At Busy Bees at Fraser Coast your child will benefit from:
Busy Bees at Fraser Coast is located in Hervey Bay, in the leafy suburb of Torquay. Serenely surrounded by natural bushland, the Service is just around the corner (and in walking distance) from Sandy Straits State School and Urangan High School. Within this beautiful space you’ll find a rainforest, creek bed, a waterpark, bike track, fort, and endless opportunities for children to play, investigate and explore. We even have our very own Garden World, which provides the children with daily experiences gardening and composting, utilising the worm farm, and digging in the mud pit.
Inside our on-site Barnyard you’ll find our dedicated Ranger Miss Michelle, ready to teach the children all about caring for farm animals and the environment. The Barnyard is open from 7.30am every morning allowing the children to visit, interact with and learn how to care for our goats, lamb, guinea pigs, chickens and birds.
Busy Bees at Fraser Coast offers 74 registered placements for children 6 weeks to 5 years of age, supported by our friendly Service Manager Melanie Gapes. Melanie is dedicated to providing the very best care for every child and is supported by a qualified team of 23 passionate Educators, including a fully qualified teacher that facilitates our Government Approved Kindergarten program. Our on-site cook prepares nutritionally balanced meals daily to ensure our children are nourishing their bodies, as well as their minds.
Busy Bees at Fraser Coast provides a warm and nurturing environment where we nurture each child’s individuality, helping them move at their own pace, in their own way. We keep our families in the loop every step of the way, utilising Storypark as our online platform to document and share your child’s learning journey.
Busy Bees at Fraser Coast encompasses an innovative approach which is based on the discovery and exploration of respectful relationships with children. We follow this philosophy and offer children uninterrupted time for play, plenty of freedom, a calm and relaxed environment, cooperative relationships, and our full attention.
We’ve developed the Busy Bees learning program with the help of childcare specialists, curriculum experts and Early Years Advisors at our Centre Support Office. It’s filled with unique and stimulating activities you won’t find anywhere else!
We would love to have you join our Busy Bees family at Fraser Coast. Contact our team to Book Your Tour today.
Service Manager
Hi, my name is Melanie Gapes and I’m the Service Manager at Busy Bees at Fraser Coast. I have 21 years experience in the Early Childhood Education and Care sector. My career began at a young age, as I discovered while still in high school that I was passionate about working with young children. My training and career started in New Zealand, where I completed my Diploma and my Bachelor of Early Childhood Education.
I find children simply beautiful. They are free spirited, happy and so much fun to be around. I believe as Early Childhood Educators we have such a positive impact on each child’s life as we support them to become strong, independent and capable individuals.
I am also an advocate for the education and professional growth of all our Educators, and continually invest in the success of my team. In my many years as an Educational Leader, I have always enjoyed sharing my own knowledge, as well as research and new findings within the Early Childhood sector. Part of my role is to support and mentor others, so they can grow and become the best they can be.
My overall goal as a Service Manager is to lead and inspire our wonderful team of Educators so that together we can provide a space for children that is warm, respectful, welcoming, fun, and stimulating. We are always striving to provide the best quality education and care to every child.
Assistant Service Manager
Hi, my name is Juelle Freeleagus and I am the 2IC at Busy Bees at Fraser Coast.
I have lived in the beautiful Fraser Coast for over 12 years with my husband and three children. I love crafting, sewing and anything arty. My family and I love exploring Queensland and all our fabulous environments, rainforests, and other attractions!
I have loved the childcare industry since I began my career back in high school when I completed my Certificate III in Children’s Services. From here I gained employment and studied toward my Diploma in the years following. As a Room Leader, I worked in multiple different age groups from Nursery to Kindergarten and found that this is what I wanted to do for my long-term career. After this stage in my career, I decided to take the next step and worked toward my Bachelor of Education and completed this teaching degree in 2022.
At our day care centre in Torquay, I am passionate about creating a warm, welcoming and friendly environment where children are supported and appreciated in their own individual ways. I look forward to welcoming you to our Busy Bees family.
In the spirit of reconciliation, Busy Bees Early Learning acknowledges the Traditional Custodians of country throughout Australia and recognises First Nations peoples’ continued cultural and spiritual connections to land, sea, sky and community. We pay our respects to Elders past, present and emerging, and extend that respect to all Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples today.
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We regret that tours are currently unavailable for this Service, please call our Family Support Team on 1300 851 331.
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