14 Donnelly Street, Oakura
View on map|
Not well placed |
Requires further development |
Well placed |
Very well placed |
ERO's findings that support this overall judgement are summarised below.
Oakura Playcentre is situated south of New Plymouth along the coast. It operates five morning sessions and one afternoon a week and caters for 30 children including up to 15 aged under two years. Many families have joined the centre since the 2014 ERO review.
The playcentre is one of 17 parent-led early learning services administered by the Taranaki Playcentre Association (the association). A management team of elected volunteers implements the directives of playcentre governance and provides the adult education programme, guidance and support for members.
Centre supporters are employed by the association to regularly visit playcentres. Their role is to provide professional advice and feedback to strengthen practice and promote improvement. Responsibility for day-to-day operation is undertaken by centre-elected office holders. Parents share the duties associated with implementing the daily programme.
The New Zealand Playcentre Federation is planning a significant restructure in 2017 that includes amalgamating associations. Playcentres will become part of a regional hub, supported by a regional manager and support persons.
The January 2014 ERO report for Oakura Playcentre identified that development of assessment, planning, self review and the quality of teaching interactions was needed. Centre members have made positive progress in responding to these areas.
This review was part of a cluster of seven playcentre reviews in the Taranaki Playcentre Association.
The association philosophy of parent-led education and child-initiated play is valued by centre members and reflected in practice. The principles and strands of Te Whāriki, the early childhood curriculum, underpin practice to promote positive outcomes for children. A commitment to honouring Te Tiriti o Waitangi is evident across the organisation.
Children’s interests and independence are well supported by parent educators. They confidently make choices and decisions about their involvement in play. Relationships are warm and encouraging and contribute to developing a sense of belonging to the playcentre for everyone.
Children are actively involved in their play with and alongside others. Adults make good use of interactions with children to extend their play. Centre routines and rituals are unhurried and relaxed.
Visits to the local school are well established and assist children and families as they move to school. Children with additional learning needs are well supported.
Sound processes guide adults to notice, recognise and respond to children's learning. Members are committed to ongoing improvement and deepening these systems. Portfolios show learning progress over time. There is an increased focus on celebrating aspects of te ao Māori.
Adults have made good use of self review to strengthen assessment and planning for children's learning. More clearly showing the impact of adults’ planned strategies on children’s outcomes is a next step.
Leadership is collective, cooperative and involves shared decision making. New information and training is shared with all families to strengthen the programme and operation. Continuing to build understanding of playcentre's approach remains an ongoing focus.
The association's Māori representative of Puriri Whakamaru o Taranaki, supports centre members to gain further understandings of te ao Māori. This aspect is developing well as an integral part of the curriculum. Association and centre leaders should use strategic planning and internal evaluation to ensure the good practice occurring is sustained and continues to be built on.
The centre support person provides useful written reports on centre environmental developments and programme practices. These have a focus on outcomes for children and identification of next steps for centre members to improve teaching and learning.
Appraisal for centre supporters requires strengthening. This process, to enhance outcomes for children and their families, should: include more focused goals that build their capability; and provide more regular and targeted feedback and feed forward about supportive practices.
The association should continue to support centre members to:
embed assessment, planning and evaluation processes
build on bicultural practices
further grow internal evaluation.
The association should:
improve appraisal for the centre support people to respond to individual needs and identify professional development to grow them in their leadership roles
continue to build centre support staff knowledge and capability to undertake effective internal evaluation.
Before the review, the staff and management of Oakura 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 Oakura Playcentre will be in three years.
Alan Wynyard
Deputy Chief Review Officer Central (Acting)
15 August 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 |
Oakura |
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Ministry of Education profile number |
50020 |
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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 15 aged under 2 |
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Service roll |
42 |
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Gender composition |
Girls 25, Boys 17 |
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Ethnic composition |
Māori |
7 |
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Reported ratios of adults to children |
Under 2 |
1:1 |
Better than minimum requirements |
|
Over 2 |
1:3 |
Better than minimum requirements |
|
|
Review team on site |
June 2017 |
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Date of this report |
15 August 2017 |
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Most recent ERO report(s)
|
Education Review |
January 2014 |
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|
Education Review |
November 2010 |
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|
Education Review |
March 2006 |
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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.
|
Not well placed |
Requires further development |
Well placed |
Very well placed |
ERO's findings that support this overall judgement are summarised below.
