141 Oteha Valley Road, North Shore, Auckland
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Not well placed |
Requires further development |
Well placed |
Very well placed |
Kindercare Learning Centre - Albany is well placed to promote positive learning outcomes for children.
ERO's findings that support this overall judgement are summarised below.
Kindercare Learning Centre - Albany is owned and administered by Kindercare Learning Centres Limited. All centres operate under the Kindercare vision, values, philosophy and strategic goals. Together these form the philosophy on which each centre and the organisation base their practices.
Children are grouped according to age in three separate rooms. The youngest children have their own outdoor play space. Children and their families come from diverse cultural backgrounds. Many families speak more than one language.
A centre director leads a team of eight qualified teachers, one of whom leads curriculum planning. A number of the teachers have been with Kindercare for many years.
The 2015 ERO report noted the positive and warm relationships between teachers, children and whānau. Children's easy access to resources for learning in a homely environment supported their sense of belonging and developing confidence. These aspects of quality practice have been maintained. Areas for further development were programme planning, partnerships with parents and the bicultural focus of self review. There has been good progress in these areas.
This review was part of a cluster of eight Kindercare Learning Centre reviews in the Auckland area.
Children are generally well settled and engaged and make choices about their play. Environments are calm and peaceful. Effective teaching practices include:
nurturing care that supports children's wellbeing
attractively presented, very well resourced learning environments
purposeful modelling of oral language through naturally occurring conversations with children that contribute to building deeper relationships
good support for children to develop social competence and the skills to initiate and maintain friendships
deep respect for children's work and creativity, which supports children's developing confidence and learning.
The small group size for infants and toddlers supports quality care and education. Teachers respond positively to children's individual routines and rhythms. Daily journals for younger children share important information between home and centre, supporting teachers' partnerships with parents.
Through regular surveys, parents share how much they value the positive, respectful relationships teachers have established with their children. Leaders and teachers are responsive to suggestions and parents' ideas about changes to systems and routines. They are considering ways to increase parents' knowledge of Te Whāriki, the early childhood curriculum.
Teachers and leaders focus on promoting a sense of wellbeing and belonging for tamariki Māori. Connections to te ao Māori can be seen through sensitive additions to resources. Cultural diversity is also visible in centre resources.
Programme planning is based on teachers' observations of children's interests and learning dispositions. Teachers thoughtfully prepare environments that encourage children to think, explore and discover. They could now consider providing opportunities for children to independently revisit their learning.
Leaders and teachers work well together as a team. The centre is managed effectively. An internal evaluation process encourages teachers to reflect on and modify their practice. Through this process centre strategic goals have surfaced. The development of an improvement focused annual plan could support the attainment of these goals.
The Kindercare organisation provides a broad range of support for centres and families. Comprehensive management and accountability systems across the company include:
support for centre directors through regular visits by area managers
effective processes for ensuring that children have safe and healthy learning environments
appraisal, mentoring and well targeted professional development that supports teachers to build their capability.
Centre leaders agree that their key next steps include continuing to develop teachers' knowledge and use of the revised early childhood curriculum in order to:
continue to support the development of a rich learning programme for each child
establish a meaningful curriculum in consultation with parents and whānau
continue to build partnerships with whānau that are based on children's learning.
Key next steps for the Kindercare organisation include continuing to:
make progress with ensuring the company's vision, values, philosophy, systems and practices reflect and enact the principles of the Treaty of Waitangi
evaluate how consistently leaders, including area managers and centre directors, build teachers’ capability and improve practice
embed practices that support leaders' ongoing commitment to strengthening, and reporting about the outcomes of, strategic planning and internal evaluation across the organisation.
Before the review, the staff and management of Kindercare Learning Centre - Albany 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 Kindercare Learning Centre - Albany will be in three years.
Violet Tu’uga Stevenson
Director Review and Improvement Services
Te Tai Raki - Northern Region
29 November 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 |
North Shore, Auckland |
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Ministry of Education profile number |
10217 |
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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 |
50 children, including up to 20 aged under 2 |
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Service roll |
59 |
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Gender composition |
Girls 39 Boys 20 |
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Ethnic composition |
Māori |
3 |
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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 |
1:10 |
Meets minimum requirements |
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Review team on site |
September 2018 |
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Date of this report |
29 November 2018 |
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Most recent ERO report(s) |
Education Review |
February 2015 |
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Education Review |
March 2012 |
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Education Review |
February 2009 |
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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.
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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.
Kindercare Learning Centre (15) is the smallest of the Kindercare Centres operating on the North Shore. The centre, situated in Albany, provides education and care for 50 children, including up to 20 under two years of age. The community attending the centre is predominantly NZ European/Pākehā and Chinese, with a small number of children from other ethnic backgrounds.
The Kindercare organisation provides management and administration systems, including a policy and procedural framework. Centre staff receive professional support from a regional manager, and Kindercare staff also provide support for provisionally registered teachers. The philosophy for the centre is the overarching statement for the Kindercare organisation.
There are several leadership roles within the centre. A centre manager leads the centre and there are two supervisors who manage the day-to-day operations of the programmes in the rooms. Staff take leadership roles as appropriate for particular activities and experiences provided for children.
Children are cared for in three age-related groups, and play outdoors in two playgrounds. The younger children are cared for in a room with space for those not yet mobile. The children nearing five years receive a structured preparation for school programme.
The 2012 ERO report recommended that some teachers should be supported to develop children’s problem-solving and critical thinking skills. The report also noted that teachers planned to further develop learning partnerships with families.
The centre supports children’s sense of themselves as loved and successful learners. They are trusting and confident with teachers and demonstrate a sense of belonging and wellbeing. Children settle quickly to activities provided for them, playing with and alongside others. There is a centre focus on kindness that is evident in relationships.
Children and their families are warmly welcomed into the centre. Teachers know children and their families well. Teachers engage parents well in learning partnerships. They offer parents increasing opportunities to share information about their children and to have input in the programme.
The infants and toddlers programme is gently paced and engaging. The tone in the room is calm and quiet. Respectful relationships are fostering children’s sense of confidence and capability. Resources are easily accessible to children and the environment offers these young children appropriate physical challenge.
Teachers use some words in children’s home languages, and a staff member acts as a translator for Mandarin-speaking families. Some teachers use te reo Māori with children and all groups sing waiata. Teachers celebrate important cultural events with families. However, environments show little influence of the children’s cultures. This could be an area for future review.
Teachers’ recent professional learning has focused on assessment practice. As a result, they are enabling children to make more decisions about their play. While some teachers are still focusing on teacher-led activities, the centre is moving towards following children’s interests as a guide to programme planning. This shift to more child-centred play aligns well with teachers’ professional learning in assessment.
Teachers have created rooms that are welcoming and homely following their review of the playing space. They could now consider ways of further provoking children’s interest to investigate, explore and be creative in the environment.
The centre is ably led by enthusiastic leaders who are eager to improve outcomes for children. A shared leadership approach gives teachers opportunities to have ownership of aspects of the programme. The continuing support of Kindercare personnel ensures the sustainability and continued improvement of the centre.
ERO and centre managers agree that next key steps for the centre include:
Before the review, the staff and management of Kindercare Learning Centre (15) 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 Kindercare Learning Centre (15) will be in three years.
Dale Bailey Deputy Chief Review Officer Northern Select Region
27 February 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.
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Location |
Albany, Auckland |
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Ministry of Education profile number |
10217 |
||
|
Licence type |
Education & Care Service |
||
|
Licensed under |
Education (Early Childhood Services) Regulations 2008 |
||
|
Number licensed for |
50 children, including up to 20 aged under 2 |
||
|
Service roll |
63 |
||
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Gender composition |
Boys 34 Girls 29 |
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Ethnic composition |
Māori Pākehā Chinese other |
2 26 25 10 |
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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 |
1:4 |
Better than minimum requirements |
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Over 2 |
1:8 |
Better than minimum requirements |
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Review team on site |
December 2014 |
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Date of this report |
27 February 2015 |
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Most recent ERO report(s) |
Education Review |
March 2012 |
|
|
Education Review |
February 2009 |
||
|
Education Review |
February 2006 |
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.