Johnsonville Childcare

Education institution number:
60270
Service type:
Education and Care Service
Definition:
Not Applicable
Total roll:
77
Telephone:
Address:

34-36 Bannister Avenue, Johnsonville, Wellington

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Johnsonville Childcare

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.

Outcome Indicators

(What the service knows about outcomes for learners)


Whakatō Emerging

Ngā Akatoro Domains

 

Learning Conditions
Organisational Conditions

Whāngai Establishing
Whāngai Establishing

ERO’s judgements for Johnsonville Childcare are as follows:

2 Context of the Service

Johnsonville Childcare is one of three early childhood services privately owned by the Wellington Childcare group. The owner and centre director oversee the service. A centre manager is responsible for the day -to -day operation of the centre. Nearly a quarter of the culturally diverse roll identify as Māori and there are a small number of children of Pacific heritage. Progress towards the key next steps identified in ERO’s 2019 report is ongoing.

3 Summary of findings

Children play and learn in a play-based curriculum based on the principles and strands of Te Whāriki, the early childhood curriculum. Teachers use intentional teaching strategies that support children to express their emotions and cooperatively work with and alongside others. They provide a wide range of experiences that reflect children’s interests. Children with additional needs are well supported.

Infants benefit from warm responsive relationships with teachers. They play and learn in a calm, purposefully designed environment which is separate from older children. Teachers’ close one-to-one interactions including when undertaking care routines, nurtures  infants’ and toddlers’ emotional wellbeing and helps develop their oral language and physical skills,

Teachers have established respectful relationships with parents. Whānau have regular opportunities to contribute to the curriculum. Their aspirations are sought, and they are invited to lead cultural events. An increased focus on sharing information and insights about learning is required for teachers to develop learning focussed partnerships with whānau.

Continued progress is evident in implementing a bicultural curriculum, however leaders and teachers are yet to deepen their understanding about how to promote success for Māori children as Māori. It is timely to consider involving whānau Māori, and in partnership with them define what educational success looks like for Māori learners in the centre.

The service is at the beginning stages of using the learning outcomes in Te Whāriki, the early childhood curriculum in children’s learning documentation. Children’s progress over time in relation to the learning outcomes is not yet evident. Developing all teachers’ shared understanding of using the learning outcomes to plan for and assess children’s learning is now required.

There is a useful framework in place for evaluation for improvement. However there has been limited progress in building a shared understanding of internal evaluation as recommended in ERO’s 2019 report. Further work is required to build teachers’ capability and capacity in internal evaluation with a focus on a wider range of evidence to inform sense making.

4 Improvement actions

Johnsonville Childcare will include the following actions in its Quality Improvement Planning:

  • further explore the learning outcomes in Te Whāriki, and use these to plan for and assess children’s learning

  • involve whānau Māori to define what educational success looks like for Māori learners in this service

  • build teacher’s capability and capacity to undertake effective internal evaluation with a focus on a wider range of evidence to inform sense making.

5 Management Assurance on Legal Requirements

Before the review, the staff and management of Johnsonville Childcare 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

5 December 2022 

6 About the Early Childhood Service

Early Childhood Service Name

Johnsonville Childcare

Profile Number

60270

Location

Wellington

Service type

Education and care service

Number licensed for

75 children, including up to 25 aged under 2

Percentage of qualified teachers

80-99%

Service roll

81

Review team on site

July 2022

Date of this report

5 December 2022

Most recent ERO report(s)

Education Review, May 2016; Education Review, June 2019

Johnsonville Childcare - 07/06/2019

1 Evaluation of Johnsonville Childcare

How well placed is Johnsonville Childcare to promote positive learning outcomes for children?

Not well placed

Requires further development

Well placed

Very well placed

Johnsonville Childcare is well placed to promote positive learning outcomes for children.

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

Background

Johnsonville Childcare is a multicultural service that provides all-day education and care for children aged six months to five years, in two separate areas. It is licensed for 75 children, including 25 up to the age of two. Of the 84 children currently enrolled, 11 are Māori and six are Pacific. The philosophy promotes a holistic approach to learning, working alongside families and whānau.

The privately owned centre is part of the Wellington Childcare group. The licensee and a centre director oversee the service, with day-to-day operation delegated to a centre manager. Room leaders have responsibility for the curriculum. Most teachers are fully qualified, with others working towards full certification.

The May 2016 ERO report identified many areas for continued development to improve outcomes for children. These included: defining expectations of quality interactions; strengthening assessment and planning; building evaluation capacity; and improving the appraisal process. Steady progress is evident in all of these areas.

The Review Findings

Children are settled and confident. They experience warm, positive relationships with teachers. Belonging and wellbeing are purposefully and successfully promoted. Family involvement is welcomed. Children's diverse home languages are valued and used.

Infants and toddlers benefit from a calm, child-led approach. Teachers gather and use information from parents about home routines, and are respectful of children's preferences. Warm, unhurried care moments are valued as relationship-building opportunities.

The learning environments are inviting and well-resourced. There are many opportunities for creative, expressive and imaginative exploration. Social competence and respect for peers is effectively promoted.

Successful transition processes are supported through useful communication between families and centre personnel. A planned programme for four year olds supports their transition to school. Sensitive transitions into and through the centre promote children’s wellbeing.

A high level of commitment to bicultural practice is apparent. Teachers value te reo Māori and integrate this meaningfully into the programme. The languages and symbols of children’s cultural backgrounds, including the diversity of Pacific heritages, are visible within the environment. Teachers view each family and its knowledge of their child as an integral part of the service’s learning community. ERO affirms centre plans to consult with whānau Māori about ways to further localise practices for their children.

Teachers are increasingly working with the goals, dispositions and learning outcomes of Te Whāriki, the early childhood curriculum. Planning practices support children to understand and contribute to decisions about their learning. Routines are consistently implemented giving children a sense of security in being able to predict what will happen next. This was particularly evident in the programme for four year olds.

Detailed observations in learning portfolios of children’s play and interactions celebrate their strengths, interests and at times show their progress over time. Teachers should make better use of their good knowledge of children, their cultural contexts, and their parents’ aspirations, to plan, enact and evaluate targeted strategies for individuals. This should be clearly evident in documentation.

A suitable framework for review and evaluation has been developed. Formal and spontaneous reviews are undertaken with the latter responsive to both internal and external events. The leadership team is aware that internal evaluation requires further strengthening to ensure shared understandings and consistent implementation of each stage of the process. Teachers confidently engage in discussion and debate that challenges and informs improvements to practice.

Recent improvements to the appraisal system provide an increased focus on developing practice to improve outcomes for children. Appropriate professional learning opportunities and ongoing collegial discussions progress centre goals.

Collaborative ways of working are fostered. Leaders and teachers willingly share their knowledge and are encouraged to work to their strengths. An affirming team culture supports teachers to focus on promoting positive outcomes for children.

Strengthened organisational systems and processes support the operation of the service. The useful internal audit form should be used to better monitor health and safety requirements.

Key Next Steps

Centre Leaders agree to continue to:

  • strengthen assessment documentation

  • build a shared understanding of evaluation

  • embed children’s culture, language and identity in assessment, planning and evaluation processes

  • develop links with the wider Māori community to extend te reo me ngā tikanga practice.

Management Assurance on Legal Requirements

Before the review, the staff and management of Johnsonville Childcare 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.

In order to improve practice the service provider should ensure that all aspects of forms required for health and safety, particularly medicine administration and excursions, are consistently completed.

Alan Wynyard

Director Review and Improvement Services Southern

Southern Region

7 June 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

Wellington

Ministry of Education profile number

60270

Licence type

Education & Care Service

Licensed under

Education (Early Childhood Services) Regulations 2008

Number licensed for

75 children, including up to 25 aged under 2

Service roll

84

Gender composition

Boys 43, Girls 41

Ethnic composition

Māori
NZ European/Pākehā
Chinese
Indian
Pacific
Filipino
Other ethnic groups

11
25
16
8
6
4
14

Percentage of qualified teachers

80% +

Reported ratios of staff to children

Under 2

1:4

Better than minimum requirements

Over 2

1:9

Better than minimum requirements

Review team on site

April 2019

Date of this report

7 June 2019

Most recent ERO report(s)

 

Education Review

May 2016

Education Review

June 2013

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.

Johnsonville Childcare - 10/05/2016

1 Evaluation of Johnsonville Childcare

How well placed is Johnsonville Childcare 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

Johnsonville Childcare is an all-day centre and is one of three in the Wellington area owned by the same management company. The centre is arranged in two areas, with separate outdoor spaces to specifically cater for the younger and older children. There are two area leaders and nine other qualified teachers. The day-to-day operation of the service is overseen by a team leader.

Since the June 2013 ERO report Johnsonville Childcare 2 and the adjoining centre, Johnsonville Childcare 1 have merged under the present licence. It is now licensed for a maximum of 75 children at any one time, with 25 up to two years of age. The roll includes Māori, Pacific, Chinese, Filipino, Indian and Pākehā learners.

The philosophy is strongly underpinned by a focus on respect for children and their whānau, and encouraging children to take responsibility for their learning and environment.

An external consultant, in place at the time of the previous ERO review, continues to provide support to develop management and leadership capabilities. Centre staff have participated in a range of suitable professional development to strengthen systems and practices.

Centre management has responded positively to addressing the areas for improvement outlined in the previous report. Although progress has been made, the key next steps continue to require further development.

The Review Findings

Children experience positive and respectful relationships with staff. They take the lead in their play and are highly engaged in spontaneous and planned activities. Teachers use a range of teaching strategies and practices that respond to interests and strengths. They effectively support and guide children to achieve their goals.

There is a positive and calm tone in the centre. Children use a range of appropriate resources to engage in active play. The newly refurbished outdoor play area for the older children provides opportunities for physical challenge. Mathematics and literacy experiences are successfully promoted in the programme. Teachers seek and value whānau contributions, sharing information with them in a variety of ways.

Responsive care is consistently evident, particularly in the nursery area for children aged up to two years. The planned review to establish a separate philosophy should be useful to guide teachers' practice for this age group. Teachers need to continue to build specific skills and knowledge related to infants and toddlers.

Children's diversity is respected and celebrated. Staff are inclusive and the service enjoys a high level of parental involvement in activities and events. How well te ao Māori is reflected in the curriculum continues to be an area requiring further development. ERO affirms the plan to provide professional development that builds staff capability in responding to Māori learners. Including Tātaiako: Cultural Competencies for Teachers of Māori Learners as part of the appraisal process should support this planned development.

Curriculum planning and evaluating its effectiveness need improving. Limited progress has been made in response to the previous ERO report that identified these areas for development. Teachers and leaders should continue to strengthen their understanding of assessment and planning, and the impact of teaching practices on children's learning.

Children's portfolios are an attractive record of their experiences at the centre. Recent review has assisted leaders and teachers to clarify the purpose and content of learning stories about children. Recently-developed guidance should improve their recording of learning and progress.

An external provider has effectively supported leadership development. The team leader is growing her capacity to make curriculum decisions and manage personnel. Continued support is necessary to further strengthen capability in these areas. Building leadership effectiveness across the centre is also a next step.

Systems are in place that support staff to improve their practice. Teachers collaborate and share good practice. The appraisal process should be further strengthened to improve goal setting and better identify individual teacher's professional development needs. Including opportunities for teachers to inquire into the effectiveness of their practice should support them to improve. Strengthening how they gather and collate evidence should enable them to more effectively demonstrate how well they meet the professional teaching standards.

The strategic plan needs strengthening. It currently reflects the centre's vison and philosophy and it focuses on improving children's learning. It guides the timings of activities. Further developing the plan to include specific goals, monitoring progress and the evaluation of outcomes should better promote improvements.

The service's self-review framework has the potential to support effective internal evaluation. Sound evaluative questions are asked and good evidence about practice is being gathered. However further development is required for self review to be fully effective. The next step is to strengthen teachers' shared understanding of self review and fully implement an evaluative process that leads to improvement of practices that promote learning.

Key Next Steps

In order to sustain and improve the centre's performance in promoting learning and positive outcomes for children, management needs to continue to strengthen:

  • assessment, planning and evaluation

  • how well teachers are supported to improve their practice and performance

  • the quality of teaching

  • leadership and management capability

  • strategic planning

  • capability in effective evidence based internal evaluation

  • teachers' and leaders' capacity to respond to the needs of Māori learners.

Management Assurance on Legal Requirements

Before the review, the staff and management of Johnsonville Childcare 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 Johnsonville Childcare will be in three years.

Joyce Gebbie

Deputy Chief Review Officer Central

10 May 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

Johnsonville, Wellington

Ministry of Education profile number

60270

Licence type

Education & Care Service

Licensed under

Education (Early Childhood Services) Regulations 2008

Number licensed for

75 children, including up to 25 aged under 2

Service roll

75

Gender composition

47 Girls, 28 Boys

Ethnic composition

Māori

Pākehā

Pacific

Chinese

Filipino

Other ethnic groups

9

38

5

12

4

7

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

1:9

Meets minimum requirements

Review team on site

February 2016

Date of this report

10 May 2016

Most recent ERO report(s)

 

Education Review

June 2013

Education Review

September 2010

Supplementary Review

March 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.