Our staff lead the way in holistic therapy.

Our staff are leading the way in holistic therapy and are committed to seeing your child, and your family thrive on the journey. 

David Greenwood

David Greenwood

CEO

David has 25 years’ experience working within the education, early childhood intervention & family support sectors. He brings passion & commitment along with a strategic approach to growth & development to deliver high quality services that support children and families to reach their full potential

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Fun Facts
Melanie Searle

Melanie Searle

Business Manager

Mel is an experienced finance leader and is committed to supporting Biala achieve its strategic objectives and ultimately it's mission of making a positive difference in the lives of young children and their families.

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Claudia Daymond

Claudia Daymond

Program Manager

Claudia is a psychologist with over 15 years of experience working alongside children and families and has been in leadership roles in community organisations for almost 10 years. She is passionate about providing services that are community-based and accessible to help children and families thrive.

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Leanne Bartle

Leanne Bartle

Finance & Administration Manager

Leanne is an experienced Finance Administrator with a background encompassing roles in the banking and small business sectors.

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Jenna Rickard

Jenna Rickard

Team Leader & Occupational Therapist

Jenna is a paediatric occupational therapist who has completed further training in assessment and strategies for sensory processing difficulties in children at the SPD Foundation in Denver, USA.

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Stacey Arianie

Stacey Arianie

AHA Team Leader & Occupational Therapist

Stacey enjoys working with children and their families to reach their goals. She loves supporting them to develop the skills and confidence they need to participate in activities that are important to them.

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Ardrie Davin

Ardrie Davin

Team Leader & Occupational Therapist

A paediatric Occupational Therapist who has a Graduate Certificate in Developmental Trauma and has a strong interest in working with young children and their families who have experienced trauma.

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Tara Quin

Tara Quin

Team Leader & Occupational Therapist

Tara is an Occupational Therapist who is passionate about working with children of all ages and their families. She is a qualified Yoga Teacher with further training in Yoga/Yoga Therapy for kids.

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Rachael Brockwell

Rachael Brockwell

Team Leader & Occupational Therapist/Intake & Allocations Coordinator

Rachael is passionate about supporting children and their families to reach their full potential. She enjoys working with children and families to identify what's most important to them, setting goals together and having fun along the way!

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Alexandra Herman

Alexandra Herman

Occupational Therapist

Alex is a paediatric Occupational Therapist who enjoys working with children and their families. She is passionate about supporting children to develop skills to actively engage in their everyday activities. Alex focuses on their strengths and interests and has a family-led approach to her therapy.

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James Efremidis

James Efremidis

Occupational Therapist

James is a paediatric Occupational Therapist who enjoys working with children and families to promote their independence and set them up for the future. James is passionate about aquatic OT and loves to see children develop in an aquatic environment.

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Katelyn Roffey

Katelyn Roffey

Occupational Therapist

Katelyn is passionate about supporting children and their families to achieve their unique goals. She also enjoys learning from the children and families she works with and building confidence and independence along the way.

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Jacob Gonzales

Jacob Gonzales

Occupational Therapist

Jacob has recently completed his Bachelor of Occupational Therapy at the Australian Catholic University. He values building relationships with clients and family members in therapy & believes that it is significant in providing the best possible support.

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Abbey Douglas

Abbey Douglas

Occupational Therapist

Abbey is an Occupational Therapist who loves working with children and their families to reach their goals. Abbey is passionate about working collaboratively to enable children and families to engage in meaningful occupations.

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Lauren Terhes

Lauren Terhes

Occupational Therapist

Lauren is enthusiastic about collaborating with children and their families to support participation in meaningful activities. She has a special interest in sensory regulation and is qualified as an integrative dance instructor.

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Fun Facts
Tesharnie Gruar

Tesharnie Gruar

Occupational Therapist

Tesharnie enjoys working with children of all ages to help them reach their goals while having fun along the way! She has special interest areas of toilet training and fine motor skills.

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Lilian Davine

Lilian Davine

Occupational Therapist

Lilian recently graduated from the Australian Catholic University. She is a strong believer that, if given the most appropriate support, every child has the potential to succeed, and is passionate about assisting children and families in the pursuit of this.

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Madeline Stewart

Madeline Stewart

Occupational Therapist

My name is Maddy, I recently graduated from Australian Catholic University. I enjoy working with children and their families supporting them to participate in their meaningful occupations. I think it is important to have a collaborative and client centred approach to achieve the best outcomes.

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Cedric Lau

Cedric Lau

Occupational Therapist

Cedric is dedicated and motivated in collaborating with families to support children's growth and learning which provide strong foundation for them to succeed. He focuses on the interests and strengths to establish best practice in therapy.

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Bella Dean

Bella Dean

Occupational Therapist

Bella has several years’ experience working with young children as a support worker and understands the importance of developing relationships with both children and their families. Bella is passionate about utilising play-based therapy and has a particular interest for sensory approaches.

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Tom  May

Tom May

Occupational Therapist

Tom studied MSc in Occupational Therapy in England before moving to Australia. He has been an OT for three years, working in mental health, surgical and COVID wards, and in a paediatric setting. Tom is passionate about helping people, reach their potential and engage in meaningful occupations.

