Singleton Heights preschoolers benefit from Yancoal Australia funding 

Children at the Singleton Heights Preschool are enjoying their safer outdoor learning space, thanks to a $7,000 donation from Yancoal Australia’s Mount Thorley Warkworth (MTW) operation.

The funding allowed the preschool to resurface the concrete which surrounds the sandpit with a non-slip material which has improved safety for children and educators, particularly when there is sand or water on the ground. 

Singleton Heights Preschool has been operating for 38 years and is a community owned and volunteer managed, non-for-profit preschool that teaches 80 children per day, aged three to six years old. 

For Director Neisha Dean, the donation was a welcome one, which has ensured that the sandpit – a popular space for the children to play and learn – is now a safer place to be. 

“We are passionate and committed to children exploring and investigating outside from a learning outcome perspective and safety is a key priority,” Ms Dean said. 

“As educators we know that a sandpit is more than just for playing, it encourages children to practice sharing, cooperation, and negotiation. It helps develop their physical skills such as digging, moulding, pouring and gets them thinking from an engineering perspective to make tunnels, dams, sculptures and exploring mass, length, and volume.”

Ms Dean thanked Mount Thorley Warkworth for the funding, something which Mount Thorley Warkworth General Manager Cris Shadbolt said Yancoal was pleased to provide. 

“Educating the children in our region is vital and Singleton Heights Preschool deserves the best and high quality equipment and facilities,” Mr Shadbolt said.

“We are happy our funding could upgrade the sandpit outdoor space, it will make a positive difference to the children and families in our community for many years to come.” 

The donation was part of the Yancoal Mount Thorley Warkworth (MTW) Community Support Program, which aims to make a positive difference in the local community and to the lives of the people who work and live in the areas it operates.