The Australian Childcare Alliance (ACA) is a not-for-profit, member-funded organisation advocating for the future of Australia's children.
We work on behalf of long day care owners and operators to ensure families and their children have an opportunity to access affordable, high quality early learning services throughout Australia.
The Australian Childcare Alliance (ACA)'s Executive Committee provides a collective voice for our members, making decisions on behalf of all five ACA State Bodies and engaging with key political and sector stakeholders at the national level.
Our Executive Committee ("the Board") is made up of the President, Vice President, Treasurer, Secretary and two Ordinary Members.
The work of the Board is supported by a Working Group, which includes the six Board Members, along with other participants from the five ACA State Bodies.
All of our Board Members are early learning service owner/operators, who volunteer their own personal time to work for ACA's Executive Committee on a regular basis.
We are extremely grateful to our Board Members for dedicating their time and efforts to the regular Board discussions and work projects, and for bringing a wealth of operational knowledge and experience to ACA's important role of advocating for the sector, with a view to ensuring a future where every child in Australia has the best start in life.
Paul brings over 15 years of experience as an early learning service provider to the role of President. Formerly the Secretary of ACA's Executive Committee and former President of the ACA Victorian Committee, Paul has played a key role in advocating for the interests of members at the Federal and State Government levels. He is dedicated to ensuring that all children have access to high quality, affordable early learning services in Australia.
Paul has a long established history in early learning and child care which started through his work in the family business from the age of 13. Since then Paul has built and managed his own services and currently has one service in Victoria. Throughout his time in the sector Paul has spent time filling most roles within the daily operations of the service and continues to work day to day in these services with children, families and educators. As a result Paul has developed a strong understanding of the challenges facing families in accessing affordable early learning services which has resulted in the desire to take a leadership role in the advocacy space.
Nesha has over 40 years of experience in the early learning sector. Formerly the Treasurer of the ACA National Executive Committee, Nesha is also former President of the ACA NSW Executive Committee.
Nesha currently owns two early learning services in Sydney. She is passionate about working collaboratively across the sector to bring about positive outcomes for children, families and operators in the areas of funding, planning, inclusive support and policy.
Nesha takes a hands-on approach to centre operation, and is acutely aware of the issues facing operators, families and our children. She has won a host of awards for her business management from the Australian Family Awards, Child Care Week Awards, National Work Life Balance Awards, Small Business Awards and Telstra Business Women's Awards.
Nesha holds a Bachelor's Degree in Psychology and English, a Masters in Psychology, a Post Graduate Certificate in Counselling, and a Post Graduate Certificate in Special Education - Inclusive Support and a Diploma in Children's Services. She also has a Cert IV in Training and Assessment. Nesha has previously worked as a registered senior supervising psychologist and has been a long standing Member of the Australian Psychological Society. She is a Justice of the Peace.
Ann Marie Chemello brings over 30 years of experience in the early learning sector to her role as Secretary, and is currently operating several early learning and Outside School Hours Care (OSHC) services. Anne Marie is also President of the ACA WA Executive Committee.
Ann Marie firmly believes that the first five years of a child’s life are fundamental to all areas of their development. Her passion is in training educators to deliver a caring and nurturing environment that involve opportunities to enrich the child’s development.
Ann Marie holds a Diploma in Teaching, Diploma in Social Science and a Cert IV in Training and Assessment.
Jae Fraser, a University Qualified Early Childhood Educator with over 20 years of hands-on experience in Early Childhood Education. Jae's academic credentials include a Bachelor of Education, Advanced Diploma of Early Childhood Education and several business management qualifications spanning across the many spectrums of the child care and education industry. To compliment these achievements, Jae has worked in all sectors of the Early Learning Education and Care profession, from Teacher at the hands-on level through to centre management and operations senior management positions throughout Australia and Singapore.
Jae is Vice President of ACA Queensland and is an active advocate for children and education.
Having founded the Little Scholars School of Early Learning, which includes 14 premier early education and care campuses across Sth East QLD, Jae has also been the pioneer of The Scholars Group, a consulting & management company that projects visionary leadership by delivering a tailored approach to the management of early learning services. The Scholars Group supports early learning centres across the country with a range of do-it-yourself resources, professional advice, support and full management services.
Jackie is co-founder, Approved Provider and Director of Treetops Early Learning Centres Pty Ltd. Jackie holds a Bachelor of Early Childhood Education and is a Registered Teacher in South Australia. Jackie has over 15 years’ experience in early childhood education and care, currently overseeing the management and leadership of all five Treetops Early Learning Centres located in South Australia.
Jackie's leadership philosophy is founded on the establishment of robust, supportive relationships, not only within her Management Team and Educators but also extending to the children and families within her services.
Her unwavering commitment centres on the provision of high-quality care and education for children, a dedication fuelled by her own experiences as a mother of two young children. Jackie keenly understands the profound and enduring impact that early childhood education has on a child's development.
Over the course of her career, Jackie has seen numerous changes within the early childhood education sector, both at a National and South Australian state level. In response to these shifts, she has dedicated herself to securing positive outcomes for her educators, children, and families.
Drawing from her wealth of experience and ongoing adaptability in the industry, Jackie is enthusiastic about her role as the ACA SA President. In this capacity, she collaborates with the Vice Presidents and Executive team, offering invaluable guidance and support to the SA members, thereby further enhancing the field of early childhood education and care
Lyn is President of ACA NSW and brings over 40 years of experience in the early learning sector. During this time she has worked in a voluntary capacity lobbying Federal Government to ensure that all families have access to high quality early learning services, through funding for families that keeps pace with the increased cost of service delivery. She has also lobbied for a reliable, measurable accreditation or Assessment and Rating System.
She also held the position of Secretary and Executive Member of the Australian Federation of Child Care Associations and President, Vice President and Executive Member of the Australian Confederation of Child Care, founding Vice President and past Committee Member and Secretary of the Australian Childcare Centres Association (a Federal Industrial Organisation representing private child care centre providers) initiator and founding Vice President of the Australian Childcare Alliance (ACA).
Lyn is diploma-trained and has for many years represented ACA NSW (formally CCNSW) members in print, television and radio media putting the case publicly to both the Federal Government and the NSW Government for better outcomes for centre owners, children and families and centre educators
