Choosing with confidence: How Storypark + Xap became the trusted partner for Sparrow Early Learning

For Sparrow Early Learning, finding a childcare management system (CCMS) that could support their scale and ambitions was never going to be a decision made lightly. Sparrow needed a partner it could trust to operate at its scale for years to come, a structured migration plan, and support that protected educators, operational teams and, most importantly, children and families.

Finding the trusted partner for what comes next

Sparrow Early Learning network operates close to 60 centres across Queensland, Victoria and Western Australia, so it’s no surprise that choosing a new CCMS provider called for deep scrutiny.  

As Jonathan Broughton, co-CEO of Sparrow explains it, a CCMS is the backbone of an early learning organisation's connection with families, carrying both CCS and daily fee revenue, and a fundamental part of its operating infrastructure. "Any change from our system to a new system isn't taken lightly," he says.

Sparrow spent six to eight months evaluating CCMS providers. The co-CEOs needed confidence that their next system could handle the complexity of a multi-site organisation, support the people using it every day and grow with their needs. They were looking for a partner that understood those demands and could help them prepare for changes ahead, with reliable support through migration and beyond.

A decision centred on people

For Sparrow, the decision began with the people its systems support. "Every decision we make has to be based on people. We are about relationships, from the children, to our parents, to the local community and to all of our team," says Marnie Testa, co-CEO of Sparrow.

That principle shaped how Sparrow assessed the available platforms. The evaluation was run accordingly: wide, deliberate, and led by the people who would feel the consequences. "We went through a really comprehensive process, we brought in all different stakeholders, payroll, our clients, our marketing, our family engagement, our CCMS team, everyone had to be part of this decision because it's got to work for everyone," Jonathan says.

For the growing organisation, the measure of the right CCMS partner was its ability to meet the organisation’s operational needs today and into the future, while also empowering the workforce behind delivering education and care every day. Alongside security, usability, training and responsive support, Sparrow wanted technology that would strengthen educators’ practice, with intuitive tools and data insights to inform care, deepen family engagement and support quality learning outcomes for children.

"It has to have the children at the centre of the decision, as well as our educators, so they can adopt it readily and really focus on what's important, and that is providing care and education to children, not being IT experts," Jonathan Broughton co-CEO of Sparrow.

Track record was another significant consideration, one grounded in Marnie's more than 30 years in early childhood education and care. She's watched regulatory and operational requirements evolve constantly, and she wanted a partner that already understood what was coming next, not one just keeping pace. "The longevity of Xap, I think that was really important to us, not bringing on board a system that was untested, that didn't have the track record," Jonathan says. "We need to know we were set with a team who is also going to be very innovative and able to pivot," Marnie says. For Sparrow, that meant looking for a partner that could turn sector experience into foresight, helping its teams prepare for emerging requirements and make informed decisions before change became urgent.

Storypark had already been part of Sparrow’s story since the early days of the organisation, and Storypark and Xap together already sit behind some of Australia's largest early learning networks, among them Goodstart Early Learning Busy Bees and KU Children’s Services. Today, more than 1,840 services across Australia use Storypark and Xap together to manage compliance, streamline operations and enhance family engagement.

Explore how Storypark + Xap can support your organisation 

Making change manageable with Xap’s Safe Switch Framework

Change management at this scale isn't without risk of disruption: for service managers trying to keep the centres running as usual, for families relying on uninterrupted fees and communication, and for a small internal team suddenly carrying a project of enterprise scale. "Our people are very important, and the last thing we want to do is disrupt them with such a massive change while they're managing the children and everything else they deal with every day," Marnie says. Sparrow needed a partner who could take on that risk and turn what's normally a high-stakes and difficult period into something considered and well-managed.

For Sophie Mitchell, Xap’s Head of Onboarding, that begins with giving services confidence about their data and what will happen at each stage. Clear communication and hands-on guidance help teams understand what is coming across, what they need to do and who is there to support them. “It doesn't really matter whether we're migrating a single service or a group of 200 services, our team is dedicated to making that onboarding experience safe, considered and streamlined." she says.

The Safe Switch Framework provides the structure for that support. Sparrow’s migration is being staged across Queensland, Victoria and Western Australia, giving each group time and focused attention. Shannon Geelan, who leads Sparrow’s CCMS team, says the preparation has been more detailed than expected. “Going in three cohorts makes sure that the service managers and families are all supported, rather than having to focus on 58 centres all in one go,” she says.

Training is led by Dee Weiler, Xap’s Head of Training and a longstanding sector expert. Small, role-based workshops prepare super users first, followed by service managers, with sessions built around what each group needs to know. This gives teams time to build confidence in the processes they will use every day, without having to absorb everything in one sitting.

That support continues beyond go-live. It was this depth of training and support, delivered at scale, that Jonathan described as “second to none” during Sparrow’s evaluation of CCMS providers, giving the co-CEOs further confidence in their choice of partner.

This kind of migration follows Xap's Safe Switch Framework: a proven and structured approach, with near-zero service drop-off, full data integrity, a dedicated onboarding specialist team, and a typical migration window of six to eight weeks. 

Considering a CCMS change? Get the Safe to Switch guide 

One partner for a more connected family experience

For Sparrow, Storypark and Xap are one partner across family engagement and childcare management. The opportunity is to build on the relationship families already have with Storypark and make everyday administration more connected.

"For families at Sparrow, Storypark provides a platform where they stay connected with what their child is doing throughout the day," says Raquel Boulton, Education and Practice Mentor at Sparrow. Educators can share learning and routine updates, and send incident information directly to families, helping parents stay informed about their child’s safety and wellbeing even when they can’t be there.

Families also want fewer systems competing for their attention. “The biggest feedback we get is that they have too many things coming at them,” Marnie says. “Being able to find a channel where families know it is one place, that is what they are looking forward to.”

From October 2026, families at services using Storypark and Xap will be able to manage bookings, absences, casual sessions, account balances and statements through the Storypark Families app, bringing more everyday tasks into one familiar place.

For Jonathan, the opportunity also includes the deeper insights to make informed and proactive decisions "The ability to bring together two really premier systems, the integration of the data and what insights we might be able to get from that presents a really exciting opportunity for us," he says.

Change with a clear purpose

For any provider wondering what a CCMS change could mean for them, Sparrow’s experience offers a clear starting point: define what is important and matters to your teams, families and the children in your care, and involve the people who will use the system every day. Look for a platform that can evolve with your organisation, and examine the support behind the transition as closely as the technology itself. Because in the end, choosing with confidence isn't about finding the right technology; it's about finding a trusted partner that supports your teams and, most importantly, children and families.

Learn more about Storypark + Xap