Goodstart Burnside

Nurturing early learning and kindergarten on Wurundjeri land

Longstanding educators and a home-like environment.

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277-281 Westwood Drive, BURNSIDE, 3023, VIC

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

Nursery, Toddler, Kindergarten

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Welcome to Goodstart Burnside!

We create a welcoming, home-like long day care environment where our educators support each child to grow, explore and thrive.

Our early learning centre is located on the corner of Westwood Drive and Rockbank Middle Road, between Melton and Deer Park, with easily accessible public transport routes.

Families value our longstanding educators, strong partnerships and the high-quality care we provide for children from six weeks to five years.

With six age-based rooms from nursery to kindergarten, plus spacious outdoor play areas, we nurture every child to discover, learn and build confidence at their own pace.

We invite you to take a tour of our service – our team would love to meet you.

What makes our centre special:

Six age-appropriate learning environments from Nursery to Kindergarten
Longstanding educators, many with 10+ years at the centre
Three qualified early childhood teachers delivering quality programs, with a focus on school-readiness for kindergarten
Home-like spaces that help children feel secure and connected
Weekly Magical Kindy Dance program for all age groups
Diverse team speaking Vietnamese, Punjabi, Hindi and English
Strong focus on family relationships and continuity of care through the Key Educator approach

Our families often describe Goodstart Burnside as a 'home away from home' where children feel safe, supported and excited to learn.

With freshly renovated spaces, including a modern kindergarten bathroom, and inviting play areas, children can engage in active play, develop independence and form strong friendships.

You and your family can feel confident in the tailored care we provide.

We celebrate cultural diversity and community through events such as Diwali, Chinese New Year, and Mother's and Father's Day, helping children connect with their world and embrace inclusion.

Our centre cook prepares nutritious, allergen-friendly meals daily, and qualified staff are trained in first aid, asthma, and anaphylaxis management.

Book a tour today to see firsthand why we're a trusted choice for local families, and how we can support your child's learning journey.

Learn more about Goodstart Burnside

At Goodstart Burnside, 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 Burnside 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

Hello, my name is Kylie Horton, and I am the Centre Director at Goodstart Burnside.

I have been working at this centre for over 17 years, I have performed is different roles from Group leader, Assistant Director and now Centre Director.

I am not merely an early childhood educator, I am an early childhood educator of children, I believe that each child is an individual and as an educator I will value and develop each child's strengths, interests, skills, abilities, and knowledge to extend their learning. Children need the assurance of being loved and cared for while they are enjoying an educational environment. Security and trust are very important components as well, as my relationship with each child and their families.

I believe that as the Centre Director building trust with families is a top priority so that families feel valued and respected, feel comfortable to ask questions or express concerns and have increased confidence in the service. I believe that communication with families is a key part of building relationships with families, through communication I can find out the type of information that is important to them.

Please come and visit our centre to meet our team and see how committed we are to supporting you and your child/children to have the best possible start to life in the first five years.

Government Funded Kindergarten Program

At Burnside, you and your child can enjoy the best of both worlds. Our early learning centre offers a Government-funded 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.