Go Bananas Childcare Horotiu

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 found the service was taking reasonable steps to meet regulatory standards.

Background

Go Bananas Childcare Horotiu is a privately-owned early learning service. It provides education and care to a multicultural community including a small number of Māori learners. It is governed by the service owner under the Go Bananas Childcare umbrella organisation. The centre manager is responsible for the daily operations and curriculum design. This is the service’s first ERO review.

Summary of Review Findings

Adults providing education and care engage in meaningful, positive interactions to enhance children’s learning and nurture reciprocal relationships. The service curriculum provides children with a range of experiences and opportunities to enhance and extend their learning and development – both indoors and outdoors. It is inclusive, responsive and reflects the unique place of Māori as tangata whenua. Children are involved in decisions about their learning experiences, supporting their developing social competence.

The service curriculum is informed by assessment, planning, and evaluation that demonstrates an understanding of children’s learning. Positive steps are taken to respect and acknowledge the aspirations held by parents and whānau for their children.

Key Next Steps

Next steps include:

• Continue to develop the local curriculum to reflect and demonstrate an understanding and knowledge of what is important to children and their families, to teachers and the wider community.

• Strengthen the extent to which information documented about children’s learning reflects their identity, language, and culture.

Next ERO Review

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

13 September 2022 

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 regulatory 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; safety checking; teacher certification; ratios)

• relevant evacuation procedures and practices.

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.