Busy C's Preschool Lyttelton

Education institution number:
70561
Service type:
Education and Care Service
Definition:
Not Applicable
Total roll:
28
Telephone:
Address:

16 Winchester Street, Lyttelton

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Busy C's Preschool Lyttelton

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 Busy C’s Preschool Lyttelton 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

Busy C's Preschool Lyttelton is a small community-focused and privately owned early childhood service. All kaiako are qualified and registered. A small number of Māori children attend the service. Since the last review leaders have continued to build on existing good practice by strengthening appraisal and refining aspects of the strategic and annual plan.

3 Summary of findings

Tamariki are well supported as confident and competent learners in a rich play-based curriculum. They benefit from a broad and responsive programme that clearly aligns with Te Whāriki, the early childhood curriculum, and is consistent with the philosophy and valued learning priorities.

Kaiako intentionally build warm and responsive relationships with tamariki and their parents. The slow-paced curriculum in the under-two’s area is highly responsive to the needs and preferences of infants and toddlers.  A strong sense of wellbeing and belonging is evident.

Manaakitanga and whanaungatanga are fostered and extended to include the wider community. Tamariki are encouraged to work together and show kindness to each other in their daily practices. Te reo me ngā tikanga Māori is meaningfully integrated into the daily curriculum.

Leaders and kaiako are highly inclusive and actively promote a mana enhancing culture for tamariki and their whānau. They treat tamariki with respect and dignity. Parents and whānau are well supported and have multiple opportunities to contribute to their tamaiti learning.

Assessment information provides children with feedback that acknowledges their learning and celebrates their success. Kaiako successfully integrate the learning outcomes from Te Whāriki through tamariki assessment documentation. Learning and progress is identified over time in relation to these outcomes.

Leaders are actively engaged with the local Kahui Ako and wider learning community. Effective evaluative leadership, both internally and in the wider education sector is evident. This results in improved outcomes for tamariki. Leaders and kaiako are using evaluation to look closely at groups of children and identify what is and is not working and for whom.

4 Improvement actions

Busy C’s Preschool Lyttelton will include the following actions in its Quality Improvement Planning:

  • continue to use internal evaluation to identify and respond to possible inequities.

5 Management Assurance on Legal Requirements

Before the review, the staff and management of Busy C’s Preschool Lyttelton 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.

Dr Lesley Patterson
Director Review and Improvement Services (Southern)
Southern Region | Te Tai Tini

25 October 2022 

6 About the Early Childhood Service

Early Childhood Service Name

Busy C’s Preschool Lyttelton

Profile Number

 70561

Location

Christchurch

Service type

Education and care service

Number licensed for

30 children, including up to 9 aged under 2

Percentage of qualified teachers

80-99%

Service roll

41

Review team on site

May 2022

Date of this report

25 October 2022

Most recent ERO report(s)

Education Review, March 2019; Education Review, May 2013

Busy C's Preschool Lyttelton - 13/03/2019

1 Evaluation of Busy C's Preschool Lyttelton

How well placed is Busy C's Preschool Lyttelton to promote positive learning outcomes for children?

Not well placed

Requires further development

Well placed

Very well placed

Busy C's Preschool Lyttelton is well placed to promote positive learning outcomes for children.

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

Background

Busy C's Preschool Lyttelton is a small, well established and privately owned early learning service. In 2017 the preschool relocated to a new site on a former primary school property. A new head teacher was appointed in 2016. All kaiako are fully qualified and registered teachers. They provide care and early childhood education for children from birth to school age.

Since the 2013 ERO review, leaders and kaiako, with the support of external expertise, have made sound progress in developing the quality of assessment, planning, internal evaluation and bicultural practices.

The preschool's philosophy is underpinned by valued learning outcomes for tamariki that reflect bicultural concepts and Te Whāriki 2017 The Early Childhood Education Curriculum. Leaders and kaiako value Māori as tangata whenua, Te Tiriti o Waitangi, and ako (sharing of knowledge). The preschool is an enviroschool which promotes sustainable practices and learning about the natural world.

