67- 71 Fairlie Terrace, