Tree House Early Learning Centre - St Kilda

The team at Guardian St Kilda South have been wonderful. The care provided is excellent. The communication is great and the team are always very responsive to any questions or concerns. Our daughter has settled in really well and is very well cared for.

Unfortunately, the MANAGER is not capable to run the centre. The centre looks boring and not decorated to be more attractive. Kids are always stuck in the centre and hardly doing an excursion. Even when it’s a cold day it’s unlikely that they spend time in the outdoor space. $175.5 for this kind of service are not worth. Not recommended. Better choice around.

We joined the centre at a transitional time and were initially apprehensive - but after change in management were very impressed. The access to the outdoors in all the rooms is a real highlight. The educators are all delightful. We have since moved on due to relocating and have reflected on how easy it was to settle our COVID baby there at 9 months, even though at the time we weren't able to do orientations. Despite that she settled in so quickly and was always excited to go!

Our 2 boys have been cared for here over the last five years. Quality of care is great, and despite challenges, the team are always happy and genuinely care for all the kids. Hazel and Sarah, Kylie and chef Tommy are the people I see most regularly, and it is always a pleasure. Thanks team, the ride is over for our family, best of luck for the future!

My first child has attended this centre, and my second son is now. We can't be happier with the quality of the learning, the great natural spaces, the open door policy with plenty of outdoor play and above all the lovely, caring and professional educators! They made leaving our child so much easier, knowing he'll be having a great time, cared by people who genuinely care, and take time to know him and his family! My son also loves all the different animals there. And, as a family with different cultural backgrounds, I enjoy to see the embrace for diversity there, with many different cultures celebrated and integrated in the program. Can't recommend this place enough!

I always recommend the center to all my friends. It is a great place for kids to grow. Having animals in the center is an absolute advantage because educators can teach little ones how to behave with animals (that I can't do). Most educators are so professional and helpful, that we always feel great support and help with raising children.

Our child has been going here to Treehouse (now Guardian) since she was a year old. We have been very happy with all the Educators here and our daughter also enjoys her time at the centre. She has now been going to this centre for a few years and we find the Educators are amazing. They are quick to respond to any of our concerns or questions. While there was a period last year during the COVID lockdown where there was a change in management and staff leaving, things have significantly improved and all the current Educators and the Centre Manager are doing a fabulous job. We find they really take a lot of initiative and the kids have amazing activities each week. We find it very easy to communicate with the staff and they take a genuine interest in the children's welfare. The staff are friendly and the meals each week are delicious. We have received a lot of support from the Educators also around mile stones such as potty training and behavioural issues. I definitely recommend this Centre to new parents.

I have now had two of my three children attend this centre and couldn't be happier with the service and staff.

I pulled my daughter out of her previous centre due to a lack of care and attention from staff. When she started at this centre she thrived and is now in grade 2. The difference this move made has transformed our daughter into the incredible kid she is now.

It was a no-brainer to enrol our now almost 2yr old into the centre. Her love for the staff and excitement when entering the centre in the morning speaks volumes.

The centre has gone through a tough period over the past year or so, however it's good to see the transformation, especially post covid.

I Highly recommend this centre!

Poorly run by the current centre manager, she is unfriendly and couldn't care about any of her staff of families attending the centre.have tried to have conversations with her many times but am snubbed off each time.extremely unwelcoming and im glad I pulled my child out when I did.would not recommend at all.

We were super heart broken when we had to look for a new centre. Given all the fond memories we had with both our children attending this centre I was actually choked up on my sons last day.and I'm the father.

Our first child originally did split weeks at Treehouse Elsternwick and St Kilda before settling into St Kilda exclusively and she finished kindy in 2017. Our second child joined the baby room in late 2019.

The drop in standards now compared to when our daughter first joined 6+ years ago is quite noticeable. With the original Treehouse founders one had the sense that the primary focus was genuinely the education and wellbeing of the children. Now however, with a large corporation such as Guardian Group taking over the primary focus now is clearly profit. Given that the only elevator for a 3 level building is constantly out of order for weeks on end is a clear representation of the current state of affairs. The daily price is higher than other centres we've looked at which we were happy to pay as long as the level of service matched the price point which as it stands, does not.

