Little Zak’s Academy’s Ryde childcare centre is set in the beautiful, Heritage-listed Dellina Palm Cottage and strives to be the best early education service in the area. Our strong commitment to every child’s early learning journey has been apparent since we first opened our doors in 2019 with our renovated, state-of-the-art facilities. Since then, we have continued to foster an ideal environment for every child, eager to welcome and support a new generation of young thinkers! To give our children the tools to create their best start in life, encourage exploration, and foster confident learners, we regularly host incursions, employ only the best educators to guide them, and implement an intensive school-readiness program for our preschool-aged children.
But most importantly, we employ only the most dedicated educators who provide a stimulating, exciting program and learning environment for our children. The meaningful bonds our educators forge with so many families, parents, and local communities are part of what makes us so special.
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I have been working in the Early Childhood Education Profession since 1998 and have been a Centre Director since 2003. I love learning along with the children each and every day, children guide the curriculum rather than it being strict on what they need to learn.
Situated in the heart of Ryde, our centre offers easy access to locals, ensuring that drop-offs and pick-ups are convenient for busy, working parents and families.
We are passionate about supporting the Ryde community and encouraging family involvement in our centres. These strong connections are a priority for us, as it truly takes a village to raise a child.
We offer a rich, play-based curriculum that promotes learning through exploration and discovery, tailored to support the best outcomes for each child and encourage a lifelong love of learning.
Little Zak’s preschool program is a recipient of funding under the NSW Department of Education’s ‘Start Strong for Long Day Care 2026’ Program.
Fee relief of up to $2,563 per child for children aged 4 and above, and up to $769 per year in fee relief for children aged 3.
To be eligible for 4YO+ Program Payment and 4YO+ Fee Relief Payment funding under Start Strong, a child will need to be 4 years old on or before, 31 July 2026 (the child’s birthdate must be on, or before, 31 July 2022).
To be eligible for 3YO Program Trial Payment and 3YO Fee Relief Trial Payment funding under Start Strong, a child will need to be 3 years old and not yet 4 years old on, or before, 31 July 2026 (the child’s birthdate must be on, or between, 1 August 2022 to 31 July 2023).
Families are required to fill out the ‘Families Declaration Form’ to receive the relief (Available at the service).
Relief is calculated weekly based on the number of weeks the service is open.
Families that do not receive CCS are eligible for the program.
So happy to see Little Zak’s in Ryde when I moved from another suburb. Facility in the centre is brilliant and enrolled both of my kids with complete peace of mind. The staff in this centre are amazing and kind. I like the daily activities they perform and posted meticulously to parents. My thumbs up to this centre!!!!
Excellent & Modern Daycare Facility. Our son has been attending now for a couple of months. Easy and convenient drop-off and pick up in the morning and afternoons with the carpark underneath the complex. The building is spacious and brand new. The Educators do a fantastic job and ensure there is always plenty of activities going on throughout the day. Highly recommended.
My children have been with Little Zak’s Ryde for 8 weeks and they are so happy. The team settled them in quickly (despite only attending two days a week!). They are super comfortable with their educators. Are happy to go in and have the biggest smiles when they walk out with their Educators. They had spent a fair part of their 17 months on earth in lockdowns with minimal interaction with people and they have come a long way with the team and LZ. Their development is so wonderful to watch. They love their new little friends and family of Educators. All the staff greet the children so warmly and myself as well. Despite Covid and not being able to go into the centre the team have ensured my questions have been answered and regularly communicate how the girl’s days have been. They report the girls really enjoy the food and often have multiple servings of the meals presented to them. I’m glad I enrolled my girls with the LZ team and am very satisfied with our journey so far. A big thanks to the team that take such wonderful care of my girls.
Little Zak’s Ryde