Atamai Education & Care

Education institution number:
47162
Service type:
Homebased Network
Definition:
Samoan ECE service
Total roll:
77
Telephone:
Address:

18H Polaris Place, East Tamaki, Auckland

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Atamai Education and Care

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

Regulatory standards

ERO’s judgement

Curriculum

Meeting

Premises and facilities

Meeting

Health and safety

Meeting

Governance, management and administration

Meeting

Since the onsite visit, the service has provided ERO with evidence that shows it has addressed non-compliances and is now taking reasonable steps to meet regulatory standards.

Background

Atamai Education and Care is one of two quality-funded homebased networks governed by CE New Zealand Limited. A managing director and office manager guides a team of four qualified coordinators, 13 educators, and support staff. Most children attending the service are of Samoan heritage.

Summary of Review Findings

Coordinators and educators respect and support the right of each child to be confident in their own culture and encourage children to respect other cultures. Educators engage in meaningful, positive interactions to enhance children’s learning and nurture reciprocal relationships.

The service curriculum acknowledges and reflects the unique place of Māori as tangata whenua. Children have opportunities to develop knowledge and an understanding of the cultural heritages of both parties to Te Tiriti o Waitangi. The service curriculum provides a language-rich environment that supports children’s learning.

Service leaders must ensure all aspects of regulatory compliance are consistently implemented, monitored, and maintained.

Key Next Step

A next step is to:

  • develop the service’s local curriculum to reflect the things that are important to children and their families, the educators and the wider community.

Actions for Compliance

Since the onsite visit, the service has provided ERO with evidence that shows it has addressed the following non-compliances:

  • Having safe and comfortable (indoor and outdoor) spaces for infants and toddlers not walking to lie, roll, creep, crawl, pull themselves up, learn to walk, and to be protected from more mobile children (PF5).

  • Ensuring outdoor activity spaces are safe, and suitably surfaced for a variety of activities (PF11).

  • Having space (away from where food is stored, prepared, or eaten) where a sick child can be temporarily kept at a safe distance from other children, lie down comfortably and be supervised (PF14).

  • Providing safe and hygienic nappy changing facilities (PF17).

  • Ensuring space is available for the restful sleep of children who need it at any time they are attending (PF19).

  • Ensuring furniture and items intended for children to sleep on are of a size that allows then to lie flat and are of a design to ensure their safety (PF20).

  • Ensuring mattresses intended for children to sleep on that will be used by more than one child over time are securely covered or made of a non-porous material (PF21).

  • Having a written emergency plan that includes at least: a list of safety and emergency supplies and resources sufficient for the age and number of children and adults present in the home and details of how these will be maintained and accessed in an emergency and a communication plan for families (HS4).

  • Securing heavy furniture, fixtures and equipment that could fall or topple and cause serious injury or damage (HS6).

  • Ensuring educators are familiar with relevant emergency drills and carry out each type of drill with all children present in the home on at least three-monthly basis (HS7).

  • Ensuring that, if not permanently set up, furniture or items intended for children to sleep on (such as cots, beds, stretchers, or mattresses) and bedding are hygienically stored when not in use (HS10).

  • Ensuring that equipment, premises and facilities are checked every day of operation for hazards to children, and hazards to the safety of children are eliminated, isolated, or minimised (HS11).

  • Implementing safe and hygienic handling practices with regard to any animals and ensuring that all animals on the premises are able to be restrained (HS13).

  • Undertaking assessment and management of risk and developing and implementing a supervision plan specific to each excursion (HS14).

  • Ensuring that food is prepared, served, and stored hygienically (HS17).

  • Ensuring that children are supervised and seated while eating (HS19).

  • Maintaining a record of all injuries, illnesses and incidents that occur at the service and coordinators reviewing and implementing practices as required (HS24).

  • Having a written supervision plan that ensures the health, safety and wellbeing of children enrolled in the service is maintained at all times. The plan must be specific to the premises and the number, age, abilities and enrolled hours of the children attending must show how the educator will actively supervise children attending the service (HS34).

  • Ensuring every children’s worker is safety checked every three years and having a record of all safety checks and the results; and that anyone over the age of 17 years, who lives in a home where home-based education and care is being provided are police vetted (GMA6A).

Next ERO Review

The next ERO review is likely to be an Akarangi | Quality Evaluation.

Filivaifale Jason Swann
Director Review and Improvement Services (Northern)
Northern Region | Te Tai Raki

20 April 2023

Information About the Service

Early Childhood Service Name

Atamai Education and Care

Profile Number

47162

Location 

East Tamaki, Auckland

Service type

Home-based service

Number licensed for

80 children, including up to 80 aged under 2 years

Service roll

40

Review team on site

December 2022

Date of this report

20 April 2023

Most recent ERO report(s)

  Education Review, May 2019

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.

Atamai Education & Care - 30/05/2019

1 Evaluation of Atamai Education & Care

How well placed is Atamai Education & Care to promote positive learning outcomes for children?

Not well placed

Requires further development

Well placed

Very well placed

Atamai Education & Care is well placed to promote positive learning outcomes for children.

ERO's findings that support this overall judgement are summarised below.

