Our Team
Our team is made up of qualified and skilled people who are passionate about early childhood development, supporting families and building communities. Our leadership, management, operational and program teams are highly experienced and driven by the values of respect, integrity and openness.
At Playgroup NSW our people are at the heart of what we do. We pride ourselves on our inclusive and engaged organisational culture. We value work-life balance, are family-friendly, flexible and inclusive, which makes us an employer of choice.
Our experienced and dedicated team is comprised of staff based at the Playgroup NSW headquarters, as well as support and development staff working in the Greater Sydney and regional areas.
Supporting current and prospective Playgroup NSW members to help them establish and manage community or supported playgroups is the major focus for the majority of our team. This includes providing information and guidance to playgroups, facilitating our supported playgroup sessions and promoting early childhood development with families and professionals.
Our focus and leadership is built around quality service delivery and sees our staffing resources focused firmly on playgroup development, excellence in service delivery, member support and engagement, and continuing our business and digital transformation.
Playgroup NSW also relies on the generosity and passion of our wonderful volunteers. Our community playgroups are run by volunteer committees who dedicate their time to ensure their local playgroup thrives.
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Chief Executive Officer
Nadene Lee
Nadene holds over 15 years’ experience in senior executive roles in Australia and overseas, with commercial and not for profit national and international organisations. In addition to her role as CEO for Playgroup NSW, until recently, Nadene was Chair of an international body for one of the world’s largest addiction science-based treatment programs.
Nadene maintains a long-term commitment to leading organisations that create positive change and equitable outcomes at scale. Through Non-Executive Director roles, Nadene has also applied influence and expertise to benefit a range of targeted programs and services for individuals and communities globally.
Nadene has a values-based, outcomes focused leadership style, with a future focus that aligns vision and strategy with innovation an impact. Nadene holds a Master in Business Administration, Bachelor International Business and is a graduate of the Australian Institute of Company Directors.
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Leadership Team
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Maria Cignarella Manager, Program Innovation Manager
Maria Cignarella is an early childhood educator with over 15 years’ experience, beginning her career supervising long day care and moving into management of supported programs with Playgroup NSW. This includes the coordination and delivery of MyTime peer support and PlayConnect Playgroups for families of children with autism, developmental delays and behavioural concerns across the state of NSW.
She also takes an active role in business development for the organisation, sourcing and creating opportunities to broaden reach and additional programs and resources to support families and children in the community. She has a special interest in supporting children to reach their potential and enjoys developing strategies tailored to children’s individual needs and interests to support them in their ongoing development. This includes supporting language acquisition, behavioural support, self-regulation strategies and physical health and well-being.
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Program Management Team
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Noni Papalia, PlayStrong Program Manager
Noni holds a Master of Teaching (Primary) with 15 years' experience in children's programs. Noni has a background in children services and programs, including playgroups,
out-of-school-hours care and the education of children aged 0-12 years.
Noni is passionate about working with vulnerable families to improve educational and social outcomes for disadvantaged children. Noni manages the PlayStrong program,
offering playgroups for vulnerable families across the state of NSW.
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Rebecca Pragnell, Supported Programs Manager
Rebecca holds a Bachelor of Education (Early Childhood) and has close to 30 years experience in Community Programs including children's, youth and adult learning programs.
Rebecca is passionate about working with vulnerable families to ensure all children have access to quality play experiences as well as ensuring parents are supported in their parenting journey.
Rebecca manages the MyTime , PlayConnect and Sutherland Supported Playgroup programs, offering playgroups for vulnerable families across the state of NSW.
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Kellie Murray, Aboriginal Program Development Manager
I am a Wiradjuri woman from Wagga
Wagga and a mother to three boys. I have been in Wagga since I was born, and
love working in my community. I have always been in Aboriginal community
services and education roles and is a great passion of mine.
At Playgroups NSW we run Aboriginal Supported Playgroups in the Wagga
community. We provide not only early education but a full holistic approach to
social and emotional wellbeing for our families. We work with a range of
services who come out to our playgroups and provide not only outreach services
but build connections with our families.
We also work with our local schools to provide support and connections for our
families with children who are getting ready to transition into
kindergarten.
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Corporate Partnerships & Business Development
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Tammy Collins, General Manager Marketing and Digital
Tammy is a seasoned marketer with
19 years experience in the Australian media industry. With a penchant for
insight led marketing and content, Tammy has held executive roles with
eBay, Nine Entertainment, Fairfax Media and Australian Radio Network. A cross
platform specialist, Tammy is well versed in radio, digital and print media.
Tammy
enjoys helping brands define and tell their story. Tammy has joined Playgroup
NSW as the Digital Strategist to assist the business in their digital
transformation journey and to lead the marketing function in 2020.
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Maria Nguyen, Brand Manager
Maria holds a bachelor of Design,
Visual communication and has extensive skills in digital marketing and graphic
design. Before devoting her work to Playgroup NSW, Maria worked as the
Marketing and Operations specialist in CBRE for over 5 years.
Maria is responsible for
managing marketing collateral, executing and supporting the broader team with
marketing and creative assets across Playgroup NSW.
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Careers / Vacancies
Please see below for positions that are currently available. To be considered for these positions you MUST apply via the relevant advertisements below.
Program Administration Coordinator
Casual Educators