Kiddie Garden is an independently owned long day care centre on the doorstep of both Parramatta and North Parramatta. We welcome children from six weeks to six years of age into a warm, secure early learning environment where every child is known, valued, and encouraged to grow at their own pace.
Open Monday to Friday, 7:30am to 6:00pm, our centre supports working families with flexible care options, nutritious meals included in fees, and programs guided by the Early Years Learning Framework (EYLF).
Whether you live in Parramatta, North Parramatta, Westmead, Northmead, Harris Park, or Oatlands, we are just minutes away by car, and a one-minute walk from the Parramatta Light Rail.
Long day care offers extended hours of early childhood education and care in a single setting – something that suits families who need reliable, full-day support. Unlike sessional preschool programs, long day care wraps structured learning around a full day that includes rest, meals, structured learning, and free play, so your child’s routine stays consistent and unhurried.
At Kiddie Garden, long day care isn’t just about minding children while parents work. It’s a place where bachelor-qualified early childhood teachers and qualified support staff build genuine relationships with each child, tracking their interests, strengths, and emerging abilities. Research consistently shows that high-quality early learning experiences during the first five years lay the groundwork for child development across every domain; cognition, language, social skills, and motor skills.
For many families, the question isn’t just when to start childcare, it’s whether the setting genuinely supports their child’s well-being and growth. Long day care done well creates a learning community where children build identity, form friendships within a stable peer group, and develop skills that carry them into school and beyond.
Kiddie Garden is independently owned and has served families in the Parramatta community for over a decade. We are not part of a corporate chain. That independence means decisions about staffing, menus, resources, and programs are made right here, by people who know your child by name.
Our centre owner and director, Sue Zriek, is on hand every day to ensure the continuity of excellent care. Our caring and nurturing educators are here to support you, and your child. That genuine care and connection, is what makes Kiddie Garden different from other Parramatta child care centres.
Our educational philosophy draws on the Early Years Learning Framework and is enriched by principles of the Reggio Emilia approach. We see every child as a capable, curious learner who brings unique knowledge, culture, and experience into the room. Educators act as guides rather than directors, following each child’s lead and setting up environments that invite exploration, questioning, and discovery.
This approach means children are not passive recipients of instruction. They are active participants in their own education, making choices, testing ideas, and reflecting on what they’ve learned. It builds curiosity and confidence, the kind of love of learning that lasts well past the early years.
Our team includes qualified Early Childhood Teachers and diploma-qualified educators who stay. Low turnover matters because children thrive when they feel emotionally safe with familiar adults. That stability also means educators understand each child’s developmental journey deeply, allowing them to tailor experiences and extend learning in meaningful ways.
Every NSW preschool and child care centre follows the Early Years Learning Framework. This is the national curriculum for quality care in early learning services. The EYLF centres on five outcomes to ensure your little one has the best start to learning:
At Kiddie Garden, we bring these outcomes to life through play-based learning. Our educators design rich, open-ended experiences across every learning environment, including indoor studios, outdoor spaces, sandpits, water play areas, and creative corners. Each activity is intentional, targeting developmental areas like language, cognition, fine and gross motor skills, and social-emotional growth.
Play is the primary vehicle for learning in the early years. When children build with blocks, they develop spatial reasoning. When they negotiate roles in dramatic play, they practise empathy, negotiation, and social skills. When they paint, sculpt, or draw, they strengthen hand-eye coordination and creative expression.
We offer a wide range of play-based experiences throughout each day, including sensory play, arts and crafts, water play, sandpit exploration, music and movement, and small-group projects that encourage collaboration within a peer group.
Part of our role is helping children develop the self-help skills they need to feel capable and confident. From toddlers learning to feed themselves to preschoolers managing their belongings, we encourage independence in age-appropriate ways. These soft skills, like packing a bag, putting on shoes, and serving food at the table, build identity and a sense of personal responsibility.
For children in their final year before kindergarten, our Forever Friends room focuses on school readiness. This doesn’t mean worksheets and rote learning. It means building the skills children need to thrive in a classroom: following multi-step instructions, writing their name, recognising and writing letters and numbers, taking turns, and managing emotions in a group setting. Our preschool curriculum balances structured learning with plenty of time for creative, child-led exploration.
Good eating habits start early. At Kiddie Garden, morning tea, lunch, and afternoon snacks are freshly prepared on-site and included in your daily fees. We do ask each child to bring one piece of fruit for our shared platters. Our rotating menu is designed to offer a healthy diet rich in fruit, vegetables, whole grains, and lean protein, supporting growing bodies and busy minds.
We are a nut-free centre. If your child has an allergy or dietary requirement, our team works closely with families to ensure safe, appropriate meals are provided every day. Whether it’s a cultural preference, a medical need, or a food sensitivity, your child’s health and safety at mealtimes are always our priority.
Mealtimes at Kiddie Garden are also learning opportunities. Children sit together, serve themselves where appropriate, and practise social conventions like using cutlery, saying please and thank you, and trying new foods. These everyday moments build self-help skills, healthy attitudes toward eating, and a positive relationship with food.
Kiddie Garden is located at 1 Grose Street, Parramatta NSW 2150, right at the meeting point of Parramatta and North Parramatta. Our position makes us one of the most accessible childcare options for families in both suburbs. For those commuting from Westmead, Northmead, Oatlands, and Harris Park, we are a few minutes drive by car – traffic depending of course!
