146 Hawthornden Road, Avonhead, Christchurch
View on map|
Not well placed |
Requires further development |
Well placed |
Very well placed |
Kidsfirst Kindergartens Hawthornden Road is well placed to promote positive learning outcomes for children.
ERO's findings that support this overall judgement are summarised below.
Kidsfirst Kindergartens Hawthornden Road is one of 71 early learning services governed and managed by Canterbury Westland Free Kindergarten Association Incorporated, trading as Kidsfirst Kindergartens.
The kindergarten caters for the education and care of children, aged between two and five years old, from the increasingly diverse community that it serves.
There have been some recent significant changes to leadership and to the teaching team. A new education service manager (ESM) and acting head teacher were appointed in Term 3 2016. An experienced relieving teacher was also appointed. All teachers are fully qualified and certified in early childhood education. The association and ESM provide consistent professional support to ensure the effective operation of the service.
Leaders and teachers have made some progress in meeting the recommendations outlined in the 2012 ERO report. This includes the development of more child-focused routines, refining programme planning, and building a team approach to self review. The teaching team is implementing a new vision for the kindergarten which is centred on providing a calm and peaceful learning environment for children.
The teaching team has made purposeful links to the local learning cluster of other early learning services and schools to help children in their community make a positive transition to school.
This review was part of a cluster of nine kindergartens governed and managed by the Canterbury Westland Kidsfirst Free Kindergartens Association.
The kindergarten is well supported by a responsive parent community who are actively involved in the life of the kindergarten. Parents and whānau are warmly welcomed and encouraged to spend time in the programme with their own and other children. Teachers highly value parent and whānau contributions and the support they receive from the kindergarten's community.
Teachers foster positive, reciprocal relationships with children and families within an inclusive learning environment. The culture of each family is acknowledged and valued. Teachers work with children and families in respectful ways. Children’s first languages are affirmed and celebrated.
Teachers are committed to providing and developing practices that help children to experience the bicultural heritage of Aotearoa New Zealand in ways that are respectful of the Māori culture.
The child-led curriculum is increasingly focused on unhurried interactions between teachers and children. Teachers listen carefully to children and allow uninterrupted time for children to make choices and express and develop ideas. The recent innovative use of technologies inspires children's creativity, imagination and dramatic play. These experiences and deliberate acts of teaching support the development of children's oral language, creative thinking and decision-making skills.
Teachers thoughtfully present a wide variety of learning experiences that provoke children's curiosity and encourage exploration. Children have many opportunities to learn about the natural world and be involved in physical challenges in a spacious outdoor area. Literacy and numeracy are integrated in ways that are meaningful for children.
Children play independently alongside others and in small groups for sustained lengths of time. Teachers are involved in children's play encouraging social relationships, friendships and learning.
Parents are well informed of children’s learning interests and participation in the programme through attractively-presented, informative wall displays and individual profile books.
A comprehensive systematic internal evaluation process focuses on improving children’s learning opportunities and teaching practices. The ESM is building new leadership capacity, teachers' reflective practices and internal evaluation capability.
The Canterbury Westland Free Kindergarten Association is well supported by an experienced, professional board. The association has a well-understood vision and targeted strategic and annual planning systems. There are close links between the kindergarten plans, internal evaluation, appraisal and professional development. Teachers are well supported by association managers and leaders to achieve the priorities of the association, and their own kindergarten objectives and vision to provide high quality learning outcomes for all children.
The association has a very strong commitment to providing high quality professional development to build on leadership capacity and teacher capability. It has high expectations for teaching and learning and equitable outcomes for all children. This includes the appointment of a kaitautoko to further promote a strong focus Tiriti aspirations at all levels of the organisation.
The Canterbury Westland Free Kindergarten Association is innovative in its approaches and regularly seeks opportunities to be involved in wider educational and local communities to promote high quality learning outcomes for all children.
The education service manager and ERO agree that the key next steps are to continue to develop recent initiatives to support the teaching team to fully realise the kindergarten vision. This includes:
consolidating new processes and practices for internal evaluation and programme planning
building on assessment practices to add depth to teaching and learning
continuing to strengthen bicultural perspectives and practices
fully implementing and embedding new appraisal processes.
