26 Manuka Road, Glenfield, Auckland
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.
ABC Glenfield is situated on Auckland's North Shore. This service provides full-day education and care for up to 100 children in purpose built premises. Children are from diverse ethnicities, and staff reflect the varied communities.
The service cares for children in five designated spaces, according to age and stages of development. Some of these areas share outdoor spaces. The teaching team values its relationships with parents and whānau. Teachers actively seek to collaborate with the community to enhance the learning and wellbeing of tamariki. The leadership team, appointed since ERO's 2014 review, comprises a manager, assistant manager and two head teachers.
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.
ABC Glenfield promotes learning through play in an inclusive and multicultural environment. The teachers in each room shape the curriculum responsively. Teachers support children to explore at their pace, providing interesting experiences that are likely to promote their interest and engagement. A strong bicultural commitment is evident in strategic goals and in centre practices.
In the two areas that care for infants and toddlers, nurturing practices support these youngest children to form close bonds with their teachers. Teachers promote children's confidence to engage socially and to explore the physical environment with growing independence. They work closely with infants and toddlers, and their parents and caregivers to better understand their wants and needs, and to support the care routines that are in place at home.
Children at this service are valued for their strengths. Teachers' planning and assessment show deep knowledge of individual and group interests. Children can explore a range of natural and recycled materials, and enjoy investigating the creative and open-ended possibilities that these provide. Teachers observe and listen attentively to children as they play, to determine the best ways to support further learning. The programme is strongly underpinned by Te Whāriki, the early childhood curriculum.
The centre's philosophy promotes respectful and caring relationships with parents and whānau. Teachers also promote clear lines of communication. Useful information is displayed in each room to support parents' understanding of and engagement with the programme. A digital platform provides families with up-to-date information about their children's learning and progress, and about their wellbeing and care. The centre supports events and activities that involve the wider community. Good relationships with local primary schools support smooth transitions for children when they leave the centre.
There is a strong focus on improvement across the centre and within each teaching team. Professional development provides teachers with appropriate guidance to further enhance the programme and teaching practices. Good quality mentoring is designed to create a collaborative learning culture. The leadership team determines overarching priorities and goals, and focuses attention on next steps through a process of team reflection and review.
Leaders are keen to improve the rigour of their internal evaluation to enhance current processes for reflection and review. Refining the question asked at the beginning of each evaluation would help to improve the quality of information generated, and better inform strategic decision making.
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 centre 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 learning environments.
Key next steps for centre development include evaluating:
Before the review, the staff and management of ABC Glenfield 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 ABC Glenfield will be in three years.
Julie Foley
Deputy Chief Review Officer Northern (Acting)
Te Tai Raki - Northern Region
18 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 |
Glenfield, Auckland |
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Ministry of Education profile number |
20236 |
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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 |
115 |
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Gender composition |
Boys 53% |
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Ethnic composition |
Māori |
16% |
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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 |
February 2018 |
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Date of this report |
18 April 2018 |
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Most recent ERO report(s) |
Education Review |
December 2014 |
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Education Review |
December 2011 |
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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.
|
Not well placed |
Requires further development |
Well placed |
Very well placed |
ERO's findings that support this overall judgement are summarised below.
ABC Glenfield, on Auckland’s North Shore, is a purpose built centre that opened in 2008. The centre is licensed to provide education and care for 100 children, including up to 25 children under two years of age. It has three age-related areas, with separate rooms for babies and toddlers.
The centre ownership changed from ABC New Zealand to the Kidicorp organisation in 2012. Its three licensed spaces have also been merged into one licence and Kidicorp personnel and centre management have worked together to develop policies and procedures to meet the 2008 licensing requirements.
There have also been changes in staff and Kidicorp personnel. Team building has been a focus to support strong, positive relationships. The centre manager is a long-serving staff member.
Kidicorp continues to provide regular professional development for teachers. The centre manager supervises and takes responsibility for day-to-day centre operations. The assistant manager/head teacher and other head teacher have responsibility for care routines and programme implementation for the different age groups. The teaching team is a mixture of fully and provisionally registered teachers with three teachers currently in training.
