Kid's Cove Learning Centre Newmarket

Education institution number:
45933
Service type:
Education and Care Service
Definition:
Not Applicable
Total roll:
60
Telephone:
Address:

8-12 Morrow Street, Newmarket, Auckland

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Kid's Cove Learning Centre Newmarket

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 (PDF 3.01MB) are the basis for making judgements about the effectiveness of the service in achieving equity and excellence for all learners. The Akarangi Quality Evaluation Judgement Rubric (PDF 91.30KB) derived from the indicators, is used to inform the ERO’s judgements about this service’s performance in promoting equity and excellence.

ERO’s judgements for Kid’s Cove Learning Centre Newmarket are as follows:

Outcome Indicators

ERO’s judgement

What the service knows about outcomes for learners

Whāngai Establishing

Ngā Akatoro Domains

ERO’s judgement

He Whāriki Motuhake

The learner and their learning

Whāngai Establishing

Whakangungu Ngaio

Collaborative professional learning builds knowledge and capability

Whāngai Establishing

Ngā Aronga Whai Hua

Evaluation for improvement

Whakaū Embedding

Kaihautū

Leaders foster collaboration and improvement

Whakaū Embedding

Te Whakaruruhau

Stewardship through effective governance and management

Whakaū Embedding

2 Context of the Service

Kid’s Cove Learning Centre Newmarket is one of three services owned by the same service provider. A director and manager are responsible for the governance and management of the service, supported by an administrator. There are six qualified and five unqualified full-time teachers, and three part-time teachers. A small number of children are Māori. Many of the children enrolled are from diverse ethnicities.

3 Summary of findings

Children are well-supported to develop self-management skills and independence. Older children have good opportunities for exploration and challenge in the outdoor environment. Teachers help children to make positive transitions within the service. A ‘buddy’ system fosters children’s sense of belonging and tuakana/teina relationships between older and younger children. Teachers could consider ways to better support oral language development for infants and toddlers.

Teachers respond meaningfully to children’s interests and inquiries. Assessment records identify individual children’s learning and progress. Teachers are beginning to use Te Whāriki, the early childhood curriculum, to inform planning processes.

Leaders and teachers have a shared understanding of the service’s philosophy. Leaders are beginning to explore how to develop the capability of teachers to support improved outcomes for children. This could include growing the skills of team leaders to coach and mentor other staff.

A system for ongoing internal evaluation is embedded. Evaluating the extent to which progress has been made towards achieving the service’s strategic goals would be useful. Leaders should also monitor that all licensing requirements are consistently being met. The team has identified that improving bicultural and multicultural teaching practices is a centre-wide priority.

4 Improvement actions

Kid’s Cove Learning Centre Newmarket will include the following actions in its Quality Improvement Planning:

  • to improve teachers’ shared understandings about effective teaching practices, including monitoring and evaluating how changes and improvements impact on outcomes for children
  • to grow the capability of team and centre leaders through leadership-focused professional development.

5 Management Assurance on Legal Requirements

Before the review, the staff and management of Kid’s Cove Learning Centre Newmarket 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.

Since the onsite visit the service has provided ERO with evidence that shows it has addressed the following non-compliances:

  • ensuring each staff member is safety checked in accordance with the Children’s Act 2014 (GMA7A)
  • having a procedure for monitoring children’s sleep that ensures children are checked for warmth, breathing and general wellbeing (HS9).

Steve Tanner
Director Review and Improvement Services (Northern)
Northern Region | Te Tai Raki

7 July 2021 

About the Early Childhood Service

Early Childhood Service Name Kid's Cove Learning Centre Newmarket
Profile Number 45933
Location Newmarket, Auckland

Service type

Education and care service

Number licensed for

70 children, including up to 20 aged under 2.

Percentage of qualified teachers

80%+

Service roll

80

Ethnic composition

Māori 7
NZ European/Pākehā 6
Chinese 13
Indian 11
Vietnamese 8
Filipino 6
African 5
other Asian 11
other European 5
other ethnic groups 8

Review team on site

April 2021

Date of this report

7 July 2021

Most recent ERO report(s)

Education Review, June 2017
Education Review, November 2013

Kid's Cove Learning Centre Newmarket - 15/06/2017

1 Evaluation of Kid's Cove Learning Centre Newmarket

How well placed is Kid's Cove Learning Centre Newmarket 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

Kid's Cove Learning Centre Newmarket operates on the first floor of a commercial building and has a roof-top outdoor area for children's play. There are three interior learning areas for the different age groups. The centre is licensed for 70 children including up to 20 under two years of age. The centre offers full-time education and care and a cook prepares meals on site. Families come from a culturally and socially diverse community.

