2 & 10 Arranmore Drive, Flat Bush, Manukau
View on map|
Not well placed |
Requires further development |
Well placed |
Very well placed |
ERO's findings that support this overall judgement are summarised below.
Edukids Flatbush offers all-day and sessional early childhood education and care. The centre has a maximum of 100 children including 25 up to the age of two years. Children from three months to five years are catered for in four age-related learning areas.
Children enrolled are from many different backgrounds, and diversity is celebrated and embraced. A commitment to the bicultural heritage of Aotearoa New Zealand underpins the centre's vision and practice.
The centre's philosophy promotes a strong sense of belonging founded on respectful and meaningful relationships between children, teachers and parents. It emphasises the need for a caring and holistic environment that challenges and stimulates children to explore and create. Individualised learning is at the heart of the centre's curriculum.
The 2014 ERO review noted some areas of good practice including effective learning environments and programmes that focused on children's interests. The use of home languages to support children's learning was a strength of the centre. This review confirms that the centre has sustained and built on those areas of good practice. Since 2014 there have been several new personnel appointments.
The centre is part of the BestStart Education and Care organisation, which provides an overarching governance and management framework, as well as personnel to support individual centres.
This review was part of a cluster of seven education and care service reviews in the BestStart organisation.
The centre's whānau-centred philosophy is evident in the centre's systems and operations and in the value placed on families' cultural identities and languages. Inclusive practices affirm and empathise with families who come to the centre from the neighbourhood, from other localities or from other countries.
Leaders and teachers are building positive learning partnerships with parents, and are committed to finding ways for families to contribute to their children's learning programmes. Children are supported to transition into and through the centre and on to primary school. There are good integration processes for children with additional needs and they are supported to enjoy and learn within the centre programmes.
Infants and toddlers form attachments to teachers quickly and settle well. The teachers use specific care approaches and warm and nurturing experiences that enable infants and toddlers to develop positively. Children benefit from highly personalised routines that align with families' home routines.
The centre has an authentic approach to bicultural practices. Te reo and tikanga Maōri are visible and audible in the centre. Capability in this area is a strength of the current centre manager. Centre leaders now plan to develop stronger connections with community marae and iwi.
The centre has a well evaluated curriculum and well resourced learning areas. Older children are able to voice their own decision-making about their learning through play. They have good access to a range of resources, equipment and materials. Children benefit from periods where mixed-age groups can learn together in the outside environment. Centre leaders and teachers are developing ways to use children's contributions in programme planning.
There has been in-depth professional learning around children's development of dispositions for learning. This knowledge, developed alongside the family, is evident in children's portfolios and is a strong feature of current assessment practices in the centre.
Newly revised procedures for teacher appraisal have recently been introduced. Centre leaders and teachers make very good use of ongoing professional development programmes and this is now more evident in teachers' practice. Teachers are becoming increasingly reflective about improvements in their work in relation to best practice in early childhood education.
BestStart has recently developed a strategic plan to guide the organisation's future direction. Managers are working to increase coherence and alignment between organisational and individual centres' annual and strategic planning. The teacher appraisal process has been redeveloped with a focus on lifting teacher practice through individual inquiry. Managers will continue to provide targeted support to ensure these documents become familiar to teachers, and contribute to improved consistency in the quality of programmes across centres.
To support the provision of a broader curriculum in the outdoors, it would be worthwhile for BestStart managers and teachers to review and improve the design and layout of these learning environments.
Key next steps for centre development include:
Before the review, the staff and management of Edukids Flatbush 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 Edukids Flatbush will be in four years.
Julie Foley
Deputy Chief Review Officer Northern (Acting)
Te Tai Raki - Northern Region
21 May 2018
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.
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Location |
Flat Bush, Auckland |
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Ministry of Education profile number |
45877 |
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Licence type |
Education & Care Service |
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Licensed under |
Education (Early Childhood Services) Regulations 2008 |
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Number licensed for |
100 children, including up to 25 aged under 2 |
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Service roll |
140 |
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Gender composition |
Girls 60% Boys 40% |
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Ethnic composition |
Māori |
3% |
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Percentage of qualified teachers 0-49% 50-79% 80%+ Based on funding rates |
80% + |
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Reported ratios of staff to children |
Under 2 |
1:4 |
Better than minimum requirements |
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Over 2 |
1:8 |
Better than minimum requirements |
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Review team on site |
January 2018 |
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Date of this report |
21 May 2018 |
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Most recent ERO report(s) |
Education Review |
November 2014 |
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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:
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.
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Not well placed |
Requires further development |
Well placed |
Very well placed |
ERO's findings that support this overall judgement are summarised below.
Edukids Flatbush was opened in a purpose built building in 2012 by Kidicorp Limited. The centre provides education and care for up to 100 children aged from three months to school age. Children at the centre are grouped according to age. The three groups are: babies up to two years of age; toddlers up to three and a half; and preschool children.
