The NPA Playgroup is a weekly program run in the 5 communities for parents and guardians of children aged 0 to 5. The staff run activities for the participants each week and support parents to get access to additional services as required to support their children’s development.

Who runs playgroup?

Playgroup is run by our Playgroup Coordinator and Playgroup Assistant. Staff have qualifications in Children Services and ensure programming of activities are aligned to early childhood development and the Early Year’s Learning Framework. Staff engage well with parents, guardians, grandparents and children to ensure they feel confident in their surroundings and have the confidence to ask for help. They have experience with identifying the children that need a referral to health services for child development concerns and work closely with parents to support them during this process.

Increase in attendance

Over the past 12 months, we have seen an increased attendance in the program and the Playgroup has worked closely with other units such as Intensive Parenting Support and Child and Maternal Health.  In addition, Playgroup has supported a number of other areas within the organisation to assist parents with participating in the program and caring for children while they are participating. This included Positive Parenting Workshops, Child Sexual Abuse Workshops and Bringing Them Home Workshops.