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Poppy Griffin

Poppy Griffin

Occupational Therapist

Poppy is new graduate with several years’ experience working with children as a disability support worker and swimming instructor. She is passionate about bringing fun and play into therapy and values the importance of developing meaningful relationships with children and their families.

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Amelia Swan

Amelia Swan

Occupational Therapist

Amelia is an Occupational Therapist who is passionate about helping to enable children to be able to participate in and perform the occupations they want to. She has a special interest in ADHD and is qualified as an integrative dance instructor.

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Annabelle Williams

Annabelle Williams

Therapy Assistant (OT)

I am a current ACU student studying occupational therapy and work as a disability support worker outside of Biala. I have a passion for working with children and their families and ensure each child is provided with as much opportunity to grow and thrive in their youth.

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Jessica Tulla

Jessica Tulla

Occupational Therapist

Jess was born and raised in Adelaide where she completed her Masters of Occupational Therapy. She is passionate about working with children and families at Biala to help support them to achieve their goals and live the life they want to live.

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Mony Rath Tiang

Mony Rath Tiang

Therapy Assistant (OT)

Mony is an OT student with a strong interest in working with children and their families to achieve their meaningful goals and participate in everyday life. With a background in biomedical science she hopes to apply her knowledge on neurodevelopment to support early childhood learning & development.

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Nicole Meo

Nicole Meo

Therapy Assistant (OT)

Nicole is currently studying Occupational Therapy at Monash University and has prior experience as a disability support worker and an inclusion support worker. Nicole thrives on seeing children achieve their goals and reaching their full potential.

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Amy Williams

Amy Williams

Therapy Assistant (OT)

Amy is in her final year of her Occupational Therapy degree at Monash University and has a background in disability support. Amy is passionate about working with children and their families to reach their meaningful goals and gain independence.

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Susan Everard

Susan Everard

Speech Pathologist

Susan has worked in settings such as schools, early intervention & public health. She specialises in eating/feeding skill development, early language & speech and aims to work collaboratively with caregivers to set achievable goals supporting children to confidently apply new skills in everyday life

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Louise Kelly

Louise Kelly

Speech Pathologist

I am passionate about seeing children develop their own independence and communicate with the people around them. I love working with children to see the excitement when the realise that they can do something new.

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Nicola Yates

Nicola Yates

Speech Pathologist

Nicola has had over 10 years' experience working with children and their families to identify and achieve their goals. She is passionate about using a child’s strengths and interests to develop communication and maximise participation in everyday activities.

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Anthea Charalambous

Anthea Charalambous

Speech Pathologist

Anthea works closely with children and their families to facilitate effective skill development and implementation of recommendations in their home, community and educational setting. Anthea enjoys seeing children and families achieve their goals and become effective communicators.

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Sophie Gimel

Sophie Gimel

Speech Pathologist

Sophie has recently graduated with a Masters of Speech Pathology. She is excited to join the Speech team at Biala and is passionate about ensuring all children have opportunities to develop their communication skills so they can participate more meaningfully with their families and communities.

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Emma Jankovic

Emma Jankovic

Speech Pathologist

Emma is a Speech Pathologist who is passionate about assisting children achieve their goals. Working collaboratively with families, Emma utilises a child's strengths and interests to build on skills to increase participation.

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Jack Aldin

Jack Aldin

Therapy Assistant (Speech)

Jack is studying Speech Pathology at ACU and is passionate about building relationships with families and ensuring that each child’s greatest interest can be shared with the world. Jack has experience teaching English overseas as an additional language.

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Danica Gay

Danica Gay

Therapy Assistant - (Speech)

Danica is currently studying Speech Pathology at Victoria University. She is passionate about being able to help children and families reach their goals. Danica has experience working with children as a tutor.

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Sarah Wickham

Sarah Wickham

Art Therapist

Sarah adopts a strengths-based and child-centred approach to art therapy. She aims to provide a nurturing space for clients to express themselves freely through the art making process and learn new coping skills to enhance well-being.

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Julie Dare

Julie Dare

Early Childhood Teacher

Julie has worked in Early Childhood for over 20 years, specialising in inclusion and disability for over 10 years.  She holds a strong philosophy for nurturing play-based learning, where children are seen as active participants to develop to their full potential.

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Karyn Jones

Karyn Jones

Early Childhood Teacher

Karyn’s passion is helping families understand how best to support their child to achieve their full potential. She has a special interest in Autism and believes that all children learn best through child-led, interest-based play.

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Donna Rogers

Donna Rogers

Early Childhood Teacher

Donna is an Early Childhood Teacher and has been teaching for over 30 years. She has worked in junior primary school and kindergarten during this time. She is passionate about providing children the opportunity to succeed and learn through developing on their strengths and abilities.

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Susan Nixon

Susan Nixon

Early Childhood Teacher

Sue is an Early Childhood Teacher with extensive experience in the early years sector across a variety of sectors. Sue is passionate about supporting young children to achieve their full potential and to this end she strives to engage with children and their families in a warm and respectful manner.