The centre's philosophy is based on nurturing children's identities as resourceful, resilient, reflective and responsive learners. Reggio Emilia approaches, the RIE philosophy and Te Whāriki, the early childhood curriculum, guide teacher practices and programme implementation.

The centre has maintained positive aspects noted in the ERO 2013 report, including a welcoming and inclusive culture. Since the 2013 review there have been many changes in centre leaders and staffing. A new centre manager and a pedagogical leader were appointed in 2016. Teachers have been engaged in professional development to improve assessment and planning processes. There have been significant improvements to the learning environment, and the concept of primary caregiving has been introduced.

The Review Findings

Children are confident, independent explorers and engaged learners. They show imagination and curiosity, capably engaging in cooperative play for sustained periods of time. Children make discoveries in a calm, aesthetically pleasing environment that promotes investigation. They have fun as they learn through play. Children engage in activities that interest them and happily share ideas with peers and adults. They move freely between the indoor and outdoor environments and show a strong sense of ownership of and belonging in the centre.

Teachers understand the special characteristics of infants and toddlers, and have a strong belief in their capability. They maintain a calm nurturing environment for infants and toddlers who benefit from individualised nurturing and respectful care. Teachers respond well to toddlers’ and ensure they have space, time and many opportunities to explore, play and try new things at an unhurried pace.

Teachers skilfully support and encourage children in their learning and provide a range of learning experiences to extend the complexity of their play. They implement a child-led programme that arises from children's interests and patterns of behaviour, the centre's philosophy and Te Whāriki, the early childhood curriculum. The Reggio Emilia concept of the environment as the third teacher, is inspiring child-initiated learning. Vibrant and interesting displays show children engaged in learning and clear connections between assessment, planning and evaluation.

Assessment portfolios provide very good information about individual children’s involvement in the programme. Centre leaders are keen to enhance aspects of individual planning for children. An online digital programme allows families to access information about their children's daily learning and care. Parents are accessing this information, providing positive feedback and contributing to planning for their children.

Respectful relationships underpin the relaxed and welcoming atmosphere in the centre. Teachers know children and their families well. Children’s emotional and physical wellbeing is nurtured through positive interactions, respectful relationships and child-focused routines.

Teachers encourage children who speak another language at home to use their first language. Biculturalism is fostered through meaningful opportunities for children to become familiar with te reo and tikanga Māori. Teachers recognise the importance of continuing to strengthen their bicultural practice through further integrating te ao Maori throughout the programme.

There are comprehensive policies and procedures to guide good health and safety practices. Transitions into and through the centre are well managed. Building stronger links between the centre and schools is a future focus for centre leaders.

Teachers work collaboratively as a team. They have good opportunities for leadership, to attend professional development and share their strengths. A robust appraisal process supports teachers to improve their professional capabilities. Centre leaders are keen to continue building a culture of teachers reflecting on their practice.

There are well established governance and management practices and the shared philosophy guides centre operations. Centre leaders are proactive and improvement focused, with high expectations of positive outcomes for children. Internal evaluation is well established and informs decisions to enhance programmes provided for children.

Key Next Steps

The centre leaders agree that next steps for the centre include:

  • developing a centre vision to support more educationally focused strategic planning

  • establishing a more collaborative and evaluative internal evaluation process that contributes to centre planning

  • evaluating how effectively teaching strategies and practices respond to children's cultural identities and home languages.

Management Assurance on Legal Requirements

Before the review, the staff and management of Kid's Cove Learning Centre Newmarket 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 Kid's Cove Learning Centre Newmarket will be in three years.

Steffan Brough

Deputy Chief Review Officer Northern

15 June 2017 

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

Newmarket, Auckland

Ministry of Education profile number

45993

Licence type

Education & Care Service

Licensed under

Education (Early Childhood Services) Regulations 2008

Number licensed for

70 children, including up to 20 aged under 2

Service roll

64

Gender composition

Boys 35 Girls 29

Ethnic composition

Māori

Pākehā

Indian

Chinese

Samoan

African

other Asian

1

21

13

11

2

2

14

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

March 2017

Date of this report

15 June 2017

Most recent ERO report(s)

 

Education Review

November 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 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.