First Steps Count - Child and Community Centre, Taree

The First Steps Count Inc. Child and Community centre project is a purpose built community facility for provision of regional integrated early childhood services for families with children 0-12 years, with a particular focus on Aboriginal children and their families, and outreach extension including via digital technology to the wider Mid North Coast community.

The building aims to achieve Living Building Challenge certification, which will be a beautiful, nurturing place that people want to come to and hang out at, where they can be tended and cared for. The idea is for it to be “positive and regenerative, not less bad but actually good”, which is also what the services are striving to achieve.

We started in 2009, and have spent a lot of time trying to raise enough money for the building. With donations from the Vincent Fairfax Family Foundation and the NSW Government, we now have enough for a reduced Stage 1, and turned the first sod on the 21st April, 2021. We are still looking for $2m to complete the project.