414 William Street, Kaiapoi
View on mapAkarangi | Quality Evaluation evaluates the extent to which this early childhood service has the learning and organisational conditions to support equitable and excellent outcomes for all learners. Te Ara Poutama- indicators of quality for early childhood education: what matters most (PDF 3.01MB) are the basis for making judgements about the effectiveness of the service in achieving equity and excellence for all learners. The Akarangi Quality Evaluation Judgement Rubric (PDF 91.30KB) derived from the indicators, is used to inform the ERO’s judgements about this service’s performance in promoting equity and excellence.
ERO’s judgements for Sovereign Star Nursery and Preschool are as follows:
Outcome Indicators |
ERO’s judgement |
|
What the service knows about outcomes for learners |
Whāngai Establishing |
Ngā Akatoro Domains |
ERO’s judgement |
|
He Whāriki Motuhake The learner and their learning |
Whāngai Establishing |
|
Whakangungu Ngaio Collaborative professional learning builds knowledge and capability |
Whāngai Establishing |
|
Ngā Aronga Whai Hua Evaluation for improvement |
Whāngai Establishing |
|
Kaihautū Leaders foster collaboration and improvement |
Whāngai Establishing |
|
Te Whakaruruhau Stewardship through effective governance and management |
Whāngai Establishing |
Sovereign Star Nursery and Preschool is located is Kaiapoi. It provides education and care for children from birth to school age in three separate learning areas. Most teachers, including the centre owner, are qualified early childhood teachers. A new centre manager has been appointed since the 2018 ERO review. She is responsible for day-to-day-operations.
Children learn and develop in a play-based environment and through caring relationships with their teachers. A positive team culture is evident, and teachers work well together to create an inclusive learning environment. They work collaboratively with parents, whānau and external agencies for the benefit of positive learner outcomes. They have a deep understanding of working with children with additional needs and to support the wellbeing and development of each child as a capable learner.
Teachers provide a responsive curriculum that is consistent with Te Whāriki, the early childhood curriculum. It is based on whanaungatanga and emphasises developing emotional and social competence. They maintain a calm, well-paced environment that gives younger children space and time to lead their own learning.
Bicultural practice is developing. Teachers integrate some te reo and tikanga Māori into their daily teaching practice. Building teachers confidence and competence in the use of te reo Māori is an area that requires ongoing attention.
A new assessment format has been introduced but is not yet embedded in practice. Children’s learning dispositions are celebrated through narrative assessment which builds children’s identity as a learner. There is variability in how children’s cultures, languages and identities are reflected through assessment documentation.
Children’s learning is enhanced though leaders and teachers working together as a professional learning community. Leaders and teachers engage in targeted professional learning and development opportunities to build leadership capacity and teacher capability. They are beginning to reflect on practice and use a systematic approach to reviewing the curriculum. Self review is used to reflect on and make improvements to practice. Leaders and teachers are continuing to embed their understanding of internal evaluation.
Relational leadership is establishing the conditions that enable collaboration for improvement. Leaders are developing teacher capability with external expertise to ensure that identified improvement goals are met. Refining and evaluating the strategic annual priorities is needed for leaders to fully implement new initiatives in ways that are manageable and make the most difference to practice and learner outcomes.
Sovereign Star Nursery and Preschool will include the following actions in its Quality Improvement Planning: These are to:
Before the review, the staff and management of Sovereign Star Nursery and Preschool 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.
Dr Lesley Patterson
Director Review and Improvement Services (Southern)
Southern Region | Te Tai Tini
3 March 2022
| Early Childhood Service Name | Sovereign Star Nursery and Preschool |
| Profile Number |
46610 |
| Location | Kaiapoi |
|
Service type |
Education and care service |
|
Number licensed for |
50 children, including up to 15 children aged under 2 |
|
Percentage of qualified teachers |
80-99% |
|
Service roll |
49 |
|
Ethnic composition |
Māori 11, NZ European/Pākehā 31, Pacific 3, other ethnic groups 4 |
|
Review team on site |
November 2021 |
|
Date of this report |
3 March 2022 |
|
Most recent ERO report(s) |
Education Review, July 2017 |
|
Not well placed |
Requires further development |
Well placed |
Very well placed |
Sovereign Star Nursery and Preschool is well placed to provide positive learning outcomes for children.
