Bear Park St Heliers

Education institution number:
20017
Service type:
Education and Care Service
Definition:
Not Applicable
Total roll:
62
Telephone:
Address:

114-116 Maskell Street, St Heliers, Auckland

View on map

Bear Park St Heliers

1 ERO’s Judgements

Akarangi | 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 are the basis for making judgements about the effectiveness of the service in achieving equity and excellence for all learners. Judgements are made in relation to the Outcomes Indicators, Learning and Organisational Conditions. The Evaluation Judgement Rubric derived from the indicators, is used to inform ERO’s judgements about this service’s performance in promoting equity and excellence.

ERO’s judgements for Bear Park St Heliers are as follows:

Outcome Indicators

(What the service knows about outcomes for learners)


Whakawhanake Sustaining

Ngā Akatoro Domains

 

Learning Conditions
Organisational Conditions

Whakawhanake Sustaining
Whakawhanake Sustaining

2 Context of the Service

Bear Park St Heliers is a franchised service which is one of eleven services that are part of the Bear Park group. A qualified owner oversees daily operations, supported by two qualified supervisors. There are two separate buildings for different age groups of children. Children enrolled are from diverse cultural backgrounds, with a small number who are Māori.

The Bear Park group has services in Auckland and Dunedin. Pedagogical leaders provide professional advice, guidance and support for Bear Park Services.

3 Summary of findings

Children have a strong sense of belonging and wellbeing at this service.  The homely environment and outdoor learning space fosters children’s curiosity, exploration, and problem-solving skills. Infants and toddlers experience a calm and unhurried environment. Successful transitions into the service are supported by effective partnerships with families. A buddy system fosters secure child-adult attachments.

Children experience an environment where te reo Māori and tikanga Māori is naturally woven throughout the routines and curriculum. Children sing waiata and recite daily karakia. Teachers’ nurture tuakana |teina relationships between younger and older children. Leaders plan to strengthen connections with local iwi to further support teachers’ bicultural teaching practices and enhance the service’s local curriculum.

Whanaungatanga is a priority for service leaders. Leaders and kaiako promote equitable outcomes when supporting children with special rights. They adapt their curriculum to meet developmental needs and stages.

The philosophy and curriculum are based on Te Whariki, the early childhood curriculum, and inspired by the Reggio Emilia approach, which values children as capable learners working collaboratively with teachers in a stimulating environment. Parent aspirations inform the service’s curriculum design.  Children’s prior knowledge and cultural backgrounds are valued by teachers. Assessment and planning records celebrate the learning progress of individuals and groups of children.

Teachers purposefully tailor the curriculum to motivate children and provoke their complex learning and thinking. Creativity is a strong feature of the curriculum and through this, literacy, mathematics, nature, science concepts, culture, the arts and social competence are integral aspects of children’s experiences and learning. Environmental sustainability is an organisational focus.

Relational trust at every level supports effective team collaboration. Teachers are provided with a range of professional development opportunities and mentoring. Leaders share their professional knowledge and expertise within the Bear Park group and with the wider professional community. A long-term plan informed by Bear Park organisational goals, values and priorities guides ongoing improvement and results in positive outcomes for children.

Leaders and teachers implement effective policies, procedures and practices that contribute to equitable outcomes for children at this service. There is a well-established system in place for internal evaluation that supports ongoing and meaningful improvements to learning and organisational conditions. Strong professional leadership, communication and innovation contributes to sustained improvements and continuity in the provision of high-quality care and education for children.

4 Improvement actions

Bear Park St Heliers will include the following actions that leaders have prioritised in its Quality Improvement Planning:

  • Strengthen connections with local iwi to grow teachers’ bicultural practices and enhance the service’s local curriculum.

  • Engage further with the Enviroschools programme and continue to use internal evaluation to document how a focus on sustainability has contributed to enhanced and equitable learning outcomes for children.

5 Management Assurance on Legal Requirements

Before the review, the staff and management of Bear Park St Heliers completed an ERO 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; safety checking; teacher registration; ratios)

  • relevant evacuation procedures and practices.

All early childhood services are required to promote children's health and safety and to regularly review their compliance with legal requirements.

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

4 April 2023

6 About the Early Childhood Service

Early Childhood Service Name

Bear Park St Heliers

Profile Number

20017

Location

St Heliers Auckland

Service type

Education and care service

Number licensed for

60 children, including up to 20 aged under 2

Percentage of qualified teachers

80-99%

Service roll

65

Review team on site

November 2022

Date of this report

4 April 2023

Most recent ERO report(s)

Education Review, June 2016; Education Review, June 2013

Bear Park St Heliers - 30/06/2016

1 Evaluation of Bear Park St Heliers

How well placed is Bear Park St Heliers to promote positive learning outcomes for children?

Not well placed

Requires further development

Well placed

Very well placed

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

Background

Bear Park St Heliers was established as the first of a chain of Bear Park Ltd and Bear Park Franchise Systems Ltd services. All of the Bear Park centres are led by the Bear Park Franchisor and the Bear Park pedagogical team. An interlinking set of policies, procedures and systems guides the centres and provides continuity and reassurance about the quality of programmes for children.

