Rosebank Early Childhood Centre - Aoga Amata

ERO’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.

ERO’s Judgement

At the time of the review, ERO identified areas of non-compliance with regulatory standards that are an unacceptable risk to children.

Background

This well-established service is located on the grounds of Rosebank Road Primary School. It is governed by a management committee. All the teachers are qualified, and they are led by a long serving centre manager. The curriculum provides gagana and aganu’u Samoa. The majority of the children enrolled are of Samoan heritage.

Summary of Review Findings

Children are given opportunities to develop their knowledge and an understanding of the cultural heritage of both parties to Te Tiriti o Waitangi. This is supported by a curriculum that respects each child to be confident in their own culture. The curriculum provides a language-rich environment that supports children learning gagana and aganu’u Samoa.

Regular opportunities are provided for parents to communicate with staff and be involved in decision making concerning their child’s learning. A philosophy statement guides centre operations.

Effective governance and management systems that support improvements have not yet been established.

Actions for Compliance

ERO found areas of non-compliance in the service relating to:

• adults providing education and care engaging in meaningful interactions to enhance children’s learning
• the service curriculum provides children with a range of experiences and opportunities to enhance and extend children’s learning and development both indoors and outdoors
• areas of glass accessible to children are made of safety glass, covered by adhesive film or guarded by barriers
• facilities for the preparation and cleaning up of paint and other art materials
• outdoor activity space can be easily and safely accessed by children, is safe and well-drained
• at least one of the toilets used by children provides them with a sense of privacy
• there are suitable facilities provided for washing sick or soiled children, and a procedure outlining how the service will ensure hygiene and infection control outcomes are met
• a procedure for hygienically laundering offsite or onsite linen used by children or adults
• a procedure for the changing and disposal of nappies is displayed near the nappy changing facilities and consistently implemented
• a current fire evacuation scheme approved by the New Zealand Fire Service
• heavy furniture, fixtures and equipment that could fall or topple and cause serious injury or damage are secured
• a written emergency plan and supplies sufficient for the age and number of children and adults in the service, and evidence of review of the plan on an at least annual basis and implementation of improved practices as required
• a procedure for monitoring children’s sleep is displayed and implemented, and a record is kept of the time each child sleeps and checks by adults during that time
• equipment, premises and facilities are checked on every day of operation for hazards to children; accident and incidents records are analysed to identify hazards and an appropriate action is then taken
• water stored in any hot water cylinder kept at a temperature of at least 60 degrees C
• when children leave the premises on an excursion assessment and management of risk is undertaken and the excursion is approved by the person responsible
• evidence of parental permission for any travel by motor vehicle while in the care of the service
• practicable steps taken to ensure that children do not come into contact with any person (adult or child) on the premises who is suffering from a disease or condition likely to have a detrimental effect on them
• a procedure outlining the service’s response to injury, illness and incident, including the review and implementation of practices as required
• procedure for administering and recording medicine prescribed and non-prescribed in accordance with the requirement for the category of medicine outlined in Appendix 3
• children are washed when they are soiled or pose a health risk to themselves or others
• a child protection policy that meets the requirements of the Children’s Act 2014
• suitable human resource management practices are implemented
• all children’s workers who have access to children are safety checked in accordance with the Children’s Act 2014
• enrolment records are maintained for each child attending; records are kept for at least seven years and available onsite
• an attendance record is maintained that shows the times and dates of every child’s attendance at the service; records are kept for at least seven years and available onsite.

Licensing Criteria for Early Childhood Education and care Centres 2008, C3, C9, PF7, PF10, PF13, PF22, PF26, HS2, HS3, HS4, HS6, HS7, HS9, HS12, HS14, HS17, HS18, HS26, HS27, HS28, HS30, HS31, GMA7, GMA7A, GMA10, GMA11.

Recommendation to Ministry of Education

ERO recommends that the Ministry reassess the licence issued to this service provider. ERO will not undertake a further review of this service until the Ministry of Education is satisfied that the service meets regulatory standards.

Next ERO Review

The next ERO review will be in consultation with the Ministry of Education.

Steve Tanner
Director Review and Improvement Services (Northern)
Northern Region | Te Tai Raki

27 May 2021 

Information About the Service

General Information about Assurance Reviews

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.

ERO undertakes an Akanuku | Assurance Review process in any centre-based service:

• having its first ERO review – including if it is part of a governing organisation
• previously identified as ‘not well placed’ or ‘requiring further development’
• that has moved from a provisional to a full licence
• that have been re-licenced due to a change of ownership
• where an Akanuku | Assurance Review process is determined to be appropriate.

Management Assurance on Legal Requirements

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:

• curriculum
• premises and facilities
• health and safety practices
• governance, management and administration.

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:

• 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 certification; ratios)
• evacuation procedures and practices for fire and earthquake.

As part of an Akanuku | Assurance Review ERO also gathers and records evidence through:

• discussions with those involved in the service
• consideration of relevant documentation, including the implementation of health and safety systems
• observations of the environment/premises, curriculum implementation and teaching practice.