The Review Findings

Leaders and kaiako foster respectful relationships and a positive sense of belonging and wellbeing for tamariki (children), parents and whānau. The home language, culture and identity of families are valued and respected. Kaiako primary-care practices provide continuity of care and communication with individual tamariki and families. Personalised processes support successful transitions into and within the preschool, and onto school.

Tamariki benefit from the provision of a rich bicultural curriculum within the preschool and local area. Te ao Māori is highly valued and well integrated within a localised curriculum that reflects the cultural narrative of the area and carefully considered partnerships with the community.

Kaiako have high expectations for all tamariki, who are seen as capable and competent learners. Social learning and leadership skills are fostered through ako and tuakana teina relationships where tamariki are encouraged to take responsibility for themselves and to care for others and the environment. Tamariki with additional needs are well supported within an inclusive and caring culture. Infants and toddlers benefit from continuity of care and flexible, predictable, child-led and well-paced routines and curriculum.

Kaiako establish learning-focused partnerships with tamariki. They are responsive to the individual interests, strengths and capabilities of tamariki. Kaiako promote a thoughtful balance between knowledge building, dispositional learning and links to the primary school key competencies. Tamariki are actively involved in a wide range of authentic learning experiences that capture their imagination and provoke their curiosity and creativity. Literacy, numeracy and the arts are well integrated in ways that are meaningful for tamariki. Parents are well informed through purposeful learning displays and well written learning records that detail the progress tamariki make in relation to valued learning.

Strong pedagogical leadership and targeted professional development are having a positive impact on bicultural practices, assessment, planning and evaluation. The individual skills and knowledge of staff are valued and well used. Emphasis is given to developing reflective practices that build on leadership and teacher capabilities. There is a systematic approach to collaborative internal evaluation that results in ongoing improvement and positive outcomes for children.

Key Next Steps

Leaders and kaiako, with the support of external expertise, have developed a number of new processes to support the effective operation of the service. The key next steps are to:

  • strengthen appraisal practices to more closely align with the Education Council requirements

  • further refine aspects of strategic and annual planning to make centre priorities more explicit.

Management Assurance on Legal Requirements

Before the review, the staff and management of Busy C's Preschool Lyttelton 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.

Alan Wynyard

Director Review and Improvement Services Southern

Southern Region

13 March 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 Early Childhood Service

Location

Christchurch

Ministry of Education profile number

70561

Licence type

Education & Care Service

Licensed under

Education (Early Childhood Services) Regulations 2008

Number licensed for

30 children, including up to 9 aged under 2

Service roll

40

Gender composition

Boys 16 ; Girls 24

Ethnic composition

Māori
Pākehā
Other ethnicities

6
31
3

Percentage of qualified teachers

0-49% 50-79% 80%+

Based on funding rates

80% +

Reported ratios of staff to children

Under 2

1:4

Better than minimum requirements

Over 2

1:8

Better than minimum requirements

Review team on site

December 2018

Date of this report

13 March 2019

Most recent ERO report(s)

Education Review

May 2013

Education Review

March 2010

Education Review

April 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

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.

Busy C's Preschool Lyttelton - 17/05/2013

1 Evaluation of the Service

How well placed is the service to promote positive outcomes for children?

Children’s wellbeing and sense of belonging are strongly supported at the centre. Improving aspects of planning, assessment and self review would put the centre in a stronger position to extend and promote positive learning outcomes for children.

Context

Busy C’s Preschool is located in the grounds of a primary school in Lyttelton. Infants to school-age children from a wide geographical area attend the centre. Children and their teachers regularly use the facilities in the adjoining school grounds. Teachers use the local harbour environment to extend children’s learning experiences and enjoyment in their local area. They provide a strong programme of support for children’s transition to school.

The service provider and staff have responded sensitively and proactively to the needs of the children and their families following the Canterbury earthquakes. Parents speak highly of the care and support their children receive at the centre.

The centre will be affected by the planned merger of the two Lyttelton schools at the end of 2013. It has been advised by the Ministry of Education (MOE) that it can remain on its current site until 2016. Since the on-site stage of the review, the centre has met the documentation requirements of the Education (Early Childhood Services) Regulations 2008.

The 2010 ERO Education Review report identified assessment and self review as areas requiring further development. Although progress has been made regarding some aspects of self review and assessment, these remain areas for ongoing improvement.