Bear Park St Heliers operates in two adjoining houses. These have been modified to provide functional space for the Infant, Toddler and Preschool rooms. These environments provide education and care for up to 60 children including 20 under two. Parents are able to make choices about the numbers of days and hours that their children attend.

The centre's philosophy is the over-arching statement prepared for Bear Park centres. It refers to the inspiration taken from the values and beliefs of the Reggio Emilia approach to early childhood education. The philosophy is strongly linked to Te Whāriki, the early childhood curriculum. Teachers of the infants and toddlers are influenced by the Resources for Infant Educators (RIE) philosophy.

Bear Park St Heliers is a franchised centre, managed for the franchisees by a qualified early childhood teacher. Day-to-day management of the two houses is the responsibility of supervisors who lead teams of qualified teachers and experienced additional staff.

As mentioned in the 2013 ERO report, teachers continue to build partnerships with parents/whānau, and to further strengthen the bicultural values they have established. The teaching team have also continued to reflect upon and refine self-review practices.

This review was part of a cluster of three early childhood centre reviews in the Bear Park Childcare Centres organisation.

The Review Findings

Children settle easily at the start of the day, talking eagerly to teachers and finding activities they want to explore. Friendships between children are obvious and they play in collaborative and friendly groups. Children are able to engage in self-selected free play for prolonged periods during the day.

A priority for the teachers is to build partnerships with children and their families. Relationships with children are warm and positive. Teachers frequently engage children in conversations about their emerging interests and their home lives. Parents are confident and comfortable in the centre and their conversations with teachers are relaxed and cheerful.

Teachers provide many opportunities for children to explore, investigate and test their own theories and those promoted by teachers. There are also many opportunities for children to discuss their activities and make decisions. Meeting times with children during the day are increasingly about children sharing their ideas. They help to strengthen children's confidence and support their investigation about selected topics.

Infants and toddlers settle easily into the lively and busy environment. Teachers work closely with them, paying attention to their beginning language and non-verbal cues. Routines are responsive and cheerfully managed. The day includes opportunities for these children to be outdoors for prolonged periods, and to make choices about their play.

Environments are thoughtfully set up to provoke exploration and include high quality natural resources. Teachers carefully consider ways of supporting children's literacy and numeracy knowledge. Beautiful and interesting resources are stored so as to be easily accessible. Children help to maintain and care for the environment as part of the everyday programmes.

Parents have many opportunities to talk to teachers about their children. Twice yearly formal meetings and day-to-day conversations enable teachers to gather information about children and to respond in programme planning. Teachers also share information about children's time in the centre both on-line and documented other ways.

The formation of a representative parent committee has increased parent participation in the review of policies and procedures, and in decision making about the programmes. This group meets regularly.

There has been a strong focus throughout Bear Park centres on increasing teachers' understanding of and knowledge about bicultural practices. This has included many opportunities for teachers who are more competent and confident in te ao Māori to share with and mentor their peers. There have also been opportunities for professional learning and development from external speakers. This has made a significant difference to the amount of te reo Māori spoken and the recognition of tikanga Māori in the centre.

Teacher keep extensive documentation about children, the programme and self review. Some of this documentation is linked to the over-arching four year strategic plan. This enables teachers each month to review the ways in which they meet the strategic goals. Teachers may find it useful, as part of regular strategic plan review, to deepen their focus on ways to enhance teaching, and learning outcomes for children.

The recently formed pedagogical team, which includes the franchisee, provides ongoing support and advice for Bear Park centres. The team meets regularly to discuss and make decisions about professional development and centre progress. This team sets the direction for the organisation and supports development. The management team recruits, manages and develops teachers' competency well. The strategic placement of teachers ensures support and stronger teamwork to promote positive outcomes for children.

Key Next Steps

Centre managers agree that the focus of ongoing critical reflection could include:

  • creating a stronger, more meaningful emphasis on bicultural practice

  • the effectiveness of current teaching practices for children from diverse cultures

  • strengthening shared leadership as a way of supporting teachers to grow professionally.

Management Assurance on Legal Requirements

Before the review, the staff and management of Bear Park St Heliers 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.

Next ERO Review

When is ERO likely to review the service again?

The next ERO review of Bear Park St Heliers will be in four years.

Graham Randell

Deputy Chief Review Officer Northern

30 June 2016

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 Early Childhood Service

Location

St Heliers, Auckland

Ministry of Education profile number

20017

Licence type

Education & Care Service

Licensed under

Education (Early Childhood Services) Regulations 2008

Number licensed for

60 children, including up to 20 aged under 2

Service roll

74

Gender composition

Boys 38 Girls 36

Ethnic composition

Pākehā

Chinese

other

60

4

10

Percentage of qualified teachers

0-49% 50-79% 80%+

Based on funding rates

80% +

Reported ratios of staff to children

Under 2

1:5

Meets minimum requirements

Over 2

1:6

Better than minimum requirements

Review team on site

May 2016

Date of this report

30 June 2016

Most recent ERO report(s)

 

Education Review

June 2013

Education Review

March 2010

Education Review

February 2007

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 ERO’s Approach to Review in Early Childhood Services.

ERO’s Overall Judgement and Next Review

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:

  • Very well placed – The next ERO review in four years
  • Well placed – The next ERO review in three years
  • Requires further development – The next ERO review within two years
  • Not well placed - The next ERO review in consultation with the Ministry of Education

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.