88-120 College Road, Northcote, Auckland
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Not well placed |
Requires further development |
Well placed |
Very well placed |
ERO's findings that support this overall judgement are summarised below.
Harbourside Kids Childcare Centre, in the grounds of the Harbourside Church, provides for up to 69 children, many of whom come from the surrounding suburbs. Teachers provide programmes in four age-related rooms. There is also a separate space for four-year-old children.
The centre is governed by a charitable trust. A governance board oversees financial aspects of centre operations. Day-to-day management of the centre is the responsibility of the head teacher. Most of the staff are qualified teachers.
The centre has a Christian based philosophy with a strong emphasis on family partnerships. Teachers recognise the value of supporting children to be confident learners and communicators.
Centre leaders have responded well to the ERO 2015 report. They have improved the quality of teacher appraisal and established long-term goals for children's education.
Children are settled and engaged in the programme. They have a sense of belonging and develop friendships with each other. Children play cooperatively, making good use of the resources and experiences available. They transition through the centre based on their age and individual readiness. Teachers work appropriately with external agencies to support children with additional needs
Infants and toddlers enjoy nurturing care and benefit from good adult-to-child ratios. Toddlers are confident to explore and communicate with their teachers. Teachers nurture children's oral language, and their social and self-management skills. The outdoor environment offers further play and exploration for toddlers to develop their mobility and independence.
Teachers have responsive and caring relationships with children and provide a welcoming and attractive environment for families. Many photos of children are displayed. Children engage in activities that teachers provide. It is timely to focus the programme more on child-led play. A greater emphasis could be placed on children following their own ideas and strengths, with adults in a supportive role.
The programme aligns with Te Whāriki, the early childhood curriculum. Teachers are continuing to develop their planning, assessment and evaluation processes. Consideration could now be given to how well the programme is supporting and challenging older children's learning through teachers' open-ended questioning and opportunities for problem solving and complex play.
Interviews with parents enable teachers to find out about their aspirations for their children's learning. Portfolios are an attractive record of children's activities and experiences in the centre. The development of digital portfolios provides opportunities for teachers to evaluate their assessment practices.
Teachers' commitment to bicultural practice is evident in the centre. They incorporate te reo Māori in words, phrases and songs with the children. Displays promote and celebrate the cultures of all children. Some teachers speak with children from diverse cultural backgrounds in their home languages. These approaches support children's sense of identity and their language development.
Centre operations are guided by a sound framework of policies and procedures. Internal evaluation is beginning to contribute to improved learning outcomes for children. Leaders maintain a good relationship with, and receive good support from, the board. A strategic plan outlines long-term goals. Identifying timelines and persons responsible for actions would make planning and internal evaluation more effective.
Centre leaders agree the next key steps include:
reviewing and refining the philosophy and curriculum in response to Te Whāriki 2017
identifying ways to increase opportunities for challenge and complex play particularly for older children
ensuring that internal evaluation is guided by robust evaluative questions and reasoning
examining the effectiveness of teaching practices in promoting positive learning outcomes for children.
Before the review, the staff and management of Harbourside Kids Childcare Centre 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.
The next ERO review of Harbourside Kids Childcare Centre will be in three years.
Violet Tu’uga Stevenson
Director Review and Improvement Services
Te Tai Raki - Northern Region
20 December 2018
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 |
Takapuna, Auckland |
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Ministry of Education profile number |
45312 |
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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 |
69 children, including up to 21 aged under 2 |
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Service roll |
72 |
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Gender composition |
Boys 39 Girls 33 |
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Ethnic composition |
Māori |
1 |
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Percentage of qualified teachers |
80% + |
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Reported ratios of staff to children |
Under 2 |
1:4 |
Better than minimum requirements |
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Over 2 |
1:6 |
Better than minimum requirements |
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Review team on site |
November 2018 |
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Date of this report |
20 December 2018 |
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Most recent ERO report(s) |
Education Review |
March 2015 |
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Education Review |
June 2012 |
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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:
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.
|
Not well placed |
Requires further development |
Well placed |
Very well placed |
ERO's findings that support this overall judgement are summarised below.
