Child care professionals share a commitment to improving society by creating dynamic and nurturing care environments for Australia's youngest learners. This month we feature an interview with Ute Hunter.

What is your name and where do you work?

My name is Ute Hunter and I am 48 years young. I work at the Brisbane Adventist College Early Learning Centre with 15 other staff members and 90 small children all up.

What is your professional background?

My professional background has been in a variety of different areas. I got my first degree as a professional dressmaker and I also have a degree in therapeutic massage.

I have worked with multi handicapped children and adults in Austria and in a SOS-Children's Home.

I knew as a young child that I wanted to work with children and I took on babysitting as a nine year old with great confidence. (My mother often took me, my sisters and brothers for walks and every time I saw a mother push a pram I would physically stop the pram and look at the babies).

The love for babies comes to me so naturally that it runs through my veins. If my own children, 16 and 12, when shopping with me, see a pram, they look at me and say: "no not this time Mum"
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Last month we conducted a survey on child care management systems to learn more about what early childhood education and care providers need from their CCMS and which in your opinion are the best packages to use given the requirements of the job.

This article reports back on the findings from that Mini Poll and will hopefully offer some peer-to-peer insight on which packages are most popular and why.

Despite the large number of CCMS packages available on the market our survey showed that by far the most commonly used package among respondents was Quikkids with nearly 39 per cent of you saying that this is the package you use.

Hubworks came in second place at just under 18 per cent and the third most commonly used CCMS package among respondents was Harmony CCMS at just under 10 per cent.

The good news for designers of CCMS software is that most of you are pretty happy with how well your package works and the level of support and reliability. On a scale of 1 (very poor) to 10 (exceeded expectations) the average overall score was just under 8 and ease of use, reliability and support also came in at an average of around 8 out of 10 as well. In addition 72 per cent of respondents said they wouldn't hesitate to recommend their CCMS package to another user.
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With Father's Day looming at the beginning of September we thought some craft based gift ideas would come in handy. A couple of these projects need to be done in stages which is why we have given you some extra lead time.

Loose change tray - A perfect gift for the dad who loses everything. Easy to make and suitable for very young children.

Kind Dad crown - The kids will enjoy making and decorating these cool golden crowns.

Plaster handprints - This activity requires a few materials but results in a gift dads will treasure forever. Kids can add the final touches by painting the dried plaster of Paris.

Tie painting - A quick and easy idea which makes a great gift for dads who work in an office.

Garden plaque - Another activity which may require you to order in supplies but which has a lovely final result and would make a great gift for all garden mad dads.

Can cooler - The ultimate Australian accessory: a stubbie holder, craft foam is the main ingredient of this project which would be great fun for older kids.

Mug warmer - For dads who prefer their beverages warm. This project substitutes foam for felt and would work best for older kids.

Golf cart pen holder - This activity uses simple supplies and makes a fun present for desk bound dads dreaming on lazy days on a golf course.

DAD photo frame - Print some digital pics of the kids to glue onto these bright colourful picture frames.

Craft foam photo frame - This picture frames uses foam and can be decorated with anything you have handy. Sending the frames home with a picture taken in your service will be the perfect final touch.

Have you been assessed? Publicise your services National Quality Standard Rating and promote your service's achievements - let us know