ERO's findings that support this overall judgement are summarised below.
Sovereign Star Nursery and Preschool is a purpose-built early childhood education centre, situated within the Sovereign Star subdivision in Kaiapoi. Leaders and teachers provide care and education for children from birth to age six years in three separate classrooms, including a nursery, preschool or prep room. This is the first ERO evaluation for this centre that opened in 2015.
A number of new teachers and leaders have been appointed within the last 12 months. Most staff are qualified and registered teachers. They represent a range of different cultures that support the increasing diversity of the centre's community. The owner of the centre is a qualified teacher and works as the manager and as a teacher. A parent teacher group (PTA) is an important feature of the service. A centre cook provides nutritious meals and snacks for children.
The service leaders have made very good progress in the last two years in establishing the centre. The philosophy draws from a range of theories that are integrated alongside Te Whāriki, the early childhood curriculum. Leaders make purposeful links to the community to extend the learning experiences for children both within and beyond the centre, including the local school.
The service vision, values and philosophy are very evident in centre practices. Children are at the heart of all decision making. Leaders and teachers foster respectful and reciprocal relationships with children and families.
Teachers provide a welcoming and inclusive learning environment and strive for equity and excellence for all children. The language, culture and identity of children and families are acknowledged and respected. An increasing emphasis on biculturalism is evident. Some teachers have taken personal responsibility for learning sign language to support the specific needs of some children and extend the learning of all children.
Infants, toddlers and young children are well supported by the caring, nurturing interactions of teachers. Teachers are responsive to the individual strengths, interests and capabilities of children as they develop each child's learning pathway. The specific needs of infants are well considered. Teachers provide flexible routines and respectful interactions that are aligned to parent preferences for their child.
The centre has well-designed and presented internal and external learning areas. Teachers provide a calm and settled environment and rich learning opportunities for children. ERO observed children who were confident, settled and well engaged in a wide range of interesting learning activities. Oral language experiences, literacy and mathematics are well integrated into the curriculum.
The service is well led and managed. Leaders have high expectations for teaching and learning and a strong focus on ongoing improvement. Leaders communicate effectively and work well with teachers to form a collaborative and reflective team culture. They are focused on building leadership capacity, teacher capability and internal evaluation at all levels of the organisation. Leaders make good use of internal and external expertise to provide targeted professional development and mentoring to teachers. The individual strengths of teachers are valued and well used to support other teachers and to extend learning programmes for children.
Service leaders have made very good progress in establishing the centre since it opened in 2015. Leaders have identified, and ERO's evaluation has confirmed, that the key next steps are to continue to strengthen aspects of governance, management and curriculum processes. This includes:
completing the strategic plan to include annual planning of key service priorities
adding more depth to internal evaluative practices
giving prominence to bicultural perspectives in key documentation and practices
strengthening understandings of the Education Council requirements in relation to appraisal
formalising a procedure to support the provisionally registered teacher programme and practices.
Before the review, the staff and management of Sovereign Star Nursery and Preschool 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 Sovereign Star Nursery and Preschool will be in three years.
Dr Lesley Patterson
Deputy Chief Review Officer Southern (Te Waipounamu)
28 July 2017
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 |
Kaiapoi |
||
|
Ministry of Education profile number |
46610 |
||
|
Licence type |
Education & Care Service |
||
|
Licensed under |
Education (Early Childhood Services) Regulations 2008 |
||
|
Number licensed for |
75 children, including up to 15 aged under 2 |
||
|
Service roll |
77 |
||
|
Gender composition |
Boys: 45 Girls: 32 |
||
|
Ethnic composition |
Māori |
8 |
|
|
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 |
April 2017 |
||
|
Date of this report |
28 July 2017 |
||
|
Most recent ERO report(s) |
First ERO report |
N/A |
|
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.