2025 Reimagine Australia Awards celebrate leadership in inclusive early childhood education

The 2025 Reimagine Australia Awards celebrate excellence, innovation and leadership in supporting children and families across the nation. The Inclusion Award recognises individuals or organisations that demonstrate exceptional commitment to inclusion, accessibility and equitable participation for all children and families.

In 2025, the national winner of the Inclusion Award was Farah Junaid, recognised for her outstanding leadership and the transformative, rights-based and culturally responsive practices she has embedded within her Exceeding-rated early childhood service in Canberra.

Farah’s recognition represents more than a professional achievement, it affirms her deep and ongoing commitment to inclusive practice, and the systemic change she is leading within her community.

Reflecting on the award, Farah shared:

“Inclusion was never a project for us.

It wasn’t a strategy we rolled out, an initiative we trialled, or something we did in response to need.

Inclusion was and remains our identity.

A way of being.

A way of teaching.

A way of standing beside children and families long before they have words, confidence or even a sense of belonging.

This award is not mine. It is the story of an entire service.

A community of educators, families, allied health partners, the Inclusion Agency and children who refused to accept that inclusion was simply ‘support’.

We believed, and still believe, that inclusion is belonging, voice, co-design, relational trust, cultural safety and opportunity.

Every child. Every family. Every time.”

Farah also extended her thanks to Reimagine Australia for recognising the meaningful work occurring across the sector and for honouring the collective efforts of services striving to build inclusive, equitable futures.

“This acknowledgement reinforces the vital role of early childhood education in shaping belonging and opportunity.

I’m deeply appreciative of the platform Reimagine Australia provides to celebrate and elevate inclusive practice nationwide.”

Farah’s recognition highlights the transformative power of inclusive leadership in early childhood education and the critical role services play in creating equitable futures for all children and families.