Ford Street, Opotiki
View on mapERO’s Akanuku | Assurance Review reports provide information about whether a service meets and maintains regulatory standards. Further information about Akanuku | Assurance Reviews is included at the end of this report.
Regulatory standards |
ERO’s judgement |
|
Curriculum |
Not meeting |
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Premises and facilities |
Not meeting |
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Health and safety |
Not meeting |
|
Governance, management and administration |
Not meeting |
At the time of the review, ERO identified areas of non-compliance with regulatory standards that are an unacceptable risk to children.
Opotiki Rose Garden Preschool is a not-for-profit service governed by a parent trust board. A centre manager has operational oversight for the service. Of the children currently enrolled, approximately half are identified as Māori and a small number are of Pacific heritage.
The service is not meeting licensing requirements in a significant number of areas.
Adults providing education and care engage in meaningful, positive interactions to nurture reciprocal relationships. Information and guidance is sought, when necessary, from agencies and services to enable adults providing education and care to work effectively with children and their parents. A philosophy statement guides the services operation.
ERO found areas of non-compliance in the service relating to:
the curriculum being consistent with the prescribed curriculum framework
the practices of adults providing education and care demonstrating an understanding of children’s learning and development, and knowledge of relevant theories and practice in early childhood education
the curriculum respecting and supporting the right of each child to be confident in their own culture
the curriculum responding to children as confident and competent learners. Ensuring children’s preferences are respected, and they are involved in decisions about their learning experiences
the curriculum providing children with a range of experiences and opportunities to enhance and extend their learning and development
taking positive steps to respect and acknowledge the aspirations held by parents and whānau for their children
providing a sufficient quantity and variety of indoor equipment, and materials that are appropriate for the learning and abilities of the children attending
toilet and associated hand washing/drying facilities used by children allowing those capable of independent toileting to access them safely without adult help
ensuring adults providing education and care are familiar with relevant emergency drills and carry these out with children on at least a three-monthly basis
ensuring sleeping children are checked for warmth, breathing and general wellbeing every 5 to 10 minutes
parents of children attending the service and adults providing education and care being provided with opportunities to contribute to the development and review of the service's operational documents.
[Licensing Criteria for Early Childhood Education and Care Centres 2008, C1, C4, C6, C7, C9, C11, PF4, PF20, HS8, HS9, GMA4]
Since the onsite visit, the service has provided ERO with evidence that shows it has addressed the following non-compliances:
Ensuring mirrors accessible to children are made of safety glass or covered by an adhesive film designed to hold the glass in place in the event of it being broken (PF7).
Ensuring nappy changing facilities are located in a designated area near to handwashing facilities, and that this location ensures that children’s dignity and right to privacy is respected (PF25).
Items intended for children to sleep on, such as stretchers, being securely covered with a non-porous material (PF30).
Maintaining a current fire evacuation scheme approved by Fire and Emergency New Zealand (HS4).
Ensuring heavy furniture and equipment that could fall or topple and cause serious injury or damage are secured (HS6).
Reviewing the written emergency plan on at least an annual basis (HS7).
Ensuring that daily checks to equipment, premises and facilities for hazards to children are sufficiently undertaken and these include, but are not limited to, all areas required by the licensing criterion (HS12).
Ensuring that whenever children leave the premises on an excursion, parents have given prior written approval of the proposed ratio and that the names of adults and children involved are documented (HS17).
The service promoting best practices as set out in Ministry of Health: Reducing food-related choking for babies and young children at early learning services and providing a copy of this document to all parents at the time of enrolment (HS22).
Ensuring that records of all medicines given to children attending the service include evidence of parental acknowledgement that the medicine has been given (HS28).
Having the Education (Early Childhood Services) Regulations 2008; the Licensing Criteria for Early Childhood Education and Care Centres 2008; and a procedure people should follow if they wish to complain, prominently displayed at the service for parents and visitors (GMA1).
Information being provided to parents about the amount and details of the expenditure of Ministry of Education funding received (GMA3).
Having an ongoing process of self-review and internal evaluation that helps the service maintain and improve the quality of its education and care (GMA6).
Having a written procedure for safety checking and ensuring all children’s workers who have access to children are safety checked, in accordance with the requirements of the Children’s Act 2014 (GMA7A).
Having an annual plan identifying ‘who’ in relation to key tasks the service intends to undertake and how key tasks will have regard to the Statement of National Education and Learning Priorities (NELP) (GMA8).
Having an annual budget that guides financial expenditure (GMA9).
An attendance record being maintained that shows the times and dates of every child’s attendance at the service (GMA11).
ERO recommends that the Ministry reassess the licence issued to this service provider. ERO will not undertake a further review of this service until the Ministry of Education is satisfied that the service meets regulatory standards.
The next ERO review will be in consultation with the Ministry of Education.
Patricia Davey
Director of Early Childhood Education (ECE)
15 June 2023
|
Early Childhood Service Name |
Opotiki Rose Garden Preschool |
|
Profile Number |
40104 |
|
Location |
Opotiki |
|
Service type |
Education and care service |
|
Number licensed for |
37 children, including up to 8 aged under 2 |
|
Percentage of qualified teachers |
80-99% |
|
Service roll |
46 |
|
Review team on site |
May 2023 |
|
Date of this report |
15 June 2023 |
|
Most recent ERO report(s) |
Education Review, May 2019; Education Review, May 2016 |
Al servicles are licensed under the Education (Early Childhood Services) Regulations 2008. The legal requirements for early childhood services also include the Licensing Criteria for Education and Care Services 2008.
