are your own and making them feel loved and welcomed. We cannot express how much we appreciate you all and how much extra time and effort you put in. We are so lucky to be able to drop our child off in the morning and not worry because we know they are being looked after and that teacher genuinely cares. Well done guys!"

Rebecca

Social growth and fun  

The Outside School Hours Care program provides before-school, after-school, and vacation care for prep to grade seven. With dedicated facilities at Good Shepherd Primary School, the outside school hours program is designed to support calm and enjoyable transitions from home to school or child care and back again. Children and supported in the activities of their choice, whether that be quiet relaxation or building new friendships through creative projects, shared art activities or physical play. As well as familiar classroom peers, the children are supported to mingle with new friends of different ages,

Learning through play

In the nursery room, children are given opportunities to discover new things, express their creativity and practice gross motor skills — taking wobbly steps, climbing small structures and growing confidently with every move. At play, children feel supported and at ease. We believe that by beginning their learning journey in play we can help them develop a love of learning that will continue to grow with them. 

Meet Our Staff

Melissa March

Director

I’ve been an early ed director since:

I have had the pleasure of working with Catholic Early Edcare for the past 5 years, prior to this I have been working in early education and care industry for 18 years. I have worked in management and as an educator in OSHC, Early Education and Care Centres and had the wonderful experience of teaching english for a brief period at a kindergarten in Shanghai.  

My favourite thing about being an early childhood educator is:  

I thoroughly enjoy working with the children, families and educators in building meaningful and genuine connections that offers guidance and support. I enjoy working with the children and mentoring educators to allow for opportunities of community engagement and building the basic foundations of life-long learning.  

Something I like to tell all Mums and Dads is:   

I like to tell parents and carers about their children’s learning and the wonderful, fun and spontaneous adventures of the day. 

My favourite way to relax is:  

I enjoy spending time with my family and camping together, we particularly enjoy travelling and camping in the outback. 

Holly

Kindergarten Teacher

I’ve been an early ed teacher since: 

I’ve been an early childhood teacher since September 2025, after working as an educator in the industry for two years prior to stepping into my ECT role. 

My favourite thing about being an early ed teacher is: 

Building meaningful, trusting relationships with children and their families. I love being part of each child’s learning journey — watching them grow in confidence, develop new skills, and discover more about themselves and the world around them. 

I’m especially inspired by the Reggio Emilia approach, which values children as capable, curious learners and highlights the importance of environment, relationships, and collaboration. This philosophy strongly influences how I support children’s learning and create engaging, responsive experiences in the classroom. 

Something I like to tell all mums and dads is: 

Something I like to tell all mums and dads is that I am dedicated to creating a warm, welcoming, and inclusive environment where all children feel safe, valued, and able to thrive. 

I believe strong partnerships with families are essential, and I always aim to maintain open communication, mutual respect, and collaboration to support each child’s unique strengths, interests, and developmental journey. 

My favourite way to relax is: 

My favourite way to relax is spending quality time with my friends and family — whether that’s sharing a meal, enjoying a day out, or simply unwinding together. I value those moments to recharge and connect with the people who matter most to me. 

Current Fee Schedule

Fees are reviewed annually and may be increased each year. Quality care for children, affordability for families and financial viability of the service are the key elements in determining fees.

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