Children can attend for full days or for part of the day. Most children who attend the centre are Chinese or Indian and many speak languages other than English as their first language. There are five Māori children and 14 of Pacific origin.
Kidicorp Limited policies and procedures guide the operation of the centre. The centre manager meets regularly with a Kidicorp business manager and professional services manager to discuss the operation of the centre.
Most teachers are qualified and experienced. Several staff members have worked in other centres owned by Kidicorp. Some teachers speak the home languages of the children who attend the centre. This helps with communication with some families new to the centre. Younger children have a primary caregiver. This teacher is in regular communication with parents.
The centre’s philosophy acknowledges the principles of the Treaty of Waitangi and a commitment to support its culturally diverse community. It promotes children’s independence and self esteem. The centre is committed to working in partnership with children and their families.
Edukids Flatbush is well placed to promote positive learning outcomes for children. Children are well cared for and they have many appropriate opportunities to learn. They experience positive and supportive relationships with their teachers and with the other children.
The education programme is motivating with a wide variety of activities for children. Teachers manage the environment carefully to encourage children to explore and learn. The planned programmes are responsive to children’s interests. Children’s play is well resourced to extend their learning.
Teachers support children’s oral language development by talking with children often and encouraging them to respond. They sometimes use children’s home languages. Bilingual children switch from their home language to English, depending on their audience. Supporting children’s bilingualism is a strength of the centre.
The development of children’s early literacy and numeracy skills is well promoted by teachers in their conversations with children, and through wall displays and the activities children participate in. Teachers encourage and help children to be writers and illustrators. Children also have rich opportunities for learning in all areas of Te Whāriki, the early childhood curriculum.
Babies are cared for with respect by teachers who know them well. The primary caregiver approach works well with teachers helping children to follow their own routines related to sleep, nutrition and toileting. The centre is well set up so that babies and toddlers can easily access a wide range of interesting play equipment.
The environment is spacious, well designed and effectively used to support learning. Each group of children has easy access between their indoor and outdoor areas. Resources are plentiful, well organised and accessible to children.
The centre’s wall displays, and teachers’ use of some words and phrases of te reo Māori when talking with children, reflect the staff’s commitment to the Treaty of Waitangi. Other displays promote children’s curiosity and encourage them to revisit their learning.
Teachers promote partnership with parents. Parents are encouraged to share their aspirations for their children and to contribute to programme planning. Parents often contribute to children’s Memory Books that record their time and their learning at the centre.
Centre leaders are improvement-focused and have already reviewed several aspects of centre operations and its education programme. Self review guides improvement and resourcing decisions. Policies and procedures are reviewed regularly with staff and parents.
The day-to-day running of the centre is guided by a clear policy framework and procedures. Centre managers conduct regular reviews including quality assurance checks. Staff performance appraisals are thorough and focused on improving teaching practice. Professional learning opportunities are provided to support this improvement.
Centre leaders have identified the centre’s planning, assessment and evaluation process as an area for development. They are currently trialling new planning approaches in each of the rooms. ERO recommends that teachers explore better ways of recording their observations of children. These records could support a planning process that would cater to a greater extent for the interests of individuals and small groups.
ERO and centre leaders also identified that self-review processes could be more effective if deliberate inquiry was included in reviews. They also agreed that strategic planning and performance management systems would be strengthened by establishing clearer and more measureable improvement goals. More detailed action plans would also guide staff to achieve these goals.
Before the review, the staff and management of Edukids Flatbush 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:
All early childhood services are required to promote children's health and safety and to regularly review their compliance with legal requirements.
In order to improve practice the centre managers could strengthen the recording of steps taken to ensure children are safe when on excursions out of the centre.
The next ERO review of Edukids Flatbush will be in three years.
Dale Bailey
National Manager Review Services Northern Region
24 November 2014
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 |
Flatbush, Auckland |
||
|
Ministry of Education profile number |
45877 |
||
|
Licence type |
Education & Care Service |
||
|
Licensed under |
Education (Early Childhood Services) Regulations 2008 |
||
|
Number licensed for |
100 children, including up to 25 aged under 2 |
||
|
Service roll |
114 |
||
|
Gender composition |
Girls 54% Boys 46% |
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|
Ethnic composition |
Māori NZ European/Pākehā Chinese Indian Fijian South East Asian Samoan Cook Island Māori other |
4% 13% 37% 22% 8% 5% 4% 1% 6% |
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Percentage of qualified teachers 0-49% 50-79% 80% Based on funding rates |
80% |
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|
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 |
October 2014 |
||
|
Date of this report |
24 November 2014 |
||
|
Most recent ERO report(s) |
No previous ERO reports |
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:
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.