Parramatta is one of Sydney’s largest employment and cultural hubs, home to thousands of families who need dependable long day care that fits around busy work schedules. Kiddie Garden’s 7:30 am to 6:00 pm operating hours and proximity to the Parramatta Light Rail (a one-minute walk) and bus routes on O’Connell Street make drop-off and pick-up straightforward, even on the busiest mornings.
As a community-focused centre, we are proud to be part of the Parramatta landscape. Many of our families have been with us for years, enrolling younger siblings and recommending us to friends and neighbours. That trust is something we take seriously.
With 74 approved places across four dedicated age-group rooms, we offer the capacity to serve families across Parramatta and North Parramatta without losing the personal touch that larger centres often can’t provide.
Every child at Kiddie Garden has an individual learning plan built around their strengths, interests, and developmental goals. Educators conduct regular assessments, adjust their approach as your child grows, and share progress updates with families. You always know where your child is at, and where they’re heading next, as educators plan play-based learning experiences.
Our four age-based rooms are suitable for children 6 weeks to 6 years:
Our nursery provides gentle, responsive care for infants. Educators follow each baby’s home routine for sleeping, feeding, and play, with above-ratio staffing to ensure your little one receives plenty of individual attention. Sensory-rich activities like texture boards, musical instruments, and tummy-time play support early motor skill development, language acquisition, and emotional bonding. We understand separation anxiety in babies and have settling-in practices designed to make the transition as smooth as possible for both parent and child.
Toddlers are natural explorers. In the Cocoon Club, your toddler will engage in a mix of structured and spontaneous play that builds language, social skills, early numeracy, and physical confidence. Activities include painting, construction, imaginative play, and outdoor adventures.
Educators gently guide self-help skills like hand washing, eating independently, and tidying up, encouraging independence that fuels self-esteem. If your child experiences separation anxiety during the childcare transition, our team has thoughtful strategies to help them settle.
The Butterfly Buddies junior preschool room is designed for children who are spreading their wings! These 3 to 4 year olds are growing in independence, building friendships, and beginning to engage with more structured learning experiences. Educators nurture each child’s expanding curiosity through a balance of guided activities and open-ended play, with a strong emphasis on social skills, emotional intelligence, and early literacy.
A typical day in this room includes morning yoga, group learning sessions, and stretches of indoor and outdoor play where children can follow their own interests.
Progressive mealtimes encourage self-help skills and healthy eating habits, while dedicated educational time introduces pre-literacy, numeracy, and fundamental movement skills in ways that feel like play rather than instruction.
The Butterfly Buddies room bridges the gap between the exploratory world of toddlerhood and the more purposeful, school-readiness focus of our oldest room.
Our preschool and school readiness program prepares children for school through purposeful, structured, and play-based education to support your child’s learning journey. Children develop early literacy and numeracy skills, strengthen their social and soft skills, and build the resilience and cognitive skills needed to transition confidently into kindergarten. The Forever Friends room is where curiosity meets capability.
Daily fees at Kiddie Garden range from $158 to $167, depending on your child’s age group. All fees include morning tea, lunch, and afternoon tea.
As a CCS-approved centre, eligible families can access the Australian Government’s Child Care Subsidy (CCS) to reduce out-of-pocket costs, in some cases covering up to 90% of fees. Combined with the 3 day guarantee for childcare, eligible families can receive up to 72 hours per fortnight of subsidised care.
Families with preschool-aged children may also be eligible for NSW Start Strong funding, which provides additional fee relief on top of CCS.
Choosing a child care provider is one of the most personal decisions a family makes. You want to know your child is safe, happy, and genuinely learning. At Kiddie Garden, we encourage every family to book a tour, spend time in the rooms, and ask questions. See how educators interact with children. Look at the learning environments. Ask about the menu. Talk to other parents.
If you’re weighing up the benefits of childcare versus staying at home, or wondering about the difference between an early learning centre and daycare, we’re happy to have that conversation openly and honestly. We also have a practical packing guide for families who are new to long day care.
Kiddie Garden operates under the National Quality Standard (NQS) and is assessed by the Australian Children’s Education and Care Quality Authority (ACECQA). The NQS evaluates child care services across seven quality areas, including educational programs, children’s health and safety, staffing arrangements, and relationships with children.
We also comply fully with childcare regulations, including educator-to-child ratios, mandatory qualifications, and food safety requirements. Kiddie Garden is committed to child safety – every educator holds a current Working With Children Check, and our policies and procedures are designed to protect the physical, emotional, and cultural safety of every child in our care.
Transparency matters to us. We are always happy to discuss our quality rating and what it means in practice for your child’s daily experience.
Decades of research confirm that quality early childhood care and early education produces measurable, long-term benefits for children. Children who attend high-quality programs develop stronger language and literacy foundations, better problem-solving abilities, and more advanced social skills than peers who don’t access early learning programs.
Beyond academics, early education nurtures emotional well-being, resilience, and a child’s sense of belonging within a community. At Kiddie Garden, we witness these benefits every day. The toddler who learns to share for the first time, the preschooler who reads their name on a label, and the child who arrives tearful in January and bounds through the door by March.
If you’ve been exploring whether early learning and care in Parramatta is the right step for your family, we encourage you to book a centre tour and see our thriving children for yourself. For more online reading, read our article on the importance of early learning.
