The Gap Cubbyhouse Montessori

My son attended here for a year before starting school. He always had a wonderful time and looked forward to attending each day, and has made some lifelong friends that he still has 7 years later!

We have had such a positive experience with Cubbyhouse. Compared to the two previous centres we used, Cubbyhouse has offered a significantly more stable and engaging environment. Most of the staff have worked with Cubby for years, this stability is so important to help children settle in. High turnover was one of my biggest disappointments with other centres.

Our daughter is definitely a more confident and independent child for her Cubby experience. Her teachers communicate proactively about her academic and socio-emotional development and we cooperate to build on her strengths. I am so impressed with the genuine care and individual attention that each child gets here.

There are lots of interesting activities for the kids. The school holiday programs are always fun and creative. There's even a real jetski concreted into the yard that the kids LOVE. Its a really great place!

Fantastic day care! I was stressing about putting our 5 month old in dc as I had to return to work and the staff made the transition so smooth for all of us, sending loads of photos during the day and calling me with updates on her first week. We also have a very gentle 20 month old who they have taken special care of and changed arrangements around to accommodate her definitely worth a tour if you’re looking for somewhere new

Our little one absolutely loves Cubby House. Miss Sue and the entire team play a huge part in our son's life and we couldn't be happier with the care they provide.

My child attended this centre for a few months before I chose to remove them due to the disgusting behaviour towards children from particular staff members. There were some good childcare leaders, and I felt extremely sorry for them as they really tried their best. But the director at the time, SJ, was very prejudice and showed appalling child management skills. Every time my child raised their voice, I would be contacted at work to pick up my child because they were uncontrollable. This occured often, and eventually my husband and I came in for a meeting to find out what was going on. All they did was sit there and try and tell us how awful our child was and how they couldnt cope. I got one more call after that and when I arrived at the childcare i stood outside the door listening for 5 mins before I walked in where they could see me. When I came in they said -i am glad you are here, did you hear ^&&*^ screaming? I cannot calm them down- - well in fact I had been there and knew that they were not doing anything of the sort, I confronted the matter and explained that they were bullying my child and making false allegations. I pulled my child out there and then. I know what you're thinking - maybe its the child. Well I put them in another centre, and they stayed for 1.5 years and then went on to school. I have not had any problems since and my child has not had any of these apparant screaming uncontrollable behaviours at any other centre or school. I was later told by a staff member I ran into who had now left, that she thought my child was treated in a disgusting manner and does not condone it. I would NOT recommend this centre to anyone, and in fact I have written to my local counsellor and requested they are reviewed or shut down.

Also exceptional centre - My family and I have used Cubbyhouse for well over 4 years with both my boys. Miss SJ and the rest of the fantastic teachers/carers are wonderful and have helped my family without a doubt during some challenging times we have gone through eg The Gap Storm 2008. We also had some behaviour issues that we dealt with and together the staff and our family worked on them to get a great result, I would speak with my sons teacher and through their professionalism and persistance we got through it. Communication is the key. We where also at Cubbyhouse before Miss SJ and the improvements that she has made not only with the centre itself but the support she has shown to her staff. She expects perfection from her leaders and clearly sets out her expectations of the children and parents. This establishes respect and trust, they are lessons that the children and certainly my children have learnt and it has made them who they are today. We have just moved to Mackay so the centre we are going to here has some pretty big shoes to fill! We where sad to leave. I have no hesitation in recommending Cubbyhouse to any new parent (which I have), they are supportive, thoughtful and certainly love the kids and get them "school" ready. My children are confident and also caring and I thank the ladies for all of their love and support. There is certainly a sense of community and it is where I have also met some fantastic friends through my boys. Miss SJ and Miss Rachele have inspired me to become an early childhood teacher, they lead by example.

Our children have been going to the 'Cubby School' as they call it for a year now and we are extremely happy with their development. From our first meeting with SJ we were very encouraged about the style of the centre, especially her strong advice to check out other centers in the area before making our decision. We followed this advice as decided that the development program fit very well with our own parenting styles. We have been happy with this decision from day one and would recommend the centre wholeheartedly to anyone.

My child attended this centre for a few months before I chose to remove them due to the disgusting behaviour towards children from particular staff members. There were some good childcare leaders, and I felt extremely sorry for them as they really tried their best. But the director at the time, SJ, was very prejudice and showed appalling child management skills. Every time my child raised their voice, I would be contacted at work to pick up my child because they were uncontrollable. This occured often, and eventually my husband and I came in for a meeting to find out what was going on. All they did was sit there and try and tell us how awful our child was and how they couldnt cope. I got one more call after that and when I arrived at the childcare i stood outside the door listening for 5 mins before I walked in where they could see me. When I came in they said -i am glad you are here, did you hear ^&&*^ screaming? I cannot calm them down- - well in fact I had been there and knew that they were not doing anything of the sort, I confronted the matter and explained that they were bullying my child and making false allegations. I pulled my child out there and then. I know what you're thinking - maybe its the child. Well I put them in another centre, and they stayed for 1.5 years and then went on to school. I have not had any problems since and my child has not had any of these apparant screaming uncontrollable behaviours at any other centre or school. I was later told by a staff member I ran into who had now left, that she thought my child was treated in a disgusting manner and does not condone it. I would NOT recommend this centre to anyone, and in fact I have written to my local counsellor and requested they are reviewed or shut down.

I have had my son and now my daughter at this centre for the past 4 years and have experienced all the rooms from the nursery to the pre school. The centre is always immaculately clean and always achieves the highest level of accreditation within the annual governmental review and over the years I have recommended the centre to scores of friends and family. I was at the centre before S-J was director and after and the standard of care has always been fantastic. The centre, although a 'for profit' business has always given the impression it is about the children and staff first and profit second. Similar to 'Kyla' my son exprienced challenging behaviour and I recieved nothing but support and advice from S-J and all the other staff in the centre however his behaviour was never bad enough that they asked me to come and pick him up. Later when he experienced bullying in the pre school room, when I approached staff with my concerns I was told exactly what measures were to be put in place there and then. There was no 'umming and ahhing' they knew exactly what their policies were and how to approach the the problem. I left the centre that day knowing my concerns were listened to and that action would be taken and he has never experienced bullying since. I have a HUGE appreciation for this centre and their staff have been able to compare it to other centres I have seen and they are second to none. I would recommend this centre to anyone in the area.