More time with children, quality families can actually see

Clovel is boutique, and proudly so. A group of learning centres across New South Wales, built on the belief that if you get the loving right, everything else will follow. But documentation demands were pulling educators off the floor and away from the children who needed them. With Mana, Clovel’s team can maintain their high standards of educational documentation in a fraction of the time — giving families clearer visibility into what their children are learning and why, while helping educators grow in confidence and capability.

The challenge: quality costs time

Clovel Childcare has always been deliberate about what it is. “We’re boutique and we’re very different to the corporates,” says Theresa Willett, Educational Leader and Compliance Co-ordinator across the Clovel group. “Every single child in our centre is 100% the focus of our program.”

That commitment runs through everything Clovel does, grounded in the founding philosophy of Lyn Connolly: love comes first, and when you get the loving right, everything else follows. For Clovel, quality isn’t a marketing claim. It’s a daily practice. The challenge was that the documentation required to demonstrate that quality was placing enormous pressure on the time available for actual connection with children.

For Bashair, an educator at one of Clovel’s centres, the reality before her move to Clovel and using Mana was stark: “It took me like a day to do the observation and programming.” A full day. Every documentation cycle. Time that was unavailable for the floor, for relationship-building, for the individual attention that makes Clovel different from a corporate chain.

Kristy Knudsen, Nominated Supervisor, saw the same pattern across her team: educators off the floor doing programming and observations meant fewer genuine interactions, and less opportunity to know each child as an individual rather than part of a group. “It’s less time on the floor doing programming and observations,” she says, describing what she wanted for her team, “and more real interactions, getting to know the children and getting to know them as a whole, as an individual.”

The goal, the boutique philosophy, the commitment to individual focus, was already there. What was missing were the tools to protect the time needed to live it.

Making Mana work for us

The transition to Mana wasn’t immediate enthusiasm. Like most change, it started with hesitation.

“When we started Mana, the team were a little bit hesitant,” Kristy recalls, “but we did some training with them and it really started to open up their thought process.”

Kaitlyn Lonard, Nominated Supervisor, was candid about her own initial reaction: “I’m not the best with change. But the more that we worked with the team at Mana and fiddled around with things and made it work for us, the easier it became. I absolutely love it. I wouldn’t go back. It just makes everything so much smoother.”

“It’s less time on the floor doing programming and observations, and more real interactions, getting to know the children and getting to know them as a whole, as an individual.”

Kristy Knudsen, Nominated Supervisor

The shift came from the structure Mana brought to documentation that had previously felt fragmented and time-consuming. Bashair describes how the platform guided her through what had felt overwhelming: “In Mana, we have everything in the section, like small activities, then you need to do the reflection, you need to do the observation. So right now I’m capable to do all the observation in 30 minutes.”

From a full day to 30 minutes. The time reclaimed didn’t disappear into other admin. It went back to the floor, and back to the children.

“So right now I’m capable to do all my observations in 30 minutes.”

Bashair, Educator

Building educators, not just saving time

One of the most significant changes at Clovel hasn’t been about efficiency alone. It’s been about quality, and what it looks like when educators have both the time and the coaching to grow.

Coach Sue, Mana’s AI coaching feature, doesn’t just produce content for educators. It challenges them to think more carefully about what they’re offering children, and why.

“Using Coach Sue, she makes sure that you are getting the most out of you,” says Bashair. “In the past, educators would just be like, ‘Let’s just redo blocks.’ Mana and Coach Sue were like, ‘No, let’s have a look at something else,’ really opening up more activities for the children, and really engaging the educators as well as the children.”

This distinction matters. Coach Sue raises the quality of what’s offered, not just the speed at which it’s delivered. And the results are visible in the team. “There’s been a big change in the staff individually as well as the team,” says Kristy. “I can see a big difference in them, the way they’re interacting with the children, the way the children are interacting with us as well.”

For Kaitlyn, the growth has been visible in the educators she supports directly. “My trainee coming up and going through, starting on one program, moving to the next, she’s just been able to shine and blossom.”

Visibility across all centres

For Theresa, whose role spans the entire Clovel group, Mana has given her something that wasn’t possible before: real visibility across centres, from wherever she is.

“I can see where each staff member is,” she says. “If they need some assistance, I know how to help them and what training I need to provide for them.” That kind of targeted, informed support is only possible when the work is visible and consistent. Mana makes it visible.

“Having Mana allows me to have access wherever I am,” adds Kaitlyn. “I don’t have to be in that particular service for the day.” For a boutique group that places a premium on consistency and quality across all its centres, this has been a significant gain.

Families who can see the quality

Clovel’s philosophy has always included families as genuine partners. Mana has changed what that looks like in practice, giving families a window into their child’s learning that goes well beyond a daily summary.

“Moving to Mana with the families, they really enjoyed being able to see the full process from start to finish,” says Theresa. “It was also allowing them to engage from home, with activities to link into what we’re doing in the service.”

When families can see the curriculum, the goals, and the evidence of progress, the question of quality answers itself. They’re not taking Clovel’s word for it. They’re seeing it.

“When we use Mana, they can see exactly what every part of the curriculum is, why we’re doing it, and what benefit it’s giving their children,” says Theresa. “I think that’s a big selling point for families at home, that they understand that.”

The goals Clovel sets for each child become shared goals. “With Mana, there are set goals. You can see what they’ve done to reach those goals,” says Kaitlyn. “It’s really ensuring that we’re all working together on the same goal for the child.”

And families don’t just observe. They act. Parent Sarly describes the shift: “I can come back to the girls at the centre and ask about what activities they were doing for him to learn that, and then I can continue that at home.”

The outcomes show up in specific, meaningful ways. Kate Nolan, Nominated Supervisor, shares one example: “I’ve had a lot of parents say, ‘Thank you, that really helps. I can see that you’re focusing on sensory because my child has sensory issues. He’s eating better at home because he’s not so worried about the senses now.’”

For families who were uncertain about their child’s readiness for school, the documented progress has provided both reassurance and confidence. “The parents have definitely seen the changes in their children, especially the ones that might have been on the edge about whether “to send their kids to school,” says Kaitlyn. “Within the last six months they’ve just seen them blossom and shine.”

“When we use Mana, they can see exactly what every part of the curriculum is, why we’re doing it, and what benefit it’s giving their children. I think that’s a big selling point for families at home, that they understand that.”

Theresa Willett, Educational Leader

Through summative assessments, that growth is captured in a form families can hold onto. “The families are actually seeing the growth and the development of their children,” says Theresa. “I know that we are doing a really good job, and I’m really proud of what we provide and what we actually stand for.”

Clovel Childcare’s story is about what happens when a genuinely child-centred philosophy is matched with tools that let educators actually live it. Five things decision-makers should take away:

Documentation drops dramatically. Educators cut programming and observation time from a full day to 30 minutes, giving that time back to children.

Mana builds educator capability, not just efficiency. Coach Sue challenges educators to think beyond familiar activities, raising the quality of practice across the team, not just the speed.

Leaders gain real oversight at scale. Theresa and Kaitlyn can see where every educator is across all eight centres, provide targeted support, and manage quality without being on-site.

Family engagement deepens when families can see the why. When goals and progress are visible, families carry learning home. The partnership becomes genuinely two-way.

Children’s outcomes become visible to families. From sensory milestones to school readiness, documented progress gives families visible proof of the quality Clovel delivers.

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