561 Great South Road, Manukau, Auckland
View on map|
Not well placed |
Requires further development |
Well placed |
Very well placed |
BestStart Manukau 1 is well placed to promote positive learning outcomes for children.
ERO's findings that support this overall judgement are summarised below.
BestStart Manukau 1 provides full-day education and care for up to 50 children, including 20 children up two years of age. It is one of two licensed centres that operate on the same site. The adjacent centre, Manukau 2, provides sessional and full-day education and care for children from two to five years. Both centres are managed by one centre manager. The same administrative and management systems serve the two centres.
The centre is part of the BestStart charitable trust. The organisation has re-branded all its early learning services. BestStart provides an overarching governance and management framework to support operations and curriculum delivery in individual centres. Business Managers (BM) and Professional Services Managers (PSM) facilitate staff professional development and provide strategic guidance.
The curriculum is underpinned by the principles of Te Whāriki, the early childhood curriculum, bicultural practices and partnerships with parents/whānau. The centre philosophy is based on the belief that children learn best through professional, responsive and respectful relationships. Cultural diversity is valued and Te Tiriti o Waitangi is acknowledged.
A new centre manager was appointed in 2017. She is establishing shared staff understandings about effective teaching and learning practices. Recently, a new head teacher was appointed. She oversees the management of curriculum and mentors staff in the centre.
This review was part of a cluster of 10 reviews in the BestStart Upper North Island region.
Children and their families are welcomed and have a strong sense of belonging. They are provided with good opportunities to learn through play. Children are self-directed learners who exercise choice and decision making. They enjoy their friendships and play cooperatively with others.
Infants and toddlers experience a calm and unhurried programme. They receive very good care and are well supported through nurturing practices. Children are quick to settle into the daily programme and know the routine of the centre. They are encouraged to be independent learners and have opportunities to learn and develop through exploring their environment.
Teachers know the children well as learners. They engage children in respectful and responsive conversations to help them connect to their centre experience. Teachers celebrate children's cultures. They respond to children's interests, strengths and abilities. Teachers use both digital and paper form to record children's portfolios.
Teachers encourage parents to be part of their children's play and learning. The centre works closely with agencies and parents to best support children with additional needs.
Children play in a spacious environment underpinned by literacy and numeracy. The spacious environment offers a variety of learning opportunities that children can use to extend their play. Teachers provide a curriculum that incorporates the emergent interests of children and develops their learning dispositions.
Good links are being established with local schools to support a seamless transition to school through regular visits and meetings. Parents are well informed, so children can feel confident transitioning to their new school.
Teachers use waiata, karakia and te reo Māori with children during the programme. Visual displays reflect and enhance the bicultural curriculum. The centre values children's cultures through cultural performances, sharing food and celebrations as important aspects of the centre life. Teachers and centre staff play an important part in these celebrations. Parents/whānau are actively involved in cultural events.
Good systems for internal evaluation guide the teaching and learning, which result in improved practice to promote positive outcomes for children. Professional learning and development is a focus for building teacher capability. This has impacted positively on teaching practices.
National, regional and centre operations are guided by strategic and annual plans, and a shared vision which monitor quality and promote ongoing improvement. These are linked to BestStart strategic goals, which promote a sense of belonging to a wider learning community and support more widespread collaboration amongst teaching teams. Professional learning and development have a focus for building capabilities and has impacted positively on teaching practices. The service provides opportunities for leadership within the team.
Leaders agree that key next steps for the centre's development include continuing to strengthen:
children's language, culture and identity through their individual learning documentation
teaching practices by using reflective and collaborative evaluation to follow up from curriculum planning and enactment
the consistency of learning stories and individual assessment and planning
bicultural understandings in the programme.
Agreed next steps for the organisation are to continue to strengthen:
bicultural understanding and practice
risk analysis management systems, processes and procedures for excursions
appraisal processes to support teachers’ continuum of professional knowledge and practice.
Before the review, the staff and management of BestStart Manukau 1 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:
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.
Steve Tanner
Director Review and Improvement Services (Northern)
Northern Region - Te Tai Raki
8 May 2020
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 |
Manukau, Auckland |
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Ministry of Education profile number |
25337 |
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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 |
50 children, including up to 20 aged under 2 years |
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Service roll |
51 |
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Gender composition |
Girls 27 Boys 24 |
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Ethnic composition |
Māori |
12 |
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Percentage of qualified teachers |
80% + |
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Reported ratios of staff to children |
Under 2 |
1:5 |
Meets minimum requirements |
|
Over 2 |
1:10 |
Meets minimum requirements |
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Review team on site |
January 2020 |
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Date of this report |
8 May 2020 |
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Most recent ERO report(s) |
Education Review |
April 2016 |
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|
Education Review |
December 2012 |
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Education Review |
November 2009 |
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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:
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.