The chief executive has identified and ERO’s evaluation has confirmed, that the key next step for the association is to continue to its property improvement long-term plan, ensuring that enhancements to its buildings reflect the changing needs of its communities.
Before the review, the staff and management of Kidsfirst Kindergartens Hawthornden Road 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 Kidsfirst Kindergartens Hawthornden Road will be in three years.
Dr Lesley Patterson
Deputy Chief Review Officer, Southern - Te Waipounamu
21 March 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 |
Christchurch |
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Ministry of Education profile number |
5628 |
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Licence type |
Free Kindergarten |
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Licensed under |
Education (Early Childhood Services) Regulations 2008 |
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Number licensed for |
40 children over the age of two years old |
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Service roll |
45 |
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Gender composition |
Boys 23; Girls 22 |
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Ethnic composition |
Māori Pākehā Other |
6 26 13 |
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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 |
Over 2 |
1:10 |
Meets minimum requirements |
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Review team on site |
November 2016 |
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Date of this report |
21 March 2017 |
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Most recent ERO reports
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Education Review |
May 2012 |
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Education Review |
September 2008 |
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Education Review |
March 2005 |
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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:
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.
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.
Kidsfirst Kindergartens Hawthornden Road operates between 8.30 am and 2.30 pm. It provides care and education for children over the age of two.
Children come from a variety of cultural backgrounds and for some English is their second language. All teachers at the Kindergarten are fully registered and early childhood trained.
The kindergarten is one of 62 kindergartens (including one early learning centre) administered by the Canterbury Westland Kindergarten Association Incorporated, trading as Kidsfirst Kindergartens.
This review occurred at a time when the association and its kindergartens were responding to issues associated with the Canterbury earthquakes. They have been proactive in addressing these challenges.
Since the centre’s last ERO review in September 2008 the head teacher and teachers have continued to work on further developing aspects of the kindergarten’s programmes and practices. This has resulted in ongoing improvements to the quality of education and care for children.
Features of this kindergarten include:
The kindergarten’s education service manager and ERO agree that the next steps to further improve outcomes for children include:
Leadership and management practices help to foster team work and collaboration.
The kindergarten actively promotes good relationships with parents/caregivers and whānau and this helps to foster a sense of partnership.
ERO is confident that the kindergarten is being managed in the interest of the children. Therefore ERO is likely to review the kindergarten again in three years.
Before the review, the management of Kidsfirst Kindergartens Hawthornden Road was invited to consider its priorities for review using guidelines and resources provided by ERO. ERO also used documentation provided by the kindergarten to contribute to the scope of the review.
The detailed priorities for review were then determined following a discussion between the ERO review team and the management and staff. This discussion focused on existing information held by the kindergarten (including self-review information) and the extent to which potential issues for review contributed to positive outcomes for children at Kidsfirst Kindergartens Hawthornden Road.
All ERO education reviews in early childhood focus on the quality of education. For ERO this includes the quality of:
ERO’s findings in these areas are set out below.
Since the kindergarten’s last ERO review in 2008 the head teacher and teachers have continued to work on improving aspects of the kindergarten’s programmes and practices.
The kindergarten’s programme provides children with an extensive range of learning opportunities. Features of the programme include:
Children come from a variety of cultural backgrounds. Aspects of their cultures are appropriately integrated into the kindergarten’s programme.
Reviewers observed children initiating and involving themselves in creative play for prolonged periods. Children played well, both independently and with their peers.
ERO observed teachers using a range of effective teaching practices. These included:
Teachers interacted with children in ways that helped foster their confidence and sense of well-being.
Informative and well-presented children’s portfolios help to record and report their success, acknowledge and affirm their progress and often identified possible next steps in their learning and development.
Teachers provide children with a positive, supportive environment.
Reviewers observed many instances of:
The kindergarten provides children with a spacious, well presented and interesting indoor and outdoor environment.
Children have ready access to a wide range of activities and resources that often help to stimulate their interests, provide them with a wide range of choices and help support their engagement in creative play.
