90 Parton Road, Papamoa, Tauranga
View on mapERO’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.
Regulatory standards |
ERO’s judgement |
|
Curriculum |
Meeting |
|
Premises and facilities |
Meeting |
|
Health and safety |
Meeting |
|
Governance, management and administration |
Meeting |
At the time of the review, ERO found the service was taking reasonable steps to meet regulatory standards.
BestStart Parton Road is a purpose built, education and care service governed and managed by Best Start Educare Limited. Children play and learn across three age-based rooms and share a large outdoor play space. The teaching team is led by a centre manager and supported by an area manager.
The service curriculum is informed by assessment, planning and evaluation that demonstrate an understanding of children’s learning and interests. The centre is inclusive of a wide range of children’s needs. Children are provided with opportunities to enhance and extend their learning and development in a positive learning environment.
An annual management plan guides operation. The premises and facilities are resourced to provide for the learning and abilities of the children attending.
Next steps include:
The next ERO review is likely to be an Akarangi | Quality Evaluation.
Shelley Booysen
Acting Director Review and Improvement Services (Central)
Central Region | Te Tai Pūtahi Nui
8 February 2022
|
Early Childhood Service Name |
BestStart Parton Road |
|
Profile Number |
40271 |
|
Location |
Tauranga |
|
Service type |
Education and care service |
|
Number licensed for |
80 children, including up to 15 aged under 2. |
|
Percentage of qualified teachers |
80-99% |
|
Service roll |
58 |
|
Ethnic composition |
Māori 27, NZ European/Pākehā 17, Indian 10, other ethnic groups 4. |
|
Review team on site |
December 2021 |
|
Date of this report |
8 February 2022 |
|
Most recent ERO report(s) |
Education Review, October 2019; Education Review, May 2016. |
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.
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:
As part of an Akanuku | Assurance Review ERO assesses whether the regulated 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:
As part of an Akanuku | Assurance Review ERO also gathers and records evidence through:
|
Not well placed |
Requires further development |
Well placed |
Very well placed |
BestStart Parton Road is well placed to promote positive learning outcomes for children.
ERO's findings that support this overall judgement are summarised below.
BestStart Parton Road is situated in Papamoa, Tauranga and has been re-licensed for 80 children including up to 16 children under the age of two years. At the time of this review 72 children were enrolled, including 13 who identified as Māori. There are also children from a range of other ethnic groups. The purpose-built centre is licensed to provide all-day education and care in two age-based rooms and a discovery room accessible for the service's older children.
The centre's recently reviewed philosophy states that "teachers believe in building caring and inclusive learning environments, where each child's knowledge is extended to its full potential". Teachers work alongside children to learn from each other and support tuakana teina relationships.
Since the May 2016 ERO report there have been significant staff changes and the appointment of a new centre manager and head teacher. A professional service manager and business manager provide support for the centre.
The service is operated by BestStart, a charitable organisation owned by the Wright Family Foundation. Since the last ERO review of this centre a new Chief Executive Officer has been appointed. Regional and local professional service and business managers oversee the central North Island BestStart centres. Their vision is to work in partnership with families, whānau, teachers and communities to enable children to achieve their learning potential.
This review was part of a cluster of 15 reviews in the BestStart organisation.
The centre belongs to the Tauranga Peninsula Kāhui Ako.
Teachers have positive and responsive relationships with children. They use a range of teaching strategies to engage children in their learning. Teachers extend children’s thinking through in-depth discussions and open-ended questioning. Literacy and numeracy are naturally integrated in an environment that encourages critical thought, wondering and creativity.
Teachers maintain a calm and slow pace, supported by personalised routines for individual children up to two years of age. Children have easy access to an environment, that is well resourced and encourages exploration. Responsive care-giving is building a sense of belonging for these learners.
Māori concepts, knowledge, te reo Māori, values and beliefs are included in the curriculum. This supports Māori children to be affirmed in their language, culture and identity. This also provides all children with an understanding of the bicultural heritage of Aotearoa. Teachers provide regular opportunities for children to make sense of the natural, social, physical and material worlds. A next step is to continue to develop the localised curriculum.
Children’s sense of belonging is nurtured during transitions in to and within the centre, and when moving to school.
The service's curriculum effectively promotes positive learning outcomes for children. Children with additional needs benefit from an inclusive environment. Individual planning and assessment are suitably developed and include parent aspirations and individual children’s goals and next steps.
Leaders demonstrate a strong commitment to teaching and learning and foster collaborative ways of working. Reflective leadership is contributing to positive centre development, enhancing learning for teachers and promoting opportunities for children.
Strong systems and processes guide centre operation. Self review has an improvement focus and includes ongoing consultation with families and whānau. A next step is for leaders is to support teachers to build their understanding and use of systematic evaluation practices. Internal evaluations should clearly measure and monitor the impact of practices against intended outcomes for children.
There is clear alignment between regional strategic direction and centre annual plans. The appraisal process assists teachers to inquire into and strengthen their practice. This process is supported by regular and ongoing coaching and mentoring. Several initiatives to remove barriers to education, and support children's wellness, promote positive learning outcomes for all children.
ERO and centre management agree that leaders continue to:
internal evaluation to know the impact of actions on improved outcomes for learners
build the new team culture
develop the local curriculum.
Before the review, the staff and management of BestStart Parton Road 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.
Phil Cowie
Director Review and Improvement Services Central
Central Region
31 October 2019
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 |
Tauranga |
||
|
Ministry of Education profile number |
40271 |
||
|
Licence type |
Education & Care Service |
||
|
Licensed under |
Education (Early Childhood Services) Regulations 2008 |
||
|
Number licensed for |
80 children, including up to 16 aged under 2 |
||
|
Service roll |
72 |
||
|
Gender composition |
Female 36 Male 36 |
||
|
Ethnic composition |
Māori |
13 |
|
|
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 |
September 2019 |
||
|
Date of this report |
31 October 2019 |
||
|
Most recent ERO report(s) |
Education Review |
May 2016 |
|
|
Education Review |
February 2013 |
||
|
Education Review |
April 2010 |
||
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.