It all started when…

Nara Community Early Learning Centre was officially opened in 1989. Nara is an Aboriginal word meaning “Companion.” The name Nara was chosen by members of the Department of Aboriginal Studies -Melbourne Polytechnic who were involved in the establishment of the centre. They felt that it was a meaningful name relating to education and care for the community and is easily pronounced by the children. Nara Community Early Learning Centre was funded under a joint agreement between the Commonwealth and State governments. Land was available on the site of the then Melbourne Polytechnic. In establishing Nara, the founding members created a Committee of Management, which required that two of its seven voting members on the Committee of Management be nominees of Melbourne Polytechnic.

Nara Community Early Learning Centre (established in 1989) is a not-for-profit and community focused early learning service in Preston. Nara provides care for 68 children each day, from 6 month old babies up to school-ready kids. Nara is overseen by a committee of management.

2022 we began to implement the 3-year-old kinder in the koala room, 7.5 hours per week initially and increased to 15 hours by 2025. Kindergarten is an early education program for young children aged three to five, led by an early childhood teacher. Three-Year-Old Kindergarten has been introduced across Victoria, so families can now access two years of government-funded kindergarten for their children 2 years before they start school.