17 St Martins Road, St Martins, Christchurch
View on map|
Not well placed |
Requires further development |
Well placed |
Very well placed |
BestStart St Martins is well placed to promote positive learning outcomes for children.
ERO's findings that support this overall judgement are summarised below.
BestStart St Martins (previously ABC St Martins) operates under the BestStart management structure. BestStart is a large national organisation that provides early childhood education services across Aotearoa New Zealand.
It provides full-day education and care for up to 40 children, including 15 aged under two years, in what was formerly a family home. Children aged under two years are cared for in a separate building on the property, giving older and younger siblings easy access to one another.
The recently developed philosophy encompasses six Māori Atua; Tawhirimatea - be strong, Tanemahuta - stand tall, Tu - be brave, Maui - monkey around, Papatuanuku -be unique, Rongo - be happy.
Most staff are the same since the December 2016 ERO review. Both the professional services manager and business manager are new to the centre in the last year. The centre manager and most of the staff are qualified early childhood teachers. At the time of the review several relievers were acting in permanent positions. Good progress has been made to meet the recommendations of the December 2016 ERO report. This includes strengthening group assessment, planning and evaluation of learning and internal evaluation practices.
Children have many opportunities to learn in a curriculum that promotes bicultural practice. Teachers incorporate aspects of te ao Māori and te reo Māori, kaupapa Māori concepts, and significant local cultural knowledge in the everyday programme. This helps Māori children in particular to know their language and culture is valued and supports a sense of belonging.
Infants and toddlers benefit from an individualised approach to caregiving in the nursery and responsive teachers who meet their wellbeing needs. Teachers maintain a calm environment. They are respectful of all children, providing predictable routines.
Children with additional learning needs are well supported. Teachers work together as a team and with whānau to implement plans and identify teaching strategies to support children's learning and development. They seek external expertise to provide further support and resources for children and their whānau.
Teachers plan purposefully for groups of children. They respond well to children's interests and effectively identify how they can extend their learning through the programme. Teachers are responsive to children's home languages and cultures, including Pacific languages. There is emphasis on learning partnerships with whānau. The next step is to make these aspects more visible in records of planning for individual children.
Children’s wellbeing needs are consistently met through effective team work, regular communication, and a collegial approach among teachers. The centre manager builds teacher development through robust teacher appraisal and supporting teachers to take on responsibilities within the daily programme.
Centre management has recently undertaken a collaborative in-depth philosophy review. Leaders and teachers have engaged parents and children in this process. This has helped them determine their shared values and beliefs as a centre. Leaders are now better prepared to connect and participate with others in the community. It is now timely to ensure that the new philosophy is embedded into all centre practices.
Teachers use internal evaluation to reflect on their practice. A useful framework guides evaluation and supports collaborative practice. All teachers now need to develop a deeper understanding of the evaluation process so that they can more effectively evaluate practices and make improvements to the quality of teaching and outcomes for children.
The BestStart organisation has a well-established management structure. The centre manager makes effective use of the professional services manager, business manager and networks with other BestStart managers to support improvement to centre practices and processes. Policies and procedures provide clear guidance to centre managers and teachers for the operation of the centre and maintenance of health and safety for children and adults. The BestStart managers acknowledge that, due to staffing changes, the centre leadership structure is yet to be fully implemented. With appointments being made, it is now timely to develop this further.
In order to improve outcomes for all children, priorities for development are to:
strengthen the consistency and quality of assessment, planning and evaluation of learning for individual children
embed the key concepts from the new philosophy into documentation and the service's local curriculum
further develop the formal centre-wide leadership structure to build capacity and support sustainability.
Before the review, the staff and management of BestStart St Martins completed an ERO Centre Assurance Statement and Self-Audit Checklist. In these documents they attested that they have taken all reasonable steps to meet their legal obligations related to:
During the review, ERO looked at the service’s systems for managing the following areas that have a potentially high impact on children's wellbeing:
emotional safety (including positive guidance and child protection)
physical safety (including supervision; sleep procedures; accidents; medication; hygiene; excursion policies and procedures)
suitable staffing (including qualification levels; police vetting; teacher registration; ratios)
evacuation procedures and practices for fire and earthquake.
All early childhood services are required to promote children's health and safety and to regularly review their compliance with legal requirements.
