At SDN, we create a village where everyone belongs.
Our children, families, staff and community bring with them their own unique interests and needs to SDN. When we welcome families to our village, partnering with them to provide the best learning opportunities for children is what sets us apart.
That’s why this year on Saturday 17 August 2024, we invite you to attend our Family Day! Whether you're an existing family who already attends one of our centres, or a new family exploring whether SDN is the right fit for you, our Family Day is a day to celebrate our village together and explore how every day is a chance for your child to thrive.
Register now for free
Please register below to attend Open Day at one or more of our 25 Early Education and Care Centres across NSW and ACT.
- Sydney CBD and Inner City
- South Western Sydney and Western Sydney
- Inner West
- North Sydney and Northern Beaches
- Eastern Suburbs
- Regional NSW and ACT
Got a question about the event? Check out our Frequently Asked Questions at the bottom of this page, or speak to a member of our SDN Family Engagement Team by calling 1300 831 445 or emailing sdn@sdn.org.au.
SDN Chippendale
Family Day - Sat, 17 Aug 2024
SDN Erskineville
Family Day - Sat, 17 Aug 2024
SDN Glebe
Family Day - Sat, 17 Aug 2024
SDN Redfern
Family Day - Sat, 17 Aug 2024
SDN Surry Hills
Family Day - Sat, 17 Aug 2024
SDN Paddington
Family Day - Sat, 17 Aug 2024
SDN Pyrmont
Family Day - Sat, 17 Aug 2024
SDN Woolloomooloo
Family Day - Sat, 17 Aug 2024
SDN Lois Barker, Waterloo
Family Day - Sat, 17 Aug 2024
On this page, select the centre you'd like to register for by clicking the 'Register Now' button. You'll be taken to a registration page on our site, powered by Eventbrite.
Here we'll take a few short details to help us plan and understand your needs for the day. Once you've submitted your registration, you will receive a confirmation e-mail in your inbox to the e-mail address you used to register.
The whole process shouldn't take you longer than 5 minutes. But, if you do need help with registering you can contact our Family Engagement Team on 1300 831 445 or sdn@sdn.org.au.
Please note you'll need to register separately for every centre you'd like to attend.
Registration and attendance at all our Family Day events is free.
Absolutely! Some of our centres are located in close proximity to each other, which means you can potentially attend up to a few on the same day.
Please note: if you do register for more than one centre, some of our centres will need you to indicate your approx. arrival time during registration. This helps our staff with planning and coordination on the day.
Our Family Day event will start at 10:00am and end at 12:00pm.
Some of our centres we will ask you to indicate your approximate arrival time at registration, to help our staff our staff plan for and coordinate on the day.
We appreciate you arriving at the time you indicate during registration, but from there, you can stay as long as you'd like, up until the close of the event at 12:00pm.
No. Attending any of our Family Day events does not guarantee any family a place at the centre.
Family Day is an opportunity for you and your family to experience the SDN village so you can see for yourself what your spaces are like, chat to our educators and see if we are a fit for your family.
At the event, you can speak directly with the centre team about joining our waitlist if you haven't already, and enquire about availability.
At SDN, we also have a priority of access policy (see the full policy here). We know that certain times people face barriers that make accessing services difficult. We also know that because of past and ongoing experiences of colonisation Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities experience particular disadvantage.
Our priority of access policy evens the field for these children and families, and ensures they have access to the service they need to support them through this disadvantage.
The policy outlines that there are a number of our criteria for priority of access including: children who are at risk of harm and their siblings, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children and children with disabilities.
Of course! We'd love to meet your child, get to know them better, and see what they think of the centre too.
For younger children in prams, most of our centres have pram parking spaces where you may be able to leave your pram for the duration of your stay.
Please note that while our early childhood educators, teachers and staff are busy providing tours of the centre and speaking with families, they cannot provide supervision. By registering for this event, you take full responsibility for supervising your child(ren) for the full duration of the event.
It's up to you.
Families are at different stages in their journey of finding care for their child...some families may have been doing their research for months, and for others, it may be one of their first experiences with a service.
If you haven't already, we recommend learning more about your preferred centre(s) on their centre pages. You can also learn more about SDN by visiting our social channels and seeing some of the stories of what we get up to across our services:
If you're really unsure what to look out for or ask during your stay, you may find it valuable to view our Guide to Having a Successful Centre Tour.
You don't need to bring anything particular on the day, but feel free to bring anything that your child may need or want to bring, such as their favourite toy or a water bottle. For some children, it can be daunting visiting a new place and meeting people for the first time, but our wonderful educators are very experienced at helping your child and family to feel safe, comfortable and relaxed on the day!
We're sad you won't be able to join us on the day, but we understand that other plans are made in advance or may unexpectedly come up.
You are, instead, welcome to book a tour at any of our centres when convenient for you and depending on the centre's time and date availability. All centre tours are free and can be booked here.
Having said, if you know someone who is interested in attending, please let them know about our event!
Yes. All our Early Education and Care Centres have a dedicated preschool program that prepares children for for the big transition to school.
You can learn more about our preschool program here or see our curriculum practice in centres here.
Many of our centres have in-house cooks who will make and serve up a taste of healthy food and treats for your family to sample. It'll show you what sort of food you might expect your child to eat when they're in our care and how we nourish their healthy bodies to grow.
While we may not be able to meet all dietary requirements on the day of the event, our centre cooks are very well trained in catering to dietary requirements for children when in our care (such as gluten-free, vegetarian, nut or dairy free, etc.).
Many of our centres have parking spaces conveniently located out front or nearby. Please note these parking spaces may be limited and are on a first-come, first-serve basis. Plan your trip/arrival early to allow for time to locate the centre and find a parking space.
Alternatively, many of our centres are also accessible by public transport, such as bus, train or light rail. We recommend using the TransportNSW Trip Planner or any Map service application on your phone/device, to help you plan your trip.
All our Family Day events will be run by current staff from the centre, and are remunerated for their service.
However, we also understand many of our current families would love to help on the day and even speak to new families about their experiences. We know how important it is for families to make friends and connect with their own community, so if you are a family who already attends an SDN centre, you are also more than welcome to join us on the day.
If you are planning to attend, please register for the event and let us know you are a current family member. If you are looking to help out and contribute in any way, please let the Centre Director and/or staff from your centre know so they can plan and advise.
We are an inclusive village where everyone belongs. We'll try out best to accommodate any accessibility or special requirements – It’s best to contact us first so we can talk to you about how we can best prepare our space to meet your needs.
- Phone number: 1300 831 445
- E-mail: sdn@sdn.org.au
Please send your question to sdn@sdn.org.au or call us on 1300 831 445, and we'll do our best to assist you.