More than anything I feel sorry for the staff past and present because even though they are wonderful they are clearly trying to do the best with the lack of resources and renumeration they receive. A previous staff member indicated that things were not great. The staff turnover now is next level even before covid. From the centre managers to the kindergarden coordinator to room leaders to educators even the chefs they have lost so many good staff you can't keep up.

Never had issues with drop offs but as time went on my son started to get upset every time we turned into the driveway and would cry during handovers which never used to be the case. The final straw was when 4 drop offs in a row, it was 4 new unfamiliar faces greeting him each time.

My sister in law and her partner both work in childcare one as a director. They looked up the accreditations and apparently Guardian Childcare & Education St Kilda South (formerly Tree House) just meets regulatory standard despite many other centres in the area being above standard. They had a contact in one of the other nearby council run centres and managed to quickly get us a spot.

I normally don't write reviews but choosing a childcare centre is a big deal and as a fellow parent it's important to get a true picture.

It takes time to turn a big ship like Guardian Group but things were getting worse not better. I really didn’t want to go elsewhere but felt we had no other choice. It was a sad ending to what otherwise was mostly a great experience.: (

My children receive high quality nutritious meals, and have been so happy here. Fantastic educators who care so much and go above and beyond for my family. The place is always tidy and well equipped with lots to do, awesome activities and events!

Horrible, horrible centre. We regretted choosing this centre as our first childcare centre. Our 18 months old boy came home with at least 4-5 bite marks in his right arm and there was no phone call/incident report filed during that day. I called in as soon as I noticed the marks and I was told nothing was mentioned something had happened in The Gum Tree room (that was a Friday) and I was told to wait until Monday - very unacceptable and unprofessional! We were left in the dark for the entire weekend. Given that there is supposed to be an educator for every 4 children, we believe incident such as this should not happen under supervision, at least not unnoticed, however it has. We were heartbroken seeing our boy in pain whenever we touch his right arm. They told us that he had a great day but ends up having marks in his arms is just heartbreaking. It's painful knowing your son was neglected at the centre you trusted and the educators you thought who will look after him while you work didn't really care much about your child's well-being. If something like this big goes unnoticed, I just can't imagine the small things (but significant things for us parents) are happening that they are not telling us. We're very disappointed and will never recommend this place to anyone who is looking for a childcare centre.

My daughter has been attending Guardian St Kilda South since she was 4 months old, the educators made it so easy for me to return to work. Being a first time mum, I was nervous and anxious of how she would go but after her first orientation I knew she was in the best hands. Now when we arrive at the centre, she just can't contain her excitement the moment we step into the service. The centre has such a lovely community feel to it with amazing and caring educators.

My first child has attended this centre, and my second son is now. We can't be happier with the quality of the learning, the great natural spaces, the open door policy with plenty of outdoor play and above all the lovely, caring and professional educators! They made leaving our child so much easier, knowing he'll be having a great time, cared by people who genuinely care, and take time to know him and his family! My son also loves all the different animals there. And, as a family with differeny cultural backgrounds, I enjoy to see the embrace for diversity there, with many different cultures celebrated and integrated in the program. Can't recommend this place enough!

I have my 2yo daughter here since last year. It makes me so happy every day that she arrives at the centre smilling. She adores her teacher and her room. I absolutely love them as well, they are so kind and loving people.

We could not be happier with this center. From day one we have loved coming here. Our son is so happy every morning when he walks through the door. Lots of outdoor and messy play. Lots of craft activities as well. The educators are all fabulous and really care for the little ones. We also love that diversity plays such a big part for the center and the activities. Lots of diverse cultural events are celebrated and they take a big interest in understanding the cultural background of each child. Thank you so much team!

We're absolutely loving this centre. It's out 3rd try finding a centre for our daughter and we're so relieved to have found such a great place for her. The carers are fantastic and where previously our little one hated daycare she's now excited and happy to be left. We get great and timely updates, she tells us all the time about the great activities they did for the day and best of all instead of tears we now get a "yay, daycare day'' in the morning. A massive thank you to the team.

I think it's a great centre, lots of outdoor play, creativity, education and natural play. The staff is friendly and my daughter always goes with a smile on her face, coming home having had a great day. The staff is approachable and friendly anda always open for discussion or support when needed.

Couldn't be happier with this centre, I can see my little boy advancing in areas we can't do at home. He loves it here, as do we.