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.
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.
Edukids Manukau Centre 1 provides full day education and care for up to 50 children from three months to five years of age. The centre operates across two rooms catering for over two and under two year age groups. It is one of two licensed centres that operate on the same site, under Best Start Educare Limited. The adjacent centre provides sessional programmes for children over two years of age. The same administrative and management systems serve the two centres.
The centre philosophy promotes partnerships with family and whānau and the cultural beliefs they bring. It also values play and exploration as children's way to learn through having opportunities to create, imagine and make discoveries. Teachers plan to review their philosophy in 2016 to ensure it aligns with indicators of best teaching practice.
Since the last ERO review, there have been significant changes in governance and leadership. A new professional services manager, business manager, centre manager and head teacher have all been recently appointed. The centre has a high level of qualified teachers whose ethnic diversity matches well with the community and family cultures.
In March 2015, the ownership of the centre was transferred to the Wright Family Foundation and renamed Best Start Educare Limited. Edukids Manukau Centre 1 is supported by the policies and procedures of this provider. Active support of Best Start personnel informs and supports ongoing service development.
In 2012 ERO reported the settled tone in the centre and children enjoying positive, respectful relationships with adults and each other. ERO also noted the need for teachers to extend children's learning and to monitor the impact of improvements made as a result of review findings. Ongoing leadership and staff changes have meant that these areas continue to be areas for development.
Children are generally happy and settled in the centre. They have trusting relationships with most teachers and are developing friendships with their peers. Toddlers up to two years old are closely supported by teachers who maintain a calm pace for children to lead their learning and explore the physical environment. All children benefit from an environment where first language and cultural values are celebrated through displays, mat times, waiata, karakia and special events.
Teachers encourage children to explore resources and become involved in play. They often join small groups asking questions and supporting their play. Children are developing a sense of belonging as they take turns and work alongside others. Teachers provide support for children who speak other languages at home, providing a sense of security as they learn English. The challenge for some teachers is to avoid directing children too much and focus more on encouraging their independent thinking and curiosity.
The programme reflects what teachers notice about children's interests and dispositions. They identify activities to support topics of interest. By focusing more on what children's interests mean for their learning and recording this, teachers could deepen and enrich their programme planning and support children's purposeful engagement in extended learning. There could also be more opportunities for children and parents to share their interests and ideas from home and have these reflected in the programme. This could help create a more meaningful partnership and increase the contribution of parents and whānau to their children's learning.
Records of children's learning are visible in displays and accessible for children and their whānau through printed portfolios and e-portfolios. Teachers have made good progress in using learning stories to record children's developing social relationships and their participation in activities. As they further develop their assessment strategies, teachers should become more confident in recording continuity in children's learning and be more responsive to parent and whānau voice.
Centre managers and teachers are working towards better documentation of their self review and more in-depth thinking about the effectiveness of their practice in promoting positive outcomes for children. They recognise the need to extend the rigor of their self-review practices.
The management team is very new. Managers recognise the importance of providing more responsive leadership to build the centre's professional practice, and to establish a shared understanding among leaders and teachers of the service's philosophy, vision and goals.
Centre managers agree that key next steps for centre development include:
ongoing curriculum development that will provide more robust guidance for teachers to actively extend children's learning
exploring strategies for teachers to challenge children's thinking and add complexity to their play
strengthening self-review processes so that teachers become more critically reflective and the outcomes of reviews are better used to guide centre development
reviewing the centre's readiness for school programme and ensure it is appropriate for children's stages of development.
ERO recommends that the new centre manager focuses on helping teachers to engage with children in ways that will foster curiosity and encourage collaborative play and problem solving.
Before the review, the staff and management of Edukids Manukau Centre 1 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 Edukids Manukau Centre 1 will be in three years.
Graham Randell
Deputy Chief Review Officer Northern
15 April 2016
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 |
Manukau, Auckland |
||
|
Ministry of Education profile number |
25337 |
||
|
Licence type |
Education & Care Service |
||
|
Licensed under |
Education (Early Childhood Services) Regulations 2008 |
||
|
Number licensed for |
50 children, including up to 20 aged under 2 |
||
|
Service roll |
52 |
||
|
Gender composition |
Boys 34 Girls 18 |
||
|
Ethnic composition |
Māori Pākehā Samoan Indian Cook Island Māori Tongan Vietnamese Chinese Fijian |
13 13 9 6 4 3 2 1 1 |
|
|
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 |
1:10 |
Meets minimum requirements |
|
|
Review team on site |
January 2016 |
||
|
Date of this report |
15 April 2016 |
||
|
Most recent ERO report(s) |
Education Review |
December 2012 |
|
|
Education Review |
November 2009 |
||
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.
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.