Services must meet the standards in the regulations and the requirements of the licensing criteria to gain and maintain a licence to operate.
having its first ERO review – including if it is part of a governing organisation
previously identified as ‘not well placed’ or ‘requiring further development’
that has moved from a provisional to a full licence
that have been re-licenced due to a change of ownership
where an Akanuku | Assurance Review process is determined to be appropriate.
All early childhood services are required to promote children’s health and safety and to regularly review their compliance with legal requirements. Before the review, the staff and management of a service 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.
As part of an Akanuku | Assurance Review ERO assesses whether the regulatory standards are being met. In particular, ERO looks at a 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; safety checking; teacher certification; ratios)
relevant evacuation procedures and practices.
As part of an Akanuku | Assurance Review ERO also gathers and records evidence through:
discussions with those involved in the service
consideration of relevant documentation, including the implementation of health and safety systems
observations of the environment/premises, curriculum implementation and teaching practice.
|
Not well placed |
Requires further development |
Well placed |
Very well placed |
Opotiki Rose Garden Preschool is well placed to promote positive learning outcomes for children.
ERO's findings that support this overall judgement are summarised below.
Opotiki Rose Garden Preschool is a community-based service governed by a charitable trust with a board of nine trustees. The centre provides all-day education and care for children in three aged-based settings for infants, toddlers and preschool. The service is licensed for 37 children and has a current roll of 55. This includes 36 Māori and 15 Pākehā children. The centre’s staff is made up of one administrator, a head teacher/manager and five teachers with early childhood qualifications, one primary school qualified kaiāwhina. The service is located near the town centre and operates from 8.30am to 2.45pm Monday to Friday.
The aim of the service's philosophy is to 'create a culture of kindness which values and honours each unique tamaiti and their whānau. The freedom and aroha they experience will endeavour to guide each tamaiti to realise who they are and that they are active members of our world'.
Since the previous ERO report in 2016 the head teacher continues in her role and some new teachers have been appointed. The board chairperson also continues in her position and several trustees are new to their governance roles. In addition, recent building developments have been undertaken to provide a specific area for infants up to the age of two years.
Children benefit from responsive and caring interactions with teachers that nurture their learning and wellbeing. Teachers skilfully notice opportunities to become involved with children’s play and exploration and purposefully extend their ideas and language. Children are provided with choices for learning and teachers respect their decisions about the management of daily care routines. These routines are well managed and used as contexts for authentic learning, such as building independence and taking responsibility.
Children with additional learning needs are well catered for, however, there is a need to establish documented guidelines to ensure processes for inclusion are clear.
Children up to the age of two enjoy a calm and comfortable space to explore. They are valued and trusted as capable learners. Teachers' interactions with infants are unhurried and attentive, and meaningful attachments foster a strong sense of belonging.
The curriculum effectively promotes positive outcomes for children. Teachers know their children well and meet regularly to plan a programme in response to children's interests and strengths. Children are able to take risks and experience physical challenge in closely monitored settings. They are able to choose from a range of open-ended resources to use their imagination, experiment and explore their ideas. Literacy and mathematical concepts are integrated across the curriculum and supported through a range of play-based activities and experiences. Teachers acknowledge the need to strengthen the curriculum to further reflect the language, culture and identity of Māori children.
Leadership is providing clarity of direction for teachers and actively gather and respond to parent and community voice. Leaders and teachers are focused on building professional capability. Teachers reflect on the effectiveness of their practice with a focus on improving outcomes for children and engagement with whānau. External professional learning and development has led to a unified approach to teaching and learning. Self review is contributing to ongoing developments to the centre environment.
Parents feel welcome in the centre. They appreciate the open-door policy and are supportive of current initiatives that encourage partnerships between the service and whānau.
The board of trustees are representative of the local community and bring a range of relevant skills and experiences to their roles. They receive regular reports from the head teacher which they use to make informed decisions about priorities and direction for the service. Strategic and annual planning require further clarity and development to support a coherent approach to centre development.
To continue with progress made in the service for children since the previous ERO review, the following next steps have been identified:
strengthen the centre's curriculum to further reflect the language, cultural and identity of Māori children and whānau
develop policy and procedural guidelines about how the service includes and caters for children with additional learning needs
review strategic and annual planning to ensure:
Before the review, the staff and management of Opotiki Rose Garden Preschool 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.
ERO identified areas of non-compliance relating to governance and management policies and procedures. To meet requirements the service needs to improve its performance in the following areas:
Phil Cowie
Director Review and Improvement Services
Central Region
1 May 2019
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 |
Opotiki |
||
|
Ministry of Education profile number |
40104 |
||
|
Licence type |
Education & Care Service |
||
|
Licensed under |
Education (Early Childhood Services) Regulations 2008 |
||
|
Number licensed for |
37 children, including up to eight aged under 2 |
||
|
Service roll |
55 |
||
|
Gender composition |
Females 31 Males 24 |
||
|
Ethnic composition |
Māori NZ European/Pākehā |
36 |
|
|
Percentage of qualified teachers |
80% + |
||
|
Reported ratios of staff to children |
Under 2 |
1:4 |
Better than minimum requirements |
|
Over 2 |
1:5 |
Better than minimum requirements |
|
|
Review team on site |
March 2019 |
||
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Date of this report |
1 May 2019 |
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Most recent ERO report(s) |
Education Review |
May 2016 |
|
|
Education Review |
January 2013 |
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|
Education Review |
May 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:
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 will depend on how well the service promotes positive learning outcomes for children. The categories are:
Very well placed
Well placed
Requires further development
Not well placed
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.