Background

Atamai Education & Care is a home-based service that provides early childhood education and care for up to 80 children from infancy to school age. Educators deliver programmes in their homes for up to four children at a time. Most children are of Samoan, Chinese and Filipino cultural backgrounds. This is the first ERO review of the service.

Atamai Education & Care is led by registered early childhood teachers. The director, business manager and service provider work closely with the team of three programme coordinators.

The service philosophy promotes the provision of a home-based learning environment that is built on the foundation of trusting, reciprocal and responsive relationships. It highlights service values that appreciate and respect each child so they develop their full potential in an environment of love.

The director leads a board that governs the service. Clearly defined governance and management roles guide the strategic direction. Additional staff, including an Information Technology team, support the operation and management of the service.

The Review Findings

Educators keep good records of each child’s day and note activities that children participated in and enjoyed. Cultural practices are valued and contribute to planning. Children have regular opportunities to participate in playgroups, excursions and planned activities. Learning programmes include literacy, mathematics and science, and the use of creative materials.

Children's learning is recorded in attractive portfolios and through online portals. Portfolios show educators' responses to children's interests and strengths, and how they provide specifically for infants and toddlers, and children with additional learning needs. Educators share their own cultural knowledge and often document children's learning activities in the child's home language. Programme coordinators guide educators in planning programmes to meet children's needs.

Service leaders and programme coordinators provide culturally appropriate monitoring and support for educators. Coordinators affirm, model and encourage educators to improve their skills and their understanding of effective teaching strategies. Service leaders are committed to continuous improvement through building the capabilities and skills of all educators and staff.

Coordinators maintain regular contact with parents and welcome their feedback. Parents would benefit from further support to access the online secure portal that provides ways of communicating with educators and other parents.

Coordinators know educators well and provide monthly visits to educators' homes. They document these monthly visits well and monitor health and safety practices in homes. Coordinators build on educator knowledge of Te Whāriki, the early childhood curriculum, and effective teaching practices. They are encouraging educators to increase their understanding and use of te reo and tikanga Māori. Coordinators could also help educators to better understand and respond to children's individual interests and learning dispositions. They work collaboratively to promote educator success in the provision of home-based education and care. There is sound induction for new educators and ongoing support to increase their knowledge and improve practices.

Service operations are guided by a clear vision and philosophy. Strategic plans identify priorities that contribute to the service achieving its vision and are linked to sound accountability practices. This contributes to consistent and sustainable practices across the network.

Health and safety systems and monthly reporting keep service leaders informed of the physical and emotional wellbeing of children and of any issues to be addressed. There are sound recruitment processes, good resource management and clearly defined expectations for coordinators and educators. Service leaders are continuing to strengthen the current appraisal system, to support teachers and educators to become reflective practitioners. Internal evaluation is understood and managed through a sound process.

Key Next Steps

Key next steps are to strengthen:

  • the service philosophy and strategic planning

  • teachers' reflection and inquiry into practice

  • the use of te reo and tikanga Māori

  • professional learning opportunities about inclusive practices.

ERO and the service leaders agree that key next steps for programme coordinators are to continue to build educator capability by:

  • developing planning that builds on children's individual interests, and learning dispositions

  • increasing knowledge of Te Whāriki

  • engaging in regular targeted professional learning opportunities.

Management Assurance on Legal Requirements

Before the review, the staff and management of Atamai Education and Care completed an ERO Home-based Education and Care 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.

To improve current practice, service leaders need to ensure that accurate recording of children's sleep is carried out.

Licensing Criteria for Home Based ECE Services 2008, HS8, 2.

Steve Tanner

Director Review and Improvement Services Northern

Northern Region

30 May 2019

The Purpose of ERO Reports

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.

2 Information about the Home-based Education and Care Service

Location

East Tamaki, Auckland

Ministry of Education profile number

47162

Institution type

Homebased Network

Licensed under

Education (Early Childhood Services) Regulations 2008

Number licensed for

80 children, including up to 50 aged under 2

Service roll

70

Standard or Quality Funded

Standard

Gender composition

Boys 38 Girls 32

Ethnic composition

Samoan
Chinese
Filipino
Cook Island Māori
other ethnic groups

36
18
9
4
3

Number of qualified coordinators in the network

3

Required ratios of staff educators to children

Under 2

1:2

Over 2

1:4

Review team on site

April 2019

Date of this report

30 May 2019

Most recent ERO report(s)

No previous ERO reports

3 General Information about Early Childhood Reviews

ERO’s Evaluation Framework

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:

Pou Whakahaere – how the service determines its vision, philosophy and direction to ensure positive outcomes for children

Pou Ārahi – how leadership is enacted to enhance positive outcomes for children

Mātauranga – whose knowledge is valued and how the curriculum is designed to achieve positive outcomes for children

Tikanga whakaako – how approaches to teaching and learning respond to diversity and support positive outcomes for children.

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 the draft methodology for ERO reviews in Home-based Education and Care Services: July 2014

ERO’s Overall Judgement

The overall judgement that ERO makes will depend on how well the service promotes positive learning outcomes for children. The categories are:

  • Very well placed

  • Well placed

  • Requires further development

  • Not well placed

ERO has developed criteria for each category. These are available on ERO’s website.

Review Coverage

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.