EXCELLENCE IN EARLY CHILDHOOD EDUCATION AWARDS 2026!
Sep 22, 2026
Four of our Directors Academy leaders were announced as winners on the night of Saturday 12th September 2026, with so many more recognised as finalists, and I honestly could not have been prouder.
There is something incredibly special about watching people you have walked alongside be recognised for the work they do every day. You know the conversations they have had, the challenges they have worked through and how much of themselves they give to their teams, children and families.
Before becoming a judge, I stood on that same stage with my own team when our service received the Excellence Award for Best Service.
Actually, “stood on the stage” might be generous. I was so shocked and excited to win that I completely missed the steps and jumped straight up onto the front of it. My team gave me crap about it for years afterwards. 
I remember how unexpected that win was and how much that moment meant to all of us.
To now have spent four years judging these awards, and to watch leaders I have walked alongside experience their own moment of recognition, feels incredibly full circle.
I don’t take the responsibility of judging lightly. I know there is so much more behind every nomination than we could ever see on the night. There are years of work, difficult decisions, courageous conversations and countless moments of showing up for children, families and teams.
I recorded the video in this post in the car on the way home because I wanted to capture how I felt while it was still sitting with me.
Thank you to Australian Childcare Alliance NSW for bringing our profession together and continuing to allow me to be part of such a special evening. It is always an honour.
To our Academy leaders, every winner, every finalist and everyone who was there cheering someone else on, I hope you took a moment to really take it all in and feel incredibly proud.
These are the moments that truly matter. 
