The Aspires Awards
The Aspires Awards are back for 2026 – and the excitement across Guardian is already building.
These awards shine a light on the incredible impact our teams make every day for children, families and one another. It’s a chance to pause, reflect, and properly celebrate the heart and dedication we see in our centres and support teams.
The Aspires Awards recognise the people and teams who bring our Mindsets to life through brave decisions, positive energy, professionalism and thoughtful actions.
This year, families will also play a role in recognising our team members. Alongside team member nominations, families will be invited to share their thoughts and nominate team members who have had an impact on them and their children through the Family Nomination Form or Google Reviews.
This way everyone who benefits from the care and support our teams provide can have a say in who is recognised.
The 2026 Awards focus on recognising excellence across key roles, with Thrive and To BE Me at the heart of every award. They form the criteria used to judge all role-based awards – guiding how we recognise excellence across every role and celebrating not just what we achieve, but how we show up each day for children, families and one another. They help us celebrate the people who bring these approaches to life in their daily practice.
With new specialist categories recognising work with babies, toddlers and preschool/kindergarten children, there are even more opportunities to celebrate outstanding team members. Rather than one Educator of the Year and Runner Up, we will now celebrate three Winners and three Runners Up across these categories.
Recognition will again take place across smaller geographic territories – Victoria, South Australia, New South Wales / ACT and Queensland – enabling even more teams to be celebrated for the incredible work happening every day.
We will still have a Centre Team of the Year award, but this award will be determined by the Leadership Team based on a balanced view of performance across a number of areas.
We can’t wait to see the nominations roll in and to honour the outstanding work happening at Guardian every day.
Don’t miss your chance to enter!
Nominations open 22 June 2026 and close 7 August 2026.
Click here to nominate now!
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How to Nominate
This year, nominations for the Aspires Awards are open to both Guardian team members and families, giving everyone the opportunity to recognise someone who makes a meaningful difference!
To progress to the finalist stage, nominees must receive at least one nomination from a family, as they play an important role in recognising the impact our teams have every day.
Families can nominate in two ways:
- By completing the Aspires Family Nomination Form (please ensure this form and not the team form is shared with families)
- By calling out a team member by name in a Google Review
Both forms of recognition help ensure the voices of families are part of celebrating the incredible work happening across our centres.
Team members can nominate:
- Yourself
- A team member in your centre, another centre or support office
To nominate, simply:
- Scan the QR code
- Complete the nomination form
- Share your story about why this person deserves recognition
In the nomination form, you will be asked to:
- Select 1–3 Thrive outcomes or To BE Me practices that best represent the nominee.
- Tell us about the person you are nominating by answering three short questions.
Each nomination helps showcase the impact happening across our network every day.
To be eligible for the awards you must:
- Be a permanent, part-time or casual team member at the time of nomination
- Be working in the category you are nominated for
Click here to nominate now!
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The Aspires Awards Categories
The 2026 Aspires Awards celebrate excellence across key roles in our centres and Support Office.
Awards are presented across state regions, with New South Wales and ACT combined, and all other states recognised individually.
Centre Manager of the Year
Your leadership skills support a high-performing team that maintains high-quality practice using Thrive and To BE Me, creates an awesome team and family experience, a safety-first culture, and strong business discipline.
Assistant Centre Manager of the Year
You are a leader, listener, collaborator, problem-solver, and you empower those around you. You build strong trusted relationships with teams, families, children, and the community.
Educational Leader of the Year
You are a motivator and innovator, demonstrating great practice and supporting your Leads to develop inspiring educational programs, whilst contributing to our Educational Leader network. Your leadership is felt, seen and heard.
Lead Educator / Teacher of the Year
You lead an individual learning space and program, mentor the Teachers and Educators in that room, supporting them to develop high-quality practice through using Thrive.
- Baby Lead Educator/Teacher of the Year
- Toddler Lead Educator/Teacher of the Year
- Preschool/Kindergarten Lead Educator/Teacher of the Year
Teacher of the Year
You lead an engaging educational program, create opportunities and connections within your community, contribute to our Teacher’s network, are a leader and mentor, and you have a passion to share, learn and improve.
- Baby Teacher of the Year
- Toddler Teacher of the Year
- Preschool/Kindergarten Teacher of the Year
Educator of the Year
You are a relationship-builder and connector of children, teams, families and community. You go above and beyond, and others look to learn from and are inspired by you.
- Baby Educator of the Year
- Toddler Educator of the Year
- Preschool/Kindergarten Educator of the Year
Chef / Cook of the Year
You are a leader, an educator, communicator, and innovator who promotes safety, great food and nutrition ideas. Your kitchen is the heart of your centre community.
Student of the Year
You are an exceptional learner who has shown this in practice, your academic results and commitment to your studies. Your future is bright!
Support Office Star Award
The Support Office Star Award recognises excellence in a Support Office Role. It is someone who is amazing in supporting centres and teams to deliver fantastic experiences for children and their families.
Centre Team of the Year
The Centre Team of the Year award recognises a centre team that exemplifies Guardian’s Mindsets and consistently works together to deliver high-quality experiences for children and families.
Let’s celebrate the incredible people across Guardian who bring Thrive and To BE Me to life every day!
Click here to nominate now!
For more information about the Aspires Awards 2026, please visit the Guardian Way page here.