The Australian Childcare Alliance (ACA) is proud to join forces with Little Rockers Radio and Red Nose Day, to support the 2019 Little Rockers Red Nose Disco.

In its fifth year, the Little Rockers Red Nose Disco, presented by iHeartRadio is aiming to break all records with over 50,000 children expected to dance around the country to help save little lives.

With nine children still dying suddenly and unexpectedly every day in Australia, funds raised through Red Nose Day fundraising activities, including the Little Rockers Red Nose Disco, go to Red Nose’s advocacy and research programs into the causes of all sudden, unexplained and preventable childhood deaths, educating the community on safe sleeping practices, and supporting families who have been devastated by the sudden and unexpected death of a child.

Sarah Morrissey, Little Rockers Radio founder has expressed her gratitude for our support. “We are delighted to have the support of the Australian Childcare Alliance, who have over 2,500 member centres nationally and are encouraging all centres to host their own disco on Red Nose Day. This year we aim to have well over 50,000 children dancing in what will be Australia’s largest kids disco and our fundraising target is set on $100,000,” said Sarah.

The disco campaign was an idea born out of loss, with Sarah’s nephew passing from Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS) in 2008 at 16-months old. The Little Rockers Red Nose Disco, presented again by iHeartRadio, is a great way for littlies to dance and have fun and to help raise awareness for a serious cause, saving little lives.

ACA President Paul Mondo is excited to be supporting the Little Rockers Red Nose Disco. "It’s an innovative and fun approach to raising funds for a serious issue. We encourage all our member centres to take part. After all, who doesn’t love to dance with children?!” ACA President Paul Mondo said.

ACA in conjunction with Little Rockers Radio and the Red Nose Day team, will announce the total funds raised through this initiative at ACA Victoria’s conference in Melbourne on 16 & 17 August.

Early learning centres can host their own mini disco on Red Nose Day, Friday 9th August 2019 (or any day in the week, 5th - 9th August). By encouraging all participating children to make a gold coin donation, valuable funds will be raised for Red Nose’s advocacy and research programs.

There’s plenty of time to get involved. ACA members can simply register to host their own event at www.everydayhero.com.au/event/aca

ACA Victoria is delighted to announce that tickets are now on sale for our 2019 Excellence in Early Childhood Education and Care Conference.

This annual conference is a "not-to-be-missed" event in the early learning calendar and will be held at Crown Conference Centre, Melbourne on Friday 16th & Saturday 17th August.
 
This year our conference theme is "the magic of childhood", which celebrates the wonder of childhood and the importance of early learning in all children’s physical, cognitive, emotional and social development.
 
With a new program of topics and speakers, the event will cover a range of topics including sector trends, elements of the National Quality Framework, and inspirational insights into how to run a better service.

It will feature engaging and expert presentations, break out sessions for service operators, early childhood teachers and educators, an expansive trade exhibition and of course a wonderful opportunity to network with sector peers, stakeholders and suppliers. 

Dr Red Ruby Scarlet will be in attendance as Pedagogical Artist in Residence, and an Activity Hub will offer guests additional hands-on fun and learning.
 
Tickets are now available, with Early Bird rates applying to 11 April, or for the first 100 tickets sold (whichever happens first). 

Visit the conference website to find out more and book tickets today! We look forward to seeing you there! #ACAVMagicOfChildhood 

We're excited to announce that our new online Membership Management System will be live from 7.00pm tonight, 15 April!

From tonight, when you log in to our website as a member, you will be redirected to the Member Portal where you'll be able to:

• Update your details
• Renew your membership (once due)
• View, download and pay invoices
• View and register for events
• View your event bookings in one easy location
• Access information for members only: Flexible Affordable Modelling Tool, Employment information including IR telephone advice line, Awards and wage tables, business support, templates and other resources

When you first encounter the Member Portal, you will be asked to register yourself, providing:

• Your member number 
• Your first name
• Your last name
• Your postcode
• Your username (enter your choice of username)
  
  

You will then be sent an email with a link to set your password - again this will be your choice.

If you save these details in your browser, whenever you want to log in to our website, whether to access your account, member only information, or register for an event, you will go straight into the Member Portal.

We hope you'll find the Portal easy to use as well as useful!

If you have any queries at all, please don't hesitate to call us on 03 9532 2017 or email us at vic@childcarealliance.org.au

Following an excellent presentation at our Member Meetings on 13 and 14 February, cyber security and the impact a cyber attack might have on your and our business is very much front of mind. 

News of the hack of patient records at a leading Melbourne medical facility, not to mention the Australian Parliament, brings this issue very starkly into relief.

If you missed the opportunity to hear Martha McKeen, Senior Manager Cyber Outreach CommBank, present on how to be aware of the risks and how to avoid them, you can access the material and resources to help you minimise your risk in your copy of Building Blocks newsletter from 15/2/2019 or by logging into the members' area of our website and navigating to the Newsletters page. Or feel free to call us on 03 9532 2017.