Meet Coco Yuan - Centre Manager

Coco is the Centre Manager at Aspire Riverwalk, bringing extensive experience in early childhood education since 2008. Throughout her career, she has held a variety of roles including Room Leader, 2IC, Centre Manager, and Curriculum Support, supporting teams across Victoria and Western Australia.

Coco is passionate about building strong communities and empowering educators to grow. The Aspire values of Empowering Excellence and Connecting Communities strongly resonate with her, as she believes meaningful relationships with children, families, educators, and the wider community are key to creating a positive learning environment.

Inspired by the Reggio Emilia approach, Coco believes children are capable and curious learners. Her leadership style is warm, supportive, and focused on creating an inclusive environment where everyone feels valued.

Outside of work, Coco enjoys spending time with her cat, Poffertjes, and exploring her love for coffee.

Aspire is proud to be a sector leader in child safety, taking a proactive, reflective and community-informed approach to meeting and embedding the 11 Child Safe Standards throughout our organisation.

Through collaboration, reflection, and transparency, we ensure that safeguarding is more than compliance. This includes conducting rigorous recruitment checks, holding ongoing staff training, and implementing age-appropriate programs that build children’s awareness, confidence, and voice.
We actively collaborate with families and engage children in conversations that build trust, respect, and a shared culture of care. Regular reflection and review ensure that child safety remains dynamic, responsive, and consistently prioritised across the organisation.
By fostering transparency and open dialogue, Aspire builds environments where children feel secure, respected, and valued. 

At Aspire, our early learning programs are designed to support children at every stage of their development. Through caring educators, engaging experiences, and play-based learning, we help children build confidence, curiosity, and essential skills for the future.

Our Kindergarten programs are delivered by qualified educators and focus on fostering school readiness, independence, and a lifelong love of learning.

Our programs include:

• Baby Steps Nursery Program (6 weeks – 2 years)
A nurturing environment where babies explore, develop early skills, and build secure relationships through sensory play and responsive care.

• Little Learners Toddler Program (2 – 3 years)
Supporting growing independence through engaging activities that encourage social, emotional, and cognitive development.

• 3-Year-Old Early Learning Program
Designed to build confidence, creativity, and foundational skills through meaningful learning experiences.

• 4-Year-Old School Readiness Program
Preparing children for a confident transition to school by strengthening independence, communication, early literacy and numeracy, and lifelong learning skills.

At Aspire, we see mealtimes as an important part of every child's learning journey. Sharing nutritious meals together helps children build confidence around food, explore new flavours, and establish healthy eating habits that can last a lifetime. Our approach is guided by the Australian Dietary Guidelines, ensuring every meal supports children's wellbeing and development.

Our seasonal menus include a wide range of fresh vegetables, fruit, whole grains, dairy foods, and quality protein sources such as lean meats, fish, eggs, and legumes. We focus on providing balanced, wholesome meals made with nutritious ingredients while limiting added sugar and salt. Water is encouraged throughout the day to support healthy hydration.

Every meal is thoughtfully prepared with age-appropriate portion sizes to meet the changing nutritional needs of growing children. By creating positive mealtime experiences and offering a diverse selection of nourishing foods, we help children develop healthy food choices, enjoy trying new tastes, and build a strong foundation for lifelong wellbeing.