ACA Qld 2023 National Conference

What an incredible weekend was had at this year’s National Conference! Thank you to all who attended. We hope you had a wonderful weekend and trust you left feeling inspired by the exciting new learnings and resources demonstrated throughout the conference program.

This year we had an incredible line-up of speakers and presenters featuring Justin Coulson, Kelly Goodsir, Wendy Lee, Toni & Robin Christie, Adrian Pattra-McLean, Anthony Castellaro, Tania Porter, Tim Nelson, Dr Jacinta Buchbach, and Andrew Griffiths. We have been flooded with such positive feedback on all our presenters and would like to say a big thank you for their engaging, informative, and heartwarming presentations throughout the weekend.

We were thrilled to once again hold our very successful Approved Providers Panel Discussion and Lunch sponsored by Childcare Concepts. Our panel of presenters this year featured Nigel Ward (CEO & Director for ABLA), Paul Mondo (ACA National) and Rebecca Storck (Executive Director, Strategy & Policy, Early Childhood).

This year’s conference officially kicked off with the Welcome Event on Friday night sponsored by Kangarootime. An incredible night, with an amazing atmosphere, food, and live music. It was the perfect way to start the weekend filled with networking and learning opportunities.

Our conference once again featured our famous Gala Dinner. This year’s theme was “Garden Party” which did not disappoint! Each year we are amazed at the creativity and effort everyone puts into their costumes. Thanks again to HESTA, for sponsoring such a fun night. The best dressed went to the Goblin King, with a close runner up going to the Mushroom, and our group winners were the Flowerpots and Alice in Wonderland! Congratulations to all who were selected as nominees for best dressed! We were once again honoured to have Super Max and Bryce and Walk With Us charity organisations on board. It was heartwarming to hear the Super Max and Bryce team tell their story and share the love with all attendees as their endless work and efforts are always so inspiring. Thank you to everyone who purchased the socks, scarves, and turtles, raising a total of $17,500 in three hours. Additionally, we were thrilled to support the Walk With Us charity with a large donation of singleuse toiletries. Thank you to everyone who collected and donated their toiletries.

We extend our heartfelt thanks to our amazing sponsors, exhibitors, ACA Qld Committee, and staff for all their support. We give a special mention to Guild Insurance, Child Care Super, Modern Teaching Aids, Xplor Education, Care for Kids, Wearthy, TELUS Health, HESTA, and Kangarootime.

Our sincere thanks also to Tania Porter, Deputy DirectorGeneral of Early Childhood, Caroline Hannigan, Director, Governance and Risk, and Rebecca Storck, Executive Director, Strategy & Policy, Early Childhood who gave their time to meet face-to-face with ACA Qld members. It was great to have the opportunity for an in-depth discussion of the key issues which are impacting the early childhood sector. We look forward to working with these representatives to implement measures and changes to address these issues.

Finally, a big thank you to all our delegates. You are what makes our conference such a success and we can’t wait to see you all again in 2024!