Early Childhood Education and Care is a complex qualification to deliver and many companies selling learning materials are often not experts in the industry. CRA materials are developed not only by Early Childhood Educators, but also an RTO owner who fully understands the needs of RTOs, learners, trainers and governing bodies.

The author and CEO of Childcare Resources Australia, Karen Atkinson, is a respected and well established Early Childhood professional with over 30 years of experience, specialising in Early Childhood Education.

Karen is also the founder and CEO of Atkinson Training and Development a Registered Training Organisation (RTO) specialising in Children’s Services since 2007. Karen has been writing resources for Atkinson Training and Development after being unable to locate up to date, affordable resources that did not link directly to another RTO’s website.

The aim of CRA is to share our resources without being in direct competition to you as an RTO. This means our CRA branding is completely separate from our RTO, so there is no conflict of interest. The positive of us being an RTO means that we are using these resources on a daily basis and as such we have a vested interest in all our learning materials being compliant with the National Training Package and NVR Standards.

The purpose of sharing these resources stems from a passion to raise the standards of learning resources within Children’s Services to help develop a new generation of highly qualified, informed and reliable childcare professionals and Educators. A portion of profits are donated directly to support programs for children here and in Cambodia. The more we sell, the more they receive.

Karen has a number of qualifications, starting with her entry into Children’s Services via the Certificate in Child Care Studies (CCCS). After working in the field for several years, Karen obtained her Bachelor of Early Childhood Teaching and Bachelor of Education (Hons, Class 1) from which she became a University lecturer for 7 Years at UWS and Newcastle University specialising in Child Development, Curriculum and Programming, Literacy and Management of Children’s Services. In addition to providing in-services to childcare centres, preschools and school-based programs, Karen provides an ‘Early Intervention Service’ for children and families with additional needs. Throughout her academic and professional career, Karen has maintained a strong belief in the advocacy of children’s rights and development. This passion and experience is demonstrated through the creation of her learning resources, co-written by several highly trained Children’s Service professionals, and the use of these resources within her own college.