ERO observed positive interactions between teachers and parents/caregivers and whānau.
Teachers have been proactive in reviewing and developing practices that promote a sense of partnership with parents. These include:
Reviewers observed children being less effectively involved in learning in some formal group activities than in other aspects of the centre’s programme. This was partly a result of the restricted range of teaching practices used during some of these group times.
The head teacher and teachers should review the purpose of group times, the range of teaching practices used and children’s level of engagement in these activities. It would be useful to consider what elements of these group sessions could be better integrated into less formal aspects of the programme.
Teachers have established some useful planning and reflective practices. ERO agrees with the current emphasis they are giving to improving aspects of their longer term programme planning.
Particular consideration should be given to:
Wider use of some of the very good assessment practices in most portfolios would help to develop greater consistency in the quality of these practices.
Before the review, the staff of Kidsfirst Kindergartens Hawthornden Road completed an ERO CentreAssurance Statement andSelf-Audit Checklist. In these documents they have attested that they have taken all reasonable steps to meet their legal obligations related to:
During the review, ERO looked at the service’s documentation, including policies, procedures and records of recent use of procedures. ERO also checked elements of the following areas that have a potentially high impact on outcomes for children:
ERO is likely to review the kindergarten again in three years.
Graham Randell
National Manager Review Services
Southern Region
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Type |
All Day, Kindergarten |
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Licensed under |
Education (Early Childhood Centres) Regulations 2008 |
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Number licensed for |
40 children |
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Roll number |
55 |
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Gender composition |
Girls 32 Boys 23 |
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Ethnic composition |
New Zealand European /Pākehā 32; Maori 1; Samoan 2; Asian 12; European 6; Other Ethnicities 2 |
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Review team on site |
March 2012 |
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Date of this report |
4 May 2012 |
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Previous three ERO reports |
Education Review September 2008 Education Review March 2005 Accountability Review June 2000 |
4 May 2012
These are the findings of the Education Review Office’s latest report on Kidsfirst Kindergartens Hawthornden Road.
Kidsfirst Kindergartens Hawthornden Road operates between 8.30 am and 2.30 pm. It provides care and education for children over the age of two.
Children come from a variety of cultural backgrounds and for some English is their second language. All teachers at the Kindergarten are fully registered and early childhood trained.
The kindergarten is one of 62 kindergartens (including one early learning centre) administered by the Canterbury Westland Kindergarten Association Incorporated, trading as Kidsfirst Kindergartens.
This review occurred at a time when the association and its kindergartens were responding to issues associated with the Canterbury earthquakes. They have been proactive in addressing these challenges.
Since the centre’s last ERO review in September 2008 the head teacher and teachers have continued to work on further developing aspects of the kindergarten’s programmes and practices. This has resulted in ongoing improvements to the quality of education and care for children.
Features of this kindergarten include:
The kindergarten’s education service manager and ERO agree that the next steps to further improve outcomes for children include:
Leadership and management practices help to foster team work and collaboration.
The kindergarten actively promotes good relationships with parents/caregivers and whānau and this helps to foster a sense of partnership.
ERO is confident that the kindergarten is being managed in the interest of the children. Therefore ERO is likely to review the kindergarten again in three years.
When ERO has reviewed an early childhood centre we encourage management to inform their community of any follow up action they plan to take. You should talk to the management or contact person if you have any questions about this evaluation, the full ERO report or their future intentions.
If you would like a copy of the full report, please contact the centre or see the ERO website, http://www.ero.govt.nz.
Graham Randell
National Manager Review Services
Southern Region
ERO is an independent, external evaluation agency that undertakes reviews of schools and early childhood services throughout New Zealand.
ERO follows a set of standard procedures to conduct reviews. The purpose of each review is to:
Reviews are intended to focus on outcomes for children and build on each centre’s self review.
ERO’s framework for reviewing and reporting is based on four review strands.
ERO reviews do not cover every aspect of centre 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 this centre.
Most ERO reports include recommendations for improvement. A recommendation on a particular issue does not necessarily mean that a centre is performing poorly in relation to that issue. There is no direct link between the number of recommendations in this report and the overall performance of this centre.