Port Lincoln childcare worker Stephanie Hoy has received a prestigious award for her services in the industry.
Family Day Care Australia hosts an annual awards ceremony for educators, services and coordinators, with Ms Hoy receiving the 2023 National Family Day Care Educator of the Year Award.
There were 5000 nominations this year for the awards and the four national finalists went to Adelaide recently for the ceremony.
Ms Hoy was nominated by a couple of her families that use her services and fellow educators in the state.
“It’s a process where they have to write about me, so that was nice,” she said.
“The four finalists got tickets, accommodation and flights to go to the annual awards night in Adelaide and as the national overall winner I got $1000 to go towards professional development.
“In our local area there’s eight family day care centres and I think it’s important for people to know they have these options in our community.”
Ms Hoy runs a Family Day Care centre called Little Creatures in Port Lincoln.
She said it was a venture worth looking into.
“I think any early childhood educator should consider becoming a family day care operator,” Ms Hoy said.
“It provides great work-life balance and you can be at home while your own children are young, it’s financially really rewarding and it’s flexible to suit your life.”
