As a Not-for-profit organisation, Adventure Patch has a dedicated, voluntary Board of Directors who determine the strategic direction of the service.
The Board engages a Chief Executive Officer to oversee day to day management and operations of the service.
The Board’s goal is to help Adventure Patch to foster the development of Tasmanian children by assisting the organisation and its families to grow and be nurtured in a supporting environment that emphasises learning through play.
Meet Our Board
Charles Courtney Chair
Hi I’m Charles originally from London and moved to Blackmans Bay from the UK with my Tasmanian wife, Jo-Maree, and two sons, Fraser and Cameron, in early 2011.
The boys began attending Ocean View Child Care Centre shortly afterwards and both loved their time there. Now they regularly attend Blackmans Bay Outside School Hours Care and the vacation programs.
Prior to my move I was Operations Director for a retail consultancy business in the UK and I am currently the Grants and Administrations Manager for RSPCA Tasmania.
My wife and I share an enjoyment of musical theatre, although I prefers to remain off-stage providing stage management support. I am also an active member of the Blackmans Bay Primary School community and member of the Parents and Friends Association.
I welcome the opportunity to use my experience in business operations, administration and financial management to assist Adventure Patch to deliver quality services.
Karen Banks Vice Chair
Hello, my name is Karen and I live in Blackmans Bay with my husband, daughter and two golden retrievers. I currently work part time within the insurance industry, after being employed full time for over 24 years within childcare. My life-changing moment came with the birth of my little girl after 12 years of IVF treatment. My daughter, Jacey now attends Ocean View Child Care Centre. I have been involved with many organisations and love helping to make a difference.
Belinda Bresnehan Treasurer
I grew up in the Huon Valley and have spent most of my life in the Huon and Kingborough area with the exception of a few years living and working in Brisbane in my early 20’s. I now live in Kingston with my Husband Chris and 2 daughters Elise and Paige. I am currently working for Hydro Tasmania as a Senior Management Accountant in their Finance team and am a member of CPA Australia. During my accounting career I have worked for several Financial Services organisations as well as small enterprise. More recently my experience with Hydro Tasmania has included work on a major business transformation project focusing on business efficiencies and process redesign. In addition to my employment with Hydro Tasmania my husband and I also own an IT Business located locally in Kingston servicing small to medium business.
Both my daughters have attended Mountain View Childcare since they were babies, with Elise currently attending Kingston Out of School Hours Care and Paige Long Day Care at Mountain View 3 days per week. I am passionate about ensuring the Childcare experience is positive for both the children and the parents – as a working mother I can relate to the challenge of finding the balance and this can be made so much easier by a positive experience with a Childcare provider. When not working I enjoy spending time with my children and family, have a keen interest in health and fitness and wish I had more time to spend gardening, landscaping and on DIY home improvements.
Mark Roberts Public Officer
Originally from Manchester in the UK, I moved to Tasmania 10 years ago. It was here I met my wife, Zanna who I live with in Kingston with my Son William. William has been attending Blackmans Bay Childcare Services since the start of this year. I am currently employed at Lowrie Kent Conveyancing where I have worked since March, 2014. I completed a Bachelor of Laws in 2010 before returning to the UK for 3 years with my wife where I worked at a mid-sized law firm.
I completed my Graduate Diploma in Legal Practice with the intention of joining a law firm in Tasmania, however I have since started working in Conveyancing and am currently obtaining my Conveyancing Licence. In 2013 my wife and I moved to Kingston with William and our dog Cody. When I am not playing in the garden or local park with William I enjoy cooking and listening to music. I also play hockey and enjoy a round of golf at Kingston Golf Club.
Gaylene Cunningham
Having grown up and spent the majority of my working life in the Greater Hobart area, I have lived in the Kingborough area since 1991. My husband and I have three children. As a family, we have maintained a continuous involvement with Blackmans Bay Childrens Services for the past 15 years, accessing all programs including long day care, after school care and holiday program.
In my working life, I am a senior manager in the Tasmanian State Service, as Manager Client Services in a Government Business Enterprise (GBE). I hold a Diploma of Business Management and am a member of the Executor and Trustee Institute of Australia. I manage approximately 30 staff throughout the State and am also a key member of the organisation’s Executive Management Team.
I contribute to the Board substantial experience in senior management, with a particular focus on the setting and achievement of client service objectives within an area subject to legislative restrictions and requirements. My priority is to ensure that Adventure Patch achieves and maintains a standard of excellence in delivering high quality child care services that both meet the need of the families accessing the various programs and are sustainable in an environment of resourcing challenges and increasing Government regulation. I bring unique insight from a consumer perspective into the evolution of Adventure Patch, having been an active user of a variety of the organisation’s services over such a substantial period.
In my spare time I enjoy walking, reading, gardening and watching the children play sport. We are all also avid North Melbourne fans.
Aidan Eggleston
My wife and I have spent the majority of our lives living in the Kingborough municipality.
With our three children, we have continually utilised a range of services of BBCS since 2003 including long day care, outside school hours care and vacation care. We find the service provided to be loving, personalised and professional.
Over the years we have watched BBCS expand to provide more services to more family’s whilst continuing to maintain their high standard of care. I’m excited to have the privilege of being part of this moving forward.
I have been working for RACT for 13 years and am a strong supporter of utilising local services and brands. Also over this time I have worked with various children charity organisations providing support to fathers with 0 – 7 year old children.
Jeanette Loosemore
I have interests in the areas of education, law and child development. I have a degree in law and have studied adult learning. I have worked in the fields of employment, staff training, policy development, general administration and in legal interpretation, including some charity law and issues for non-profit organisations.
I have been most impressed with the quality of care and the professional management of BBCS. I support the non-profit nature of BBCS which puts children and families first, not profits for shareholders. The service needs to be responsive to community needs in Kingborough. I support fair pay for childcare workers and encouraging staff to gain qualifications in child care and education.
As well as long day care, I am interested in before school care and after school care and how it can influence children’s wellbeing and education. I am keen to keep BBCS as user-friendly for parents as possible, while keeping the main focus on caring for and developing our children.
I have used BBCS since 2002 and I joined the Board of BBCS in 2007. My children have attended long day care at BBCS and now will use after school care and vacation care at Adventure Patch. I am an active member of the St Aloysius Parents and Friends Association.
Zoe Tracey
Hi I’m Zoe, I bring extensive experience to the Board, particularly around strategy development relating to leadership development, organisational culture, diversity and inclusion, workplace planning and talent management. Zoe also has experience in budget management and risk reporting that will be valuable to this role.
Zoe is always interested to learn and grow and share knowledge to encourage others’ development.
Zoe is a strong advocate for the services that BBCS provides, with her two children having been cared for and nurtured since they were 8 months old at the service. She is keen to contribute to the growth and development of the services to benefit the children, community and the organisation.
Joyce du Mortier
Originally from The Netherlands, we moved to Tasmania 9 years ago. After my son was born, both my children started attending long-day care in Ocean View and continued in Mountain View. They are now both enjoying outside school hours care and the holiday programs at KOSHC.
I grew up in our own family day care with my mother providing services from our family home for over 30 years now. I was also an Educator with Kingborough Family Daycare myself, providing occasional care in Blackmans Bay. Having experienced childcare services from both perspectives, I understand the importance of quality child care provided by people who genuinely care for your children.
I have continued my career in Human Resource management in Tasmania, currently working for the Department of Treasury and Finance. In my free time I enjoy walking, cooking and karate.