Harbourside Kids Childcare Centre is located in the grounds of the Harbourside Church. The centre has a Christian based philosophy with a strong emphasis on family and community. It provides full day and part-time education and care services for children up to five years of age. Two separate areas cater for infants and toddlers, and for older children. Since the 2012 ERO report, the separate licences for infants and toddlers, and preschool children have been merged into one licence.
The centre is run by a charitable trust. A governance board oversees financial aspects of centre operations. Day-to-day management of the centre is the responsibility of the senior teacher. Eighty percent of staff members are qualified, registered teachers.
ERO’s previous report in 2012 recommended that staff continue designing a curriculum that balances teacher led and child initiated programmes. Significant progress has been made in this area. Teachers’ participation in professional development has supported very good improvements to programme planning systems and the assessment of children’s learning.
Children demonstrate a good sense of wellbeing and belonging. Infants and toddlers receive individualised care and attention in a nurturing environment. They are confident to explore and communicate with a variety of adults. Plans to add more shade to the outdoors will enable teachers to further increase the outdoor experiences for younger children.
Older children engage in imaginative and co-operative play for long periods of time. They confidently share their ideas with teachers and other children. They have opportunities to be leaders and to support and mentor their peers. Teachers are responsive to children’s interests. They skilfully ask questions that encourage children to share their thinking and ideas. Teachers use te reo Māori in meaningful ways that allow children to understand and respond.
Staff identify that it is timely to review how well the programme provides for two-year-old children, including the length of mat times. They also recognise that strategies to manage children’s behaviour need to reflect the centre’s positive guidance policy.
Whole team professional development has significantly improved programme planning and assessment systems. Parent/teacher interviews enable teachers to find out about the aspirations that parents have for their child’s learning. Children’s strengths, interests and participation in the programme are clearly shown in attractive learning records. Teachers skilfully identify the learning that happens in the context of children’s play. It could be useful for teachers to refine the way they evaluate group programmes to more consistently focus on improved learning outcomes for children.
The teaching team has worked to develop shared understandings about teaching practices. Team building has been a focus as the roll has grown and new staff employed. Well developed self-review systems enable teachers to identify areas for improvement. This is helping teachers to make positive changes that enhance children’s experiences at the centre. The teaching team is looking at ways to more effectively gather and use feedback from families to improve centre practices.
The board has developed a clear business plan. It details operational goals and future plans for the centre. The board could further improve the way it makes resourcing decisions by having teachers develop long-term goals that focus on educational improvements.
Leaders agree that a review of the teacher appraisal process is a priority. Teacher appraisals should be aligned to the registered teacher criteria. A useful approach could be for teachers to revisit their appraisal goals regularly and evaluate the progress they are making towards achieving them. The board needs to ensure that the senior teacher is appraised annually.
The board chair and senior teacher agree that useful and key next steps include:
Before the review, the staff and management of Harbourside Kids Childcare Centre 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:
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 Harbourside Kids Childcare Centre will be in three years.
Dale Bailey
Deputy Chief Review Officer Northern
13 March 2015
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 |
Takapuna, Auckland |
||
|
Ministry of Education profile number |
45312 |
||
|
Licence type |
Education & Care Service |
||
|
Licensed under |
Education (Early Childhood Services) Regulations 2008 |
||
|
Number licensed for |
60 children, including up to 25 aged under 2 |
||
|
Service roll |
78 |
||
|
Gender composition |
Boys 45 Girls 33 |
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Ethnic composition |
Māori Pākehā Chinese/other Asian Latin American Pacific other |
10 33 18 7 3 7 |
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Percentage of qualified teachers 0-49% 50-79% 80% Based on funding rates |
80% |
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Reported ratios of staff to children |
Under 2 |
1:5 |
Meets minimum requirements |
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Over 2 |
1:8 |
Better than minimum requirements |
|
|
Review team on site |
January 2015 |
||
|
Date of this report |
13 March 2015 |
||
|
Most recent ERO report(s) |
Education Review |
June 2012 |
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:
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.