Goodstart Forest Gardens

A trusted, nurturing start for every child from nursery to kindergarten

We explore, learn and grow on Gimuy Yidinji Country.

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Lot 700 Benjamina Street, MOUNT SHERIDAN, 4868, QLD

6:30am to 6:00pm, Monday to Friday
Open every weekday of the year, except public holidays

Nursery, Toddler, Kindergarten

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Quality Childcare and Early Learning in Forest Gardens

Welcome to Goodstart Forest Gardens, proudly situated on Gimuy Yidinji Country, and where a love of learning begins.

Conveniently located just 10 minutes from Cairns Central and close to schools, shops and transport, our purpose-built long day care centre provides quality early learning and care for children from six weeks to school age.

Our longstanding educators create a warm, inclusive environment where every child feels safe, valued and supported to explore at their own pace.

Families choose us for our strong relationships, diverse teaching team and commitment to helping every child thrive from nursery to kindergarten.

Take a tour of our service – our team would love to meet you and show you around.

What makes Goodstart Forest Gardens unique:

Long-serving educators – 13 with over 5 years of experience – ensuring stability and trust
Tailored, child-centred play-based learning programs that nurture curiosity and creativity
Diverse team representing more than 10 languages and cultural backgrounds
Large outdoor spaces perfect for exploration, movement and discovery
Exciting incursions like Fitkidz and Roaming Wild to inspire learning through play
Strong community connections with nearby schools, parks and local services
Passionate educators, including our director of 13 years, dedicated to every family's journey

With seven bright, purpose-built learning rooms, each environment is designed to support children's development and independence through programs based on the Early Years Learning Framework.

Our educators, including qualified early childhood teachers, personalise programs to each child's interests and strengths, fostering confidence and a lifelong love of learning.

Families value our sense of belonging and the consistency of our centre team who truly know their children.

We speak a diverse range of languages including English, Japanese, Mandarin, Tongan, Tagalog, Swahili, Tok Pisin, Torres Strait Creole, Punjabi, Hindi, Northern Lau, Burmese and Hmong.

Through our team’s diverse cultural tapestry, we support bilingual families and community connections while enabling enrich culturally responsive, inclusive programming that nurtures every child’s sense of belonging.

Come and experience our welcoming community and see the difference for yourself. You’ll find us conveniently located near St Mary’s Catholic College, Woree State Primary and High School.

Book a tour today at Goodstart Forest Gardens. Let's work together to give your child the best possible start in life.

Learn more about Goodstart Forest Gardens

At Goodstart Forest Gardens, our philosophy centres around the belief that every child is a unique individual with their own interests and strengths. We embrace a play-based learning approach that nurtures curiosity and creativity, allowing children to explore their world in meaningful ways. 
We prioritise: 
1. Holistic Development: Supporting cognitive, emotional, social, and physical growth through engaging and developmentally appropriate activities. 
2. Family and Community Engagement: Building strong partnerships with families and the community to create a supportive network for each child. 
3. Inclusive Environment: Celebrating diversity and ensuring that all children feel valued, respected, and included. 
4. Lifelong Learning: Instilling a love of learning by encouraging exploration, problem-solving, and critical thinking. 
Through our philosophy, we aim to create a safe, nurturing environment where children can thrive and become confident, capable learners. 
Children need to feel safe and supported to learn and grow, so we promote key educator relationships between our educators and children. Your child will have at least one educator (their key educator) who takes them under their wing and really gets to know them. 
Our Key Educator relationships help children form secure attachments. Educators work closely with smaller groups and individual children to better understand each child. These relationships lead to improved outcomes for children as we foster more communication between families and educators. 
We inform families regularly about their child's progress and welcome family involvement in our centre events and activities.  
At our Forest Gardens centre, we're proud to inspire your child's love of learning with the support of our passionate and qualified early childhood experts. Teachers with bachelor's degrees run our three and four-year-old kindergarten program, so children can be well on their way to excellent learning outcomes by the time they start school. 
At Goodstart, we believe all children deserve the best possible start in life, which includes access to high-quality early childhood education and care. We offer:  
- Discounts on multiple days  
- All day sessions   
- Fee assistance programs for families that need support
We work closely with parents to ensure the individual needs, interests and strengths of children are considered, and our learning goals reflect them. Using Storypark, a wonderful communication platform, we stay in close touch with families and ensure you're well informed about your child's development and achievements. 
Click here to book your tour or call our Family Services team to find out more on 1800 222 543.

Enrol now!

When every moment counts, make them Goodstart moments.

Enquire now

My name is Karla Budarick and I have been working in the childcare industry at Goodstart Forest Gardens since 2012. I moved from South Australia to Cairns in pursuit to follow my dream of working with children, I was lucky enough to be given this opportunity not long after I re-located.

Through the years I have been the Lead Educator in the Nursery and the Pre-Kindergarten rooms. I have a passion for watching children learn, grow and thrive in their environments. I feel privileged to be part of such a crucial stage of children’s education. For several years I was the Assistant Director and in 2019, I became the Centre Director.

I enjoy leading a passionate and driven team of dedicated early learning educators.

I look forward to meeting you.

Structured Kindergarten Program

At Forest Gardens, you and your child can enjoy the best of both worlds. Our centre offers a kindergarten program and long day care under the one roof. Our kindergarten teachers are University qualified and provide a play-based learning program that will support your child in learning the skills for school and life.

Fees and inclusions

Nursery & Toddler

Kindergarten

Use our Calculator to see your real out-of-pocket cost

The above fees are effective from 7 July 2025 and are based on a 10 hour session, for attendance between 2 and 4 days per week. 5 day bookings receive a generous discount per day. Note that different combinations of sessions times and number of days can increase or decrease the daily rate.