Review Findings

Teachers’ relationships with children are respectful, warm and nurturing. Children are encouraged to participate in the programme in ways that build creativity and cooperation.

Teachers take care of and have responsibility for particular children. This primary-caregiver approach provides continuity that contributes to the confidence and sense of security children show.

The programme is planned around children’s interests and provides them with a range of interesting and worthwhile experiences that benefit their learning. These include:

  • learning about and caring for the environment in sustainable ways
  • opportunities to explore and make discoveries in the centre and the local area
  • using literacy and numeracy knowledge and skills in their play
  • integrating te reo and tikanga Māori so that children hear and use the Māori language often.

Teachers recognise and value children’s different strengths, needs and capabilities. They use children’s home languages during the programme and together with children are learning sign language to recognise its importance as an official language of New Zealand and to support a child with hearing loss. The supervisor and staff have a close relationship with external agencies to provide further support for children with special needs.

Teachers have made good use of a review of the outdoor area to make changes to better meet children’s learning needs.

Parents are kept well informed about their children’s involvement in learning activities. Their views about the centre are welcomed and responded to positively.

The supervisor provides teachers with good support and direction for ongoing improvements to the centre programme and practices. She has worked effectively with teachers to maintain positive relationships with the community. Teachers have good opportunities to share leadership and use their strengths and interests to extend children’s learning experiences.

The service provider works closely with the supervisor and staff to support programme developments and the operation of the centre.

Key Next Steps

The service provider and staff should now review how well the indoor areas are planned and used to promote children’s learning. In particular, this review should investigate how well all aspects of the philosophy are evident in the centre programme and practices.

Although some progress has been made with assessment and planning, teachers have yet to develop consistent practices in identifying children’s learning or the specific ways they will extend this learning. Children’s learning would also benefit from increased opportunities for parents and children to contribute to records of learning.

In order to sustain and extend current improvements, the service provider and staff need to continue to strengthen the quality of self review. The centre now needs to develop:

clearer expectations, guidelines and procedures to guide the review of all aspects of the centre’s performance

long and short-term plans that identify goals, priorities and indicators of success for ongoing improvements to teaching and learning.

Staff have a range of opportunities to provide feedback about the centre programme and operations. As a good employer, the service provider intends to give staff regular opportunities to comment anonymously on their working environment and relationships.

2 Legal Requirements

Management Assurance on Legal Requirements

Before the review, the management of Busy C's Preschool completed an ERO Centre Assurance Statement and Self-Audit Checklist. In these documents they attested that they select ‘have’ or ‘have not’ taken all reasonable steps to meet their legal obligations related to:

  • administration
  • health, safety and welfare
  • personnel management
  • financial and property management.

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.

3 Next Review

When is ERO likely to review the early childhood service again?

ERO is likely to carry out the next review in three years.

Graham Randell

National Manager Review Services Southern Region

17 May 2013

Information about the Early Childhood Service

Location

Lyttelton

Ministry of Education profile number

70561

Licence type

Education and Care Service

Licensed under

Education (Early Childhood Centres) Regulations 1998

Number licensed for

34 children, including up to 10 aged under two

Service roll

50

Gender composition

Girls 28; Boys 22

Ethnic composition

NZ European/Pākehā

Māori

European

Asian

41

4

3

2

Percentage of qualified teachers

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

March 2013

Date of this report

17 May 2013

Most recent ERO report(s)

Education Review

Education Review

Education Review

March 2010

April 2007

September 2004

General Information about Early Childhood Reviews

About ERO Reviews

The Education Review Office (ERO) is the New Zealand government department that reviews schools and early childhood services throughout New Zealand.

Review focus

ERO's education reviews in early childhood services focus on the factors that contribute to positive learning outcomes for children. ERO evaluates how well placed the service is to make and sustain improvements for the benefit of all children at the service. To reach these findings ERO considers:

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 self review and partnerships with parents and whānau.

Review Coverage

ERO reviews do not cover every aspect of service performance and each ERO report may cover different issues. The aim is to provide information on aspects that are central to positive outcomes for children and useful to the service.