Kindalin @ Castle Hill

"I'm urging all parents to think twice before sending their kids to this place. They are very professional in taming babies, not helping them settle at daycare. When I say taming babies I mean that they treat babies like animals. It has taken me a while to be able to put this story into words. I would say I still have not made peace with it. When I spoke to them about it, they made it sound like it was very psychologically accepted, but I urge all parents to read my story and make their own judgement. My 20-month-old started at this place in July 2023. At the orientation day they told me they have a pram that they use to soothe babies with. I told them right then and there that "my baby doesn't like a pram even on her best day. But it's okay for you to try it. But if she doesn't like it, move on to another strategy to help soothe her. Like try to distract her with toys and games". So what they ended up doing was to leave my baby in the pram for 5 hours that day. I kept calling them but they gave me convoluted descriptions of her situation. So each time that I called they would say "she was upset. But now she's okay". "We rock her a little and she becomes okay again" and things like that. But when I saw my baby I realized she was traumatized. She wasn't upset nor happy to see me. She was actually afraid of expressing her emotions. I unbuckled her and tried talking to her. I kept on saying "my love, why won't you go and play in the sandpit? Why won't you go and play with these toys or why won't you eat the yummy food?" Of course she couldn't reply. She's only 20 months old. I took her home and I was just thinking that this is a transition period where she needs to get used to being separated from us. And yes it would be distressing. But when I thought further about her situation when I picked her up and when I tried to reply on behalf of her to my own questions I realized that she couldn't go play in the sandpit if she wanted to. Because she was buckled and stuck in the pram the whole day, she even had cried herself to sleep and slept in the pram for 2 hours. She was in the pram when she fell asleep. She stayed in the pram while sleeping and she woke up in the pram and was still buckled in the pram after she woke up. Next thing I did, I terminated her enrollment here. Because I concluded that their pram strategy is a punishment. It's a punishment to the child who is expressing their unhappiness due to getting separated from their parents for longer than usual. It's the exact 'Thinking corner' method which is now frowned-upon as a strategy with older kids. They deprive the child from basic rights of playing and walking and being free to move. When I talked to the director, I was told that they even put children who are used to daycare in the pram for the first 5 minutes of the day! Because she said the pram is the child's safety net. Yes she made it sound fancy and psychological… but I think they put kids in there every day to threaten them by reminding them of the punishment! They cut the child's unhappiness very quickly with a very cruel and inhumane method. The director also lied to me and said they don't buckle the children and they keep offering them to go play. It's a lie. I unbuckled my child with my own hands. It's impossible for her to not get out of a pram if allowed to. Heartless!"

"We couldn’t be happier with Kindalin Castle Hill. The staff are always supportive and work with you to provide the best care for your child. We looked at a few other centres before seeing Kindalin. We went to their open day and knew immediately that this is where we wanted to send our child. We have absolutely no regrets. She has developed more confidence to interact with other children, adores her teachers, and comes home telling us all about the things she is learning. As a Primary School Assistant Principal I know how important the early years are and we are so happy we found Kindalin Castle Hill!"

"Kindalin is absolutely the most authentic, honest and wholesome experience for all babies and toddlers. Our daughter is an active toddler of the Kindalin community is often mesmerised by all the educators for the care and compassion they demonstrate in the rooms. All our feedback is constantly sought, heard and acted upon and we couldn’t be more grateful for this environment that is contributing towards our child’s educational development. The educators are also well rounded and experienced and develop a curriculum that incorporates different learning styles and the needs of the whole community. Big kudos to Alison, Courtney and her wonderful, passionate and dedicated teams."

"My 22-months-old daughter couldn’t settle into the other daycare after 3 months, so we switched to Kindalin Castle Hill. We noticed the differences straight away. My daughter can stay there full day happily from week 2. She is no longer crying when I drop her off, and she always asks me to stay and play with her in the daycare when I pick her up. She is not anxious or cranky when she is back home, which is such a relief. The educators in the Possum room are very patient and kind to the kids. Some of them are super bubbly. My daughter is close to every educator now. They are good at what they are doing, and I like how they spend more time looking after the kids instead of taking photos for the parents. As long my kid is happy, I don’t mind that they don’t send me daily photos. I will recommend this centre to all parents."

"My 2 boys attended Kindalin CH for the last 4 years and our experience have been amazing. We switched from 2 different centers prior to this and have never looked back. Every aspect are so well managed, from the center policies, communications, educators, cleanliness, programs, organisations and even the vibes! My children have learned so much during their time there, my youngest has finally graduated and we are sad to say goodbye. Its probably one of the best thing I could provide for them during their early childhood years. I highly recommend Kindalin to anyone."