Preschool haven for fire victims

WINMALEE Community Preschool had set money aside to upgrade its outdoor play area, which poses a trip hazard for the children.

Michele Jennings with Mollie Malone, 4, and Liam Murphy, 5 / Picture: Matthew Sullivan

WINMALEE Community Preschool had set money aside to upgrade its outdoor play area, which poses a trip hazard for the children.

But when devastating fires tore through the small Blue Mountains community last October, the funds were redirected to preschool families who lost their homes.

The preschool has been nominated in the education category of the Champions of the West awards, in the hope it can win a $10,000 grant.

READ OUR FULL FAIR GO FOR THE WEST ACTION PLAN

“Ten of our families were severely affected by the fires so we used the money to allow the children of those families to come to preschool for free for the whole of term four last year,” Ms Jennings said.

“Some families lost their homes … the financial impact on families has been great.

“We also lost our state government funding for our three-year-olds, which has left us on a pretty tight budget. We didn’t want to have to put up fees but unfortunately this term we had to put them up by a minimal $4 to help us meet our budget.

“We really need to revamp the garden beds and relay turf — just basic things to get the outdoor area back in order.”

Ms Jennings said the children continued to talk about the fire. The preschool introduced play therapy to help staff identify the children who had been most affected: “The fires are still a recent memory for the children and it is still taking a toll on them.”