Willoughby Street, Halcombe
View on mapERO’s Akanuku | Assurance Review reports provide information about whether a service meets and maintains regulatory standards. Further information about Akanuku | Assurance Reviews is included at the end of this report.
Regulatory standards |
ERO’s judgement |
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Curriculum |
Meeting |
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Premises and facilities |
Meeting |
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Health and safety |
Meeting |
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Governance, management and administration |
Meeting |
At the time of the review, ERO found the service was taking reasonable steps to meet regulatory standards.
Halcombe Playcentre is a rural centre administered by Te Whānau Tupu Ngātahi o Aotearoa – Playcentre Aotearoa.
The centre was unable to meet minimum qualification requirements and the licence was reclassified to Provisional in January 2019. The centre’s full licence was reinstated in January 2020.
Children are supported to participate in a range of curriculum opportunities that reflect their interests. They have opportunities to develop an understanding of the dual cultural heritage of Aotearoa New Zealand. Centre members are beginning to consider how the curriculum provides a range of opportunities that encourage children to understand other cultures.
Philosophy statements guide centre practices. Centre members demonstrate a collective responsibility to support all children’s learning and engage in Playcentre Aotearoa parent education programmes.
Playcentre Aotearoa policies and procedures are implemented and support ongoing compliance with regulation and criteria requirements.
Next steps include:
The next ERO review is likely to be an Akarangi | Quality Evaluation.
Phil Cowie
Director Review and Improvement Services (Central)
Central Region | Te Tai Pūtahi Nui
14 October 2020
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Early Childhood Service Name |
Halcombe Playcentre |
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Profile Number |
52010 |
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Location |
Halcombe |
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Service type |
Playcentre |
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Number licensed for |
25 children, including up to 10 aged under 2 |
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Service roll |
25 |
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Gender composition |
Male 13, Female 12 |
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Ethnic composition |
Māori 2 |
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Review team on site |
September 2020 |
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Date of this report |
14 October 2020 |
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Most recent ERO report(s) |
Education Review, April 2018 |
All services are licensed under the Education (Early Childhood Services) Regulations 2008. The legal requirements for early childhood services also include the Licensing Criteria for Education and Care Services 2008.
Services must meet the standards in the regulations and the requirements of the licensing criteria to gain and maintain a licence to operate.
All early childhood services are required to promote children’s health and safety and to regularly review their compliance with legal requirements. Before the review, the staff and management of a service 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:
As part of an Akanuku | Assurance Review ERO assesses whether the regulated standards are being met. In particular, ERO looks at a service’s systems for managing the following areas that have a potentially high impact on children's wellbeing:
As part of an Akanuku | Assurance Review ERO also gathers and records evidence through:
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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.
Halcombe Playcentre is one of 19 administered by the Central Districts Playcentre Association (the association).
The centre is licensed to provide mixed age sessional education and care for 25 children, three sessions a week. This includes provision for 10 children up to the age of two. At the time of this review there were 24 children enrolled and seven identify as Māori.
The New Zealand Playcentre Federation, of which Central Districts Association is part, is undergoing a significant restructure that includes amalgamating associations. Playcentres will become part of a regional hub, supported by a regional manager and others.
The federation philosophy, 'Whānau tupu ngātahi – families growing together', is to empower parents and children to learn, play and grow together. Alongside this, the centre philosophy fosters te ao Māori understandings.
Whānau and families are valued as the primary educators of their children. Curriculum planning and implementation is a shared responsibility. Each session is supported by a team of parent educators who hold Playcentre training certificates. An employed facilitator supports children and families on session.
The February 2015 ERO report identified areas for development for the association and the playcentre. Areas included: promoting success for Māori children; strengthening adults' conversations to extend children's learning; and evaluative self review. Progress is ongoing.
The review was part of a cluster of 11 reviews in the Central Districts Playcentre Association
The centre philosophy is clearly evident in practice. Children engage with enthusiasm in learning experiences underpinned by Te Whāriki, the early childhood curriculum. They settle into activities of interest, are confident to approach others and move freely throughout the centre. Children work well together. Tuakana teina relationships are evident.
A calm, positive tone is evident. Relationships are warm and affirming and assist children's and families' sense of belonging. Children lead their learning, making choices which sustain their involvement in play.
Te ao Māori is planned for, celebrated and part of the centre programme. This includes making links to individual children's whakapapa. Te reo is effectively modelled by adults and responded to by children.
An assessment, planning and evaluation framework guides members well. A range of tools are purposefully used to foster and records children's learning experiences in literacy, mathematics and creative arts. Science and physical activities provide challenge and enjoyment. Centre excursions provide children with rich local experiences.
Curriculum planning is responsive to children's developing interests. Parents work with the goals, dispositions and learning outcomes of Te Whāriki, the early childhood curriculum. They write about these in children's learning plans and portfolios and share information so all adults can support the progress and learning of individuals. The online platform provides a useful communication link for parents and whānau contributions.
Children attend events at the local school. There is a positive transition from the centre to the school.
The facilitator is guiding members in setting up meaningful experiences for all children. Professional development is building members' understanding of internal evaluation. Members are aware of the need to further extend their practice and to further develop and use the processes for internal evaluation. A next step is to implement the appraisal process to assist the facilitator with her development.
Suitable planning priorities and objectives are incorporated into the centre's strategic and annual planning. Membership has recently increased, with a high number of new families joining.
At playcentre level, the priorities are:
At the association/federation level, priorities are to continue to strengthen:
ERO recommends that the new regional team actively monitor and evaluate the quality of support provided to playcentres.
Before the review, the staff and management of Halcombe Playcentre 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.
The next ERO review of Halcombe Playcentre will be in three years.
Alan Wynyard
Deputy Chief Review Officer Central (Acting)
Te Tai Pokapū - Central Region
13 April 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 |
Halcombe |
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Ministry of Education profile number |
52010 |
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Licence type |
Playcentre |
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Licensed under |
Education (Early Childhood Services) Regulations 2008 |
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|
Number licensed for |
25 children, including up to 10 aged under 2 |
||
|
Service roll |
24 |
||
|
Gender composition |
Girls 12, Boys 12 |
||
|
Ethnic composition |
Māori |
7 |
|
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Reported ratios of adults to children |
Under 2 |
1:2 |
Better than minimum requirements |
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Over 2 |
1:5 |
Better than minimum requirements |
|
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Review team on site |
February 2018 |
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Date of this report |
13 April 2018 |
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Most recent ERO report(s) |
Education Review |
February 2015 |
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|
Education Review |
May 2012 |
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|
Education Review |
March 2005 |
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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.