Creating a culture of trust at your childcare centre

One of the most important elements to nurture between staff is trust: it is the glue that holds everything together and enables a centre to thrive and grow. This trust not only extends from management to employees but also between the team members themselves.

According to Harvard researcher and author of ‘The Trust Factor’, Paul J. Zak, “people at high-trust companies report 74% less stress, 50% higher productivity, 13% fewer sick days and 40% less burnout than people at low-trust companies.” Creating a positive atmosphere also sets a fantastic example for the children in your care by modelling how they should behave and interact with each other.

Here are six key tips to promote trust in your team of educators

1. Allow employees to have a voice

There’s nothing worse than feeling as though your opinions don’t matter, especially in an environment where collaboration is essential. Every educator should have the opportunity to share their ideas or voice their concerns and know that they won’t be ignored or pushed aside. If members of your team aren’t comfortable doing this face-to-face, then provide other alternatives like a suggestion box where they can anonymously share their ideas or offer opinions on how trust can be earned in the centre. Showing respect towards someone is the best way to facilitate a long lasting working relationship.

2. Offer help and guidance

This applies to both director and educators. Positive feedback and constructive criticism can bolster an educator’s work ethic and enable them to feel as though they’re making progress. Even something as small as a compliment on an activity they’ve planned goes a long way in making someone feel valued. Setting up a mentor program between the more experienced educators and the newer educators is another way to generate positive relationships and trust while also giving people a guiding hand where it’s needed.

3. Lead by example

How the educators behave and interact with one another is a reflection on how the centre operates as a whole. In most cases, staff will look to management and emulate behaviours they’ve seen when dealing with parents and fellow workers. If you want your staff to cultivate trust and respect, then you have to show them that it’s a two-way street.

4. Keep your educators informed

Being open, honest and transparent with your team members will show them that they are valued. Holding regular staff meetings will assist in this and allow everyone to be well informed. However, there are always changes happening on a daily basis such as who is picking a child up from care, or different dietary requirements a child might need, so it’s essential that information reaches the person it’s intended for.

5. Hire educators who are committed to being a team player

If your team is made up of people who are positive, willing to collaborate and are committed to giving 100% of their energy to the staff and children, then your centre will flourish. It only takes one negative person to upset the balance and cause a sense of distrust in others, so be diligent when going through your hiring process and create a team where everyone has each other’s backs.

6. Provide adequate tools and resources

Show your team that their ideas and work are worthwhile and valued. If a session is planned with the children where paints may be involved, or construction paper, then it’s important that your educators have the resources available to them. Not only is it disruptive to the learning outcomes if lessons cannot go ahead as planned, but it sends out a negative message to your team member that what they have planned isn’t important enough to cater for.

There are many more ways to promote trust within your team, but this is a great guideline to begin with. As with anything meaningful, creating a culture of trust takes time and dedication to ensure that the outcomes are long lasting. It’s essential that everyone be committed to creating the most trusting environment they can, starting from management and trickling down to the rest of the staff. A team that feels supported and valued is a team that will make a greater positive impact on all the children they educate and care for. Ultimately, this is the outcome we want to consistently achieve.