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Tahlia Kaplonyi

Tahlia Kaplonyi

Psychologist

Tahlia is passionate about supporting children to reach their full potential. Tahlia is committed to taking an individualised, strengths-based and family-centered approach.

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Anna Fasolo

Anna Fasolo

Psychotherapist

Anna is an experienced psychotherapist with is a particular interest in childhood trauma and is passionate about exploring ways to creatively engage with children.

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Elsha Young

Elsha Young

Family & Play Therapist

Elsha has over 10 years’ experience and loves working with families to help them recognise their strengths and increase their confidence through building a safe, respectful therapeutic relationship

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Melinda Braithwaite

Melinda Braithwaite

Dietician

Melinda has a passion to help families overcome feeding difficulties, to enjoy stress-free mealtimes, nurture positive eating behaviours and feel confident their child is getting the nutrition they need to grow and thrive. She also has a special interest in food allergies and gut health.

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Philo Yakopo

Philo Yakopo

Program Assistant

Philo has been with Biala eight years, helping out with therapy groups, 3 year old kinder and holiday programs and where ever is needed.

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Margot Elmer

Margot Elmer

Executive Assistant

Margot is the Executive Assistant and provides comprehensive support to the CEO, Board of Directors and Executive Leadership Team.

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Cathie Beach

Cathie Beach

Finance Officer

Cathie is an experienced Finance Officer with over 8 years in the Health/Community Services sector. She has an interest in progressive & forward thinking ideas to support the organisation & families.

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Rachel Reid

Rachel Reid

Administration Assistant/Intake Coordinator

Rachel has extensive experience with administration tasks, including client managing, communication and organisation. She enjoys working at Biala with the friendly staff and alongside our Biala families.

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Kaye Davey

Kaye Davey

Administration Assistant

Kaye is one of our team of Administrators who provide front office support and support to families.

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Petula McDermott

Petula McDermott

Administration Assistant

Petula is one of our team of Administrators who provide front office support and support to families.

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Meet the dedicated Biala Board Members

Jinny McGrath

President - Joined May 2017

Jinny has a Masters of Social Work and over 35 years’ experience as a social worker, manager, CEO and volunteer on not-for-profit Boards. She served as a member of two Government Tribunals, was an elected Councillor and is now undertaking a Masters of Research.

Yvonne Dickson

Vice President - Joined Sep 2022

Yvonne has extensive leadership experience across strategic planning, finance, operations, sales/marketing, compliance & technology/Innovation. She is an experienced non-executive director both in the private and public sectors, and recently served as a director on a regional Victorian water board.

Michael Caragounis

Treasurer - Joined Jul 2023

Michael has extensive financial leadership and strategic expertise, leading to business success in various industries. As a seasoned CFO, Fellow of CPA Australia and a non-executive Board member, Michael is keen to contribute and provide astute governance in his endeavour to make a positive impact.

Kerryn Dillon

Secretary - Joined Oct 2020

Kerryn is a qual. lawyer with expertise in providing practical, effective, value-driven solutions across the healthcare sector. She is committed to excellence and innovation to achieve exceptional outcomes for all particularly in the health workforce, systems & processes and healthcare operations.

Astrid Rivalland

Joined Mar 2022

Astrid has a background in medical research. She is a qualified lawyer with expertise in intellectual property, commercial law, governance, risk management and disability rights. She has lived experience with disability and is passionate about helping people with disabilities access apt supports.

Joanne Ferrie

Joined Mar 2022

Joanne has extensive professional experience in government operational service delivery particularly in the disability sector. She has lived experience with disability and is passionate and enthusiastic in supporting individuals/families to access support & services to achieve best possible outcomes

Sharon French

Joined Dec 2019

Sharon is a marketing, strategy and business development executive with considerable experience working with various sectors in Australia, New Zealand, UK and Asia including fast moving consumer goods, business to business and retail. She is passionate about philanthropy and creating social impact.

Mario Mendonca

Joined Oct 2022

Mario has had a wide-ranging career in corporate finance. His focus has been on strategic thinking and direction for medium to large organisations. He is now seeking to share his experience and knowledge to ensure the delivery of efficient and effective services to communities in need.

Caroline Reid

Joined Feb 2023

Caroline has a professional background in strategic marketing that spans the public, private and non-profit sectors in both the UK and Australia, including children’s agencies. She believes in the power of good communication to support both the organisation and the children and families we support.

We have staff trained in the following.
  • Hanen – It Takes Two to Talk
  • Hanen – Learning Language & Loving It
  • Hanen – More Than Words
  • PECS
  • Feeding Therapy – SOS ( Basic & Advanced)
  • Lidcome Program – for Stuttering
  • Talkabout Kids – Social Skills
  • Key Word Sign
  • DIRFloortime – Level 1 & 2
  • Play Therapy
  • Children’s Counselling
  • Family Counselling
  • Yoga for Kids
  • The Teaching Pyramid
  • Trauma & Attachment
  • Circle of Security
  • Sensory Interventions
  • Wilburger Brushing Protocol
  • Aquatic OT
  • Hydrotherapy