Dr Lesley Patterson
Director Review and Improvement Services
Southern Region - Te Tai Tini
4 June 2020
The Education Review Office (ERO) is the government department that, as part of its work, reviews early childhood services throughout Aotearoa New Zealand. ERO’s reports provide information for parents and communities about each service’s strengths and next steps for development. ERO’s bicultural evaluation framework Ngā Pou Here is described in SECTION 3 of this report. Early childhood services are partners in the review process and are expected to make use of the review findings to enhance children's wellbeing and learning.
|
Location |
Christchurch |
||
|
Ministry of Education profile number |
70374 |
||
|
Licence type |
Education & Care Service |
||
|
Licensed under |
Education (Early Childhood Services) Regulations 2008 |
||
|
Number licensed for |
40 children, including up to 15 aged under 2 |
||
|
Service roll |
47 |
||
|
Gender composition |
Females 24, Males 23 |
||
|
Ethnic composition |
Māori |
10 |
|
|
Percentage of qualified teachers 0-49% 50-79% 80%+ Based on funding rates |
80% + |
||
|
Reported ratios of staff to children |
Under 2 |
1:5 |
Meets minimum requirements |
|
Over 2 |
1:10 |
Meets minimum requirements |
|
|
Review team on site |
February 2020 |
||
|
Date of this report |
4 June 2020 |
||
|
Most recent ERO report(s) |
Education Review |
December 2016 |
|
|
Education Review |
June 2013 |
||
ERO’s overarching question for an early childhood education review is ‘How well placed is this service to promote positive learning outcomes for children?’ ERO focuses on the following factors as described in the bicultural framework Ngā Pou Here:
Pou Whakahaere – how the service determines its vision, philosophy and direction to ensure positive outcomes for children
Pou Ārahi – how leadership is enacted to enhance positive outcomes for children
Mātauranga – whose knowledge is valued and how the curriculum is designed to achieve positive outcomes for children
Tikanga whakaako – how approaches to teaching and learning respond to diversity and support positive outcomes for children.
Within these areas ERO considers the effectiveness of arotake – self review and of whanaungatanga – partnerships with parents and whānau.
ERO evaluates how well placed a service is to sustain good practice and make ongoing improvements for the benefit of all children at the service.
A focus for the government is that all children, especially priority learners, have an opportunity to benefit from quality early childhood education. ERO will report on how well each service promotes positive outcomes for all children, with a focus on children who are Māori, Pacific, have diverse needs, and are up to the age of two.
For more information about the framework and Ngā Pou Here refer to ERO’s Approach to Review in Early Childhood Services.
The overall judgement that ERO makes will depend on how well the service promotes positive learning outcomes for children. The categories are:
Very well placed
Well placed
Requires further development
Not well placed
ERO has developed criteria for each category. These are available on ERO’s website.
ERO reviews are tailored to each service’s context and performance, within the overarching review framework. The aim is to provide information on aspects that are central to positive outcomes for children and useful to the service.
|
Not well placed |
Requires further development |
Well placed |
Very well placed |
ERO's findings that support this overall judgement are summarised below.
ABC St Martins is owned and operated by the BestStart group. It provides full-day education and care for up to 40 children in what was formerly a family home. Children aged under two years are cared for in a separate building on the property giving older and younger siblings easy access to one another.
A centre manager and a head teacher form the leadership team. A BestStart business manager and BestStart professional services manager visit regularly to support the service.
Since the 2013 ERO review, there have been some staff changes. This includes a new centre manager who has, with the team, positively addressed the recommendations of the last review. This includes continued improvements to the outdoor area and planning, assessment and evaluation processes.
This review was part of a cluster of six reviews in the BestStart Group in Canterbury.
Teachers have thoughtfully determined the valued outcomes for children at ABC St Martins and implement well-designed and ever improving programmes that support these outcomes. The centre vision is for children to be competent, confident learners and develop caring, respectful relationships with each other and the environment. This is evident in the way children are supported to:
learn the skills of relating well to one another
flourish in their interests
make choices about what they want to do
have fun as they learn.
Leaders and teachers are highly responsive to the language, culture and identity of Pacific children and their families. They ensure that Pacific language and aspects of culture are visible in the environment and records of learning.
Leaders and teachers are increasing their understanding of te ao Māori and how to better implement bicultural programmes. They are gaining a deeper appreciation of key Māori values to help foster genuine partnerships with Māori children and their whānau. They identified this as a priority for ongoing development.
Teachers take the time to get to know children and their whānau well. They seek parents' wishes for their children's learning and take this into account when planning for them. Documentation could more consistently show how these conversations have been responded to. Teachers work well with parents and external agencies to provide additional support for those children who need it to have success in their learning.
Older children benefit from a wide range of authentic learning experiences that build on their interests. This includes early literacy and mathematics in meaningful contexts.
The centre actively participates in a professional cluster of local early childhood centres and schools to discuss effective transition practices.
Infants and toddlers benefit from a small group size where they form close, caring, respectful relationships with their teachers and caregivers. Teachers:
are responsive to the changing needs of this age group
provide stimulating learning environments and experiences, including early literacy and mathematics
plan carefully alongside parents, to ensure children's smooth transitions through to the preschool.
The service leaders and BestStart managers have been improving systems for planning, assessment and evaluation for groups and individual children. They have identified the next step is to strengthen and embed these systems.
The centre manager is fostering and developing collaborative teamwork. There is a strong culture of improvement and critical reflection. They make effective use of professional development to improve outcomes for children.
Leaders and teachers have improved aspects of the programmes and practices. Internal evaluation practices would be strengthened by having an evaluative focus (asking 'how well') and by stronger links to indicators (examples of best practice) at all stages of the evaluation.
There are well-developed systems and processes in place to help services achieve the BestStart’s expectations for high quality education and care. This includes regular monitoring and support for the quality of practice (identifying what is going well and what the centre needs to do next to improve). A strengthened appraisal system leading to greater reflection is in place and would be further enhanced by making links to Tātaiako (cultural competencies).
Centre leaders have identified, and ERO agrees that the key next steps to improve outcomes for children are to continue to:
strengthen internal evaluation processes and practices
strengthen and embed planning, assessment and evaluation.
Before the review, the staff and management of ABC St Martins completed an ERO Centre Assurance Statement and Self-Audit Checklist. In these documents they attested that they have taken all reasonable steps to meet their legal obligations related to:
During the review, ERO looked at the service’s systems for managing the following areas that have a potentially high impact on children's wellbeing:
emotional safety (including positive guidance and child protection)
physical safety (including supervision; sleep procedures; accidents; medication; hygiene; excursion policies and procedures)
suitable staffing (including qualification levels; police vetting; teacher registration; ratios)
evacuation procedures and practices for fire and earthquake.
All early childhood services are required to promote children's health and safety and to regularly review their compliance with legal requirements.
The next ERO review of ABC St Martins will be in three years.
Dr Lesley Patterson
Deputy Chief Review Officer
Te Waipounamu Southern
20 December 2016
The Education Review Office (ERO) is the government department that, as part of its work, reviews early childhood services throughout Aotearoa New Zealand. ERO’s reports provide information for parents and communities about each service’s strengths and next steps for development. ERO’s bicultural evaluation framework Ngā Pou Here is described in SECTION 3 of this report. Early childhood services are partners in the review process and are expected to make use of the review findings to enhance children's wellbeing and learning.
|
Location |
Christchurch |
||
|
Ministry of Education profile number |
70374 |
||
|
Licence type |
Education & Care Service |
||
|
Licensed under |
Education (Early Childhood Services) Regulations 2008 |
||
|
Number licensed for |
40 children, including up to 15 aged under 2 |
||
|
Service roll |
54 |
||
|
Gender composition |
Boys: 32 Girls: 22 |
||
|
Ethnic composition |
Māori Pākehā Pasifika Other |
8 37 3 6 |
|
|
Percentage of qualified teachers 0-49% 50-79% 80%+ Based on funding rates |
80% + |
||
|
Reported ratios of staff to children |
Under 2 |
1:4 |
Better than minimum requirements |
|
Over 2 |
1:8 |
Better than minimum requirements |
|
|
Review team on site |
November 2016 |
||
|
Date of this report |
20 December 2016 |
||
|
Most recent ERO report(s) |
Education Review |
May 2013 |
|
|
Education Review |
January 2010 |
||
|
Education Review |
December 2006 |
||
ERO’s overarching question for an early childhood education review is ‘How well placed is this service to promote positive learning outcomes for children?’ ERO focuses on the following factors as described in the bicultural framework Ngā Pou Here:
Pou Whakahaere – how the service determines its vision, philosophy and direction to ensure positive outcomes for children
Pou Ārahi – how leadership is enacted to enhance positive outcomes for children
Mātauranga – whose knowledge is valued and how the curriculum is designed to achieve positive outcomes for children
Tikanga whakaako – how approaches to teaching and learning respond to diversity and support positive outcomes for children.
Within these areas ERO considers the effectiveness of arotake – self review and of whanaungatanga – partnerships with parents and whānau.
ERO evaluates how well placed a service is to sustain good practice and make ongoing improvements for the benefit of all children at the service.
A focus for the government is that all children, especially priority learners, have an opportunity to benefit from quality early childhood education. ERO will report on how well each service promotes positive outcomes for all children, with a focus on children who are Māori, Pacific, have diverse needs, and are up to the age of two.
For more information about the framework and Ngā Pou Here refer to ERO’s Approach to Review in Early Childhood Services.
The overall judgement that ERO makes and the timing of the next review will depend on how well placed a service is to promote positive learning outcomes for children. The categories are:
ERO has developed criteria for each category. These are available on ERO’s website.
ERO reviews are tailored to each service’s context and performance, within the overarching review framework. The aim is to provide information on aspects that are central to positive outcomes for children and useful to the service.