Oakura Playcentre is a community-based service located in coastal Taranaki. The playcentre is situated adjacent to the local school and is licensed for four mornings per week.
Up to 30 children from birth to school age can attend each session. The current roll is 50 children. There has been a significant influx of new families in the last 12 months.
The centre philosophy reflects the value placed on children and families learning alongside each other in a stimulating, family environment.
The playcentre is one of 17 parent-led services governed under the Taranaki Playcentre Association (the association) umbrella. The governance of these centres has recently reverted to a structure where all centre representatives contribute to association decisions and priorities.
This review was part of a cluster of 14 playcentre reviews in the Taranaki Playcentre Association.
Children and families show a positive sense of belonging. Older children interact with younger children in caring and nurturing ways. Some adults make good use of conversations to build on individual interests. A next step is maximising these opportunities to actively support and build on children’s learning and thinking.
There is a wide range of resources available, many of which reflect the context of the community and invite children’s exploration. Links with the local school include reciprocal visits and participating in school-based activities. Outings in the community add to children’s experiences.
A feature of the programme is regular opportunities for children and families to learn about and care for the natural environment. An emphasis on sustainable practices is evident in resourcing and curriculum activities.
Playcentre leaders have an appropriate and timely focus on encouraging other parents to undertake course training, to enable them to more consistently meet the supervision requirements. This includes ensuring there is a shared understanding of the expectations associated with a parent cooperative.
An enthusiastic office holder leads developments in the bicultural programme. This progress has been supported by the Puriri W’akamaru o Taranaki role that was established by the association to build bicultural understandings. Acknowledged next steps are to develop strategies and approaches to effectively promote Māori children and whānau to enjoy success as Māori.
Both Oakura Playcentre and the association have annual plans that inform operational decisions. However, there are few links between the association and individual playcentre goals. The association’s strategic vision is yet to effectively focus on priorities for improving teaching and learning.
The association has planned professional development for parents in 2014 about planning and evaluation. ERO agrees that this is timely, as the playcentre is yet to effectively implement useful approaches for assessing and planning children’s learning.
A recent focus for the centre has been to establish a process to formally document self reviews. Informal review processes occur to address aspects of the programme and health and safety areas. As well as the playcentre, the association is at very early stages in its understanding of, and response to developing self-review processes and practices that focus on teaching and learning.
ERO recommends the association strengthen its understanding of self review through external support in order to better support the playcentre. This includes developing more robust ways of knowing the impact of its services on children’s learning and development, and the quality of the educational programmes.
Association personnel regularly visit and provide advice and guidance. Positive relationships between the playcentre and those in support roles are evident. The association also offers opportunities for parents to train in playcentre early childhood education courses. Extending and improving the support the association offers to playcentres is an important next step.
In order to improve practice the playcentre needs to:
The association would benefit from external support to strengthen and improve its understanding of:
Before the review, the staff and management of Oakura 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:
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 playcentre needs to ensure:
The next ERO review of Oakura Playcentre will be in three years.
Joyce Gebbie
National Manager Review Services Central Region (Acting)
24 January 2014
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.
|
Location |
Oakura |
||
|
Ministry of Education profile number |
50020 |
||
|
Licence type |
Playcentre |
||
|
Licensed under |
Education (Early Childhood Services) Regulations 2008 |
||
|
Number licensed for |
30 children, including 15 aged up to 2 |
||
|
Service roll |
50 |
||
|
Gender composition |
Boys 29, Girls 21 |
||
|
Ethnic composition |
Māori NZ European/Pākehā |
5 45 |
|
|
Reported ratios of adults to children |
Under 2 |
1:3 |
Better than minimum requirements |
|
Over 2 |
1:3 |
Better than minimum requirements |
|
|
Review team on site |
November 2013 |
||
|
Date of this report |
24 January 2014 |
||
|
Most recent ERO report(s)
|
Education Review |
November 2010 |
|
|
Education Review |
March 2006 |
||
|
Accountability Review |
December 2002 |
||
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.