122 Parsons Street, Springvale, Whanganui
View on mapAkarangi | 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 are the basis for making judgements about the effectiveness of the service in achieving equity and excellence for all learners. Judgements are made in relation to the Outcomes Indicators, Learning and Organisational Conditions. The Evaluation Judgement Rubric derived from the indicators, is used to inform ERO’s judgements about this service’s performance in promoting equity and excellence.
ERO’s judgements for Smart Start Care and Education Centre are as follows:
Outcome Indicators(What the service knows about outcomes for learners) |
Whakaū Embedding |
Ngā Akatoro Domains |
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Learning ConditionsOrganisational Conditions |
Whakawhanake Sustaining |
Smart Start Care and Education’s mission is 'caring for and teaching your children’. A leadership team of two owners and two head teachers work collaboratively to take responsibility for daily operations and professional guidance of teachers. Approximately a quarter of the children who attend are identified as Māori.
Children and their families greatly benefit from intentional actions of staff to support inclusion and equity. Respectful and reciprocal partnerships between children, teachers and parents positively impact on children’s learning. Social and emotional competence is promoted and barriers to participation removed.
Children are encouraged to be independent learners within planned opportunities for exploration, discovery and problem solving. Infants and toddlers have time and space to lead their own learning in a nurturing and flexible environment.
The rich Te Tiriti o Waitangi based curriculum effectively builds children’s understanding of the world around them. Children’s daily experiences include te ao Māori concepts and values, and te reo Māori is woven naturally into conversation. Learning opportunities integrate the cultural contexts and languages of children and their whānau, shared by parents. Teachers are yet to fully incorporate this within curriculum documentation.
Assessment for children’s learning is clearly reflective of parents’ participation in their child’s learning, and of teachers who know them well. Children’s interests are visible, and learning celebrated. The learning outcomes from Te Whāriki, the early childhood curriculum, forefront planning for each child. However, these are not yet well used for determining how well children progress over time.
Systems and processes to sustain improvement are well established. Leaders promote a shared understanding of the service’s philosophy that substantially guides the daily curriculum. Relational trust contributes to continual, relevant teacher growth. A strong commitment, and collaborative approach to effective internal evaluation results in ongoing improvement that positively impacts on children. Some processes to maintain regulatory standards require strengthening.
Smart Start Care and Education Centre will include the following actions in its Quality Improvement Planning:
Strengthen the use of learning outcomes from Te Whāriki to inform evaluation of children’s learning over time and understanding of whether equitable outcomes are achieved for all learners.
Increase the visibility of children’s cultural identity as a learner, using the in-depth knowledge of children’s home life cultural contexts, within documented assessment.
Before the review, the staff and management of Smart Start Care and Education Centre completed an ERO 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; safety checking; teacher registration; ratios)
relevant evacuation procedures and practices.
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 adults are familiar with relevant emergency drills and carry out each type of drill with children on at least a three-monthly basis (HS8).
Maintaining accident and incident records that are analysed to identify hazards and appropriate action is taken as part of a documented risk management system (HS12).
Maintaining records of all injuries, illnesses and incidents that occur at the service including the date and time (HS27).
Patricia Davey
Director of Early Childhood Education (ECE)
22 August 2023
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Early Childhood Service Name |
Smart Start Care and Education Centre |
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Profile Number |
45310 |
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Location |
Springvale, Whanganui |
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Service type |
Education and care service |
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Number licensed for |
40 children, including up to 11 aged under 2 |
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Percentage of qualified teachers |
80-99% |
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Service roll |
56 |
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Review team on site |
July 2023 |
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Date of this report |
22 August 2023 |
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Most recent ERO report(s) |
Education Review, June 2020 |
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Not well placed |
Requires further development |
Well placed |
Very well placed |
Smart Start Care and Education Centre is well placed to promote positive learning outcomes for children.
ERO's findings that support this overall judgement are summarised below.
Smart Start Care and Education Centre is a privately owned centre in suburban Whanganui. It caters for 40 children, including 11 aged up to two years. Separate areas are organised for over two-year-olds, and infants and toddlers. Of the 40 children enrolled, four identify as Māori. The centre serves a wide area of the community.
Two owners share responsibility for daily operation of the service. One has responsibility for administration. The other provides professional guidance for teachers and is supported by two head teachers. There is a commitment to employing teachers with an early childhood qualification. Staff in training are mentored through an advice and guidance programme.
The philosophy values are 'built on responsive and respectful relationships with tamariki and whānau'. These beliefs are 'promoted in a stimulating, nurturing and inviting environment'. Owners acknowledge that it is timely to review the service's philosophy with input from teachers and whānau.
The February 2017 ERO report identified areas requiring further consideration. These included embedding new systems to support teaching and learning and extending support to Māori children. Some progress is evident.
The programme for children is successfully underpinned by respect and empowerment and supports teachers to build positive, trusting relationships with learners and their whānau. Children are confident and active participants in learning, who make choices about play and set challenges for themselves. Learners initiate interactions and conversations with their peers and adults. They develop tuakana teina relationships through regular engagement with others and are enthusiastic learners. Opportunities to participate in learning within the inviting outside areas enriches their early childhood experience.
Infants are encouraged to become active communicators and explorers. Programme provision for these very young learners focuses on nurturing their wellbeing through responsive caregiving. Adults work alongside children supporting them to explore through uninterrupted play.
Strategies to involve parents and whānau in their children's learning continues to develop. Parents regularly communicate verbally and at times share in and respond to their child’s on-line assessment information. Reciprocal relationships with parents and between staff are evident and enable teachers to know children's preferences and needs well.
Teachers capture each child’s engagement in everyday activities in detailed and regular assessment records. Literacy, mathematics, creativity and aspects of science are integrated into activities in meaningful play-based ways. At times, children revisit their previous activities and learning captured in their progress journals. Teachers should continue to strengthen assessment for learning by refining how they notice and record emerging ideas and passions of individual learners.
Teachers' cultural competence is well supported through professional learning and development. This results in an increased inclusion of te ao Māori in the curriculum. Māori, and all children, increasingly experience te reo me ngā tikanga Māori as a meaningful part of their early childhood experience. Teachers should continue to develop culturally responsive practices that include extending their knowledge of all children's culture, language and identity and local contexts to enrich the curriculum.
Children's transition out of the centre is well managed. Teachers use a suitable range of strategies to build and maintain relationships with local schools. Regular visits by new entrant teachers helps to build children’s confidence as they move on to school.
The dual purpose of evaluating for accountability and improvement is increasingly well understood. It informs ongoing decision-making. Priorities align to the centre's vision and goals and clearly focus on improving teaching and learning outcomes for children.
Practices for building teachers' capability, including appraisal, are improvement focused and effectively enhance teachers' professional growth. They are reflective practitioners who work collaboratively to improve outcomes for children and their families and whānau.
The owners, head teachers and ERO agree that to sustain the good practice occurring and promote ongoing improvement leaders should:
continue to build the team's understanding and use of effective evaluation to further promote decision-making and improve outcomes for children.
Before the review, the staff and management of Smart Start Care and Education Centre 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.
Since the onsite stage of this evaluation the service has provided evidence of strengthened documentation related to: risk assessment of excursions; safety checking of workers; and regular drills related to Lockdown [HS8, HS17, GMA7A].
Darcy Te Hau
Acting Director Review and Improvement Services (Central)
Central Region - Te Tai Pūtahi Nui
9 June 2020
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 |
Whanganui |
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Ministry of Education profile number |
45310 |
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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 |
40 children, including up to 11 aged under 2 |
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Service roll |
52 |
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Gender composition |
Male 27, Female 25 |
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Ethnic composition |
Māori |
4 |
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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 |
1: 5 |
Meets minimum requirements |
Meets minimum requirements |
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1: 10 |
Meets minimum requirements |
Meets minimum requirements |
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Review team on site |
January 2020 |
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Date of this report |
9 June 2020 |
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Most recent ERO report(s) |
Education Review |
February 2017 |
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|
Education Review |
March 2014 |
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Education Review |
April 2011 |
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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.