Jillian has been involved in the childcare industry for as long as she can remember. Her mother was an Early Childhood Educator and so there were always young children around her home.

​Jillian has always been passionate about her role as an advocate for the education and care provided to the children in any care facility she has been involved in.

​Jillian gained her first Child Care Qualification in Scotland where she worked as a nanny.  She believes this has given her some insight into the complexities of family life and a greater understanding of the stress and challenges as both parents work and try to juggle family time too. It was during a nanny placement that she was introduced into the area of palliative care.  Not only did she nanny the children during that placement, but also cared for and nursed their mother (who had terminal cancer) at home so she could spend as much time with her children as possible. This was a very difficult situation and it raised Jillian’s awareness that she needed/wanted more training to understand the psychological makeup of people to better support them through the storms that face each person as we journey through life.

​Jillian subsequently studied psychotherapy and counselling with the view to change professions, but decided that she could better use her new knowledge to assist and support educators and families within the childcare industry.

​You can also read more about Jillian in this interview

Olivia is a proud mum of two boys, who both attend the centre. She began her journey at Beacon Street in 2021 as a student to then be offered a casual role and have then since grown within the service taking on Room Leader roles, 2IC and now Centre Director.

She is passionate about creating a safe, nurturing and inclusive environment where children feel a strong sense of belonging.

Having worked across many areas of the service, she values strong relationship with children, families and educators. She is committed to high -quality early childhood education, she values open communication, reflective practice and continuous improvement to ensure the best outcome for the children and families here at Beacon Street.

Olivia believes that each child has the right to learning in ways that are meaningful to them, she recognises that children learn through different styles, interests and strength and she honors this through play-based, open ended learning experience. By providing flexible environments that encourage exploring, creativity and curiosity, she and her team support each child to learn at their own pace and in their own unique way.

Eli has a Masters degree in Early Childhood Education and is registered with the Victorian Institute of Teaching.  He is very passionate in his job, caring for each single child and teaching them a wide range of life skills and academic skills. He is fluent in both Mandarin and English.

Eli has worked at Beacon Street for more than eight years and has undergone numerous professional development training. He designs and delivers age-appropriate activities based on children’s interests, which significantly boosts children’s physical and emotional development, as well as their academic learning. The teaching happening in the room has been highly valued by many parents. Singing and dancing is one of the remarkable highlights happening every single day in the room. Eli believes singing can build up children’s confidence and speech development, and that dancing benefits children’s social skills and a sense of belonging to the group.

Eli is also a great team leader, leading the Bilby room (4yo kinder) educators with respect and trying his best to help develop his co-workers professional skills.   His caring personality lends him to be not just a leader to his colleagues, but also a friend.