- ERO evaluates and reports on the education and care of children and young people in early childhood services and schools.
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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.
Kelburn Playcentre is one of 19 parent-led early childhood centres governed and administered by the Wellington Playcentre Association (the association). It is licensed to provide mixed-age sessional education and care for 30 children, five mornings a week. This includes provision for 18 children up to the age of two at any one time.
A council, of elected volunteer representatives from each of the association's member centres oversees operation of the association at the governance level. Their work is assisted by an operations manager and general manager. An executive committee administers the adult education programme and tutors provide timely guidance and support for members. Responsibility for daytoday operations is undertaken by centre-elected office holders.
A centre support worker is employed to visit the centre and provide professional advice and feedback to strengthen practice and promote improvement. The support worker's more formalised role was developed after the 2014 ERO review identified the need for a more effective response to the needs of individual centres.
The association philosophy, 'Whānau tupu ngātahi – families growing together', underpins practice and is articulated as empowering parents and children to learn, grow and play together. This guides the service's provision and practice for their learning community.
Curriculum planning and implementation at Kelburn Playcentre is a shared responsibility. Each session is supported by a duty team of parent educators who hold playcentre training certificates. All centre members participate in the adult education programme provided by the association. The centre has sustained this high level of professional learning over time, enabling parents to be actively involved in their child's education.
Kelburn Playcentre responded proactively to the areas identified for improvement in the May 2014 ERO review. The report identified that centre leaders would benefit from association support to further develop a more bicultural perspective, assessment, planning and self-review practices. Since this review, the centre’s bicultural journey has been planned and deliberate.
The New Zealand Playcentre Federation, of which the Wellington Association is part, is planning a significant restructure for 2017. Playcentres will be grouped in regional hubs, supported by a regional manager and support persons.
The review was part of a cluster of ten in the Wellington Playcentre Association.
Children’s holistic development is enhanced through their engagement in child-initiated, play-based learning. Te Whāriki and playcentre philosophy underpin centre practice. Assessment, curriculum planning and evaluation practices provide adults with timely and useful information that help them plan meaningful learning experiences, responsive to children’s interests. Members are aware of the importance of maintaining continuity across all sessions to ensure that all children’s learning needs are recognised and met.
The centre is developing systems that inform planning, assessment and communicate observations about children’s developing interests and skills. Individual learning portfolios celebrate children's progress, showing their developing skills, knowledge and attributes. A next step is to strengthen evaluation of the learning.
Well-chosen age-appropriate equipment and effective session planning enables and supports centre children of all ages to play and learn together. Adults are responsive to and provide well for up to two year olds and for all children and their learning needs.
The centre support person and duty teams provide strong, effective leadership that contributes positively to children’s early learning experience. Helpful strategies are in place to support newer members to document and record children's learning and progress.
A sense of collective responsibility for children and high levels of community involvement are evident. Members are a diverse group of enthusiastic parents and whānau who bring valuable skills and knowledge to their roles. Well-developed systems support the smooth day-to- day running of the playcentre. Children have a positive platform for learning.
Well-considered transition processes for children and parents new to the centre, enable them to become part of the learning community. Parents are mentored by more experienced members who model an open, collaborative approach. Successful transition to school is enabled through reciprocal information sharing between the centre and local schools.
The inclusion of te ao Māori as an integral part of children's daily experience has strengthened through ongoing internal evaluation. A comprehensive internal evaluation was undertaken, during 2014, to discover how well the association and centres included te reo me ngā tikanga Māori as part of a culturally rich, responsive curriculum.
When Kelburn Playcentre reviewed its bicultural practices again in 2016, increased use of te reo Māori by tamariki and members was evident. The centre is aware of the importance of continually upskilling members in te reo me ngā tikanga Māori to build sustainability in bicultural knowledge and practices.
The dual purpose of self review for accountability and improvement is a strength of the centre and guides ongoing decision making. Self-review practices are well considered and have a positive impact on children’s social development and learning. In 2016 an in-depth review resulted in a changed culture and expectations for the playgroup which catered for up to two and a half year olds. Renamed Pikopiko, this group's practices are now aligned with the mixed age sessions at the centre.
Association and centre leaders should continue to improve outcomes for children and families by using internal evaluation effectively to ensure the good practice occurring is sustained and prioritised developments are achieved.
Before the review, the staff and management of Kelburn Playcentre 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 Kelburn Playcentre will be in three years.
Alan Wynyard
Deputy Chief Review Officer Central (Acting)
24 July 2017
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 |
Wellington |
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Ministry of Education profile number |
60037 |
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Licence type |
Playcentre |
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Licensed under |
Education (Early Childhood Services) Regulations 2008 |
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Number licensed for |
30 children, including up to 18 aged under 2 |
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Service roll |
46 |
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Gender composition |
26 Girls, 20 Boys |
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Ethnic composition |
Pākehā |
20 |
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Reported ratios of adults to children |
Under 2 |
1:1 |
Better than minimum requirements |
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Over 2 |
1:4 |
Better than minimum requirements |
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Review team on site |
May 2007 |
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Date of this report |
24 July 2017 |
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Most recent ERO report(s)
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Education Review |
May 2014 |
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Education Review |
September 2010 |
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Education Review |
January 2008 |
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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.