The centre whakatauki ‘Whakapuputia mai o manuka, kia kore ai e whati – cluster the branches of the manuka, so they will not break’ sits alongside the centre’s philosophy. The philosophy is based on respectful relationships, with a focus on the individual child and their family.
The centre is very inclusive in providing education and care for all children. They play well together, both independently and in small groups. They form warm relationships and engage in respectful conversations with each other and adults. Children benefit from resources and opportunities that enable them to develop good early literacy and numeracy skills. Children can readily access resources and activities that interest them.
Good staff team work further supports children’s participation in the programme. Teachers take time to have conversations with children to foster their language development. Some teachers encourage the development of children’s early mathematical knowledge during meal and mat times and during children’s play. A necessary next step is for teachers to ensure their interactions with children provoke and stimulate their curiosity, thinking, and problem solving.
Babies and toddlers are very well cared for in two age related rooms. Teachers know each child and their whānau well. Children each have a staff member who is their primary care giver. This helps with bonding and establishing trust. Teachers respond positively to children and collaborate with parents around children’s personal routines and stages of development. Teachers provide appropriate opportunities that extend children’s exploration and sensory experiences.
Older children participate in a number of teacher prepared activities. Increasing opportunities for child-initiated activities is a next step to promote higher quality learning for children. Routines are designed to support children’s continuous and independent play. Positive teacher, child, family/whānau relationships support good transition processes within the centre and on to school.
Planning involves noticing, recognising and responding to children’s individual and group strengths and interests. Planning is displayed and teachers add their written reflections and share plans with parents. Centre management should continue to refine planning and assessment practices to ensure the focus is on children’s individual learning journeys.
Portfolios of older children’s interests are used to inform teachers’ decisions about how to extend children’s learning. Portfolios for the babies and toddlers record the growth and development of each child.
Te reo Māori is evident is in waiata, karakia, greetings, words and phrases. The centre manager plans to further develop aspects of bicultural practice with the staff. The use of Ministry of Education resources such as Ka Hikitia-Accelerating Success 2013 - 2017 and Tātaiako - Cultural Competencies for Teachers of Māori Learners, would support this goal. Teachers should also become familiar with the Ministry’s Pasifika Education Plan 2013 – 2017.
Centre management values strong pastoral relationships with parents. It would be useful for management to now build on these relationships to increase parents’ engagement in their child’s learning journey.
Under the umbrella of Kidicorp, the centre manager and teachers are well supported to lead the centre. Systems are implemented effectively to promote the health and wellbeing of staff and children in the centre. Centre management recognise that operating to minimum ratios was causing some challenge to children’s routines and learning. They have increased staffing accordingly.
Strategic and annual plans are driving centre development. Comprehensive teacher appraisal processes and procedures support ongoing staff development. However, centre management should identify more specifically the priority areas for staff professional development.
Centre managers and ERO agree that key next steps for the centre are to:
Before the review, the staff and management of ABC Glenfield 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.
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 ABC Glenfield will be in three years.
Dale Bailey
National Manager Review Services Northern Region
19 December 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 |
Glenfield, Auckland |
||
|
Ministry of Education profile number |
20236 |
||
|
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 |
127 |
||
|
Gender composition |
Boys 72 Girls 55 |
||
|
Ethnic composition |
Māori NZ European/Pākehā Chinese Indian African Filipino Pacific Other |
8 83 15 5 3 3 2 8 |
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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 |
1:5 |
Meets minimum requirements |
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Over 2 |
1:10 |
Meets minimum requirements |
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Review team on site |
October 2014 |
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Date of this report |
19 December 2014 |
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Most recent ERO report(s) |
This is the first review under the merged licence |
||
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Previous reviews as: ABC Glenfield Tahi ABC Glenfield Rua ABC Glenfield Toru |
|||
|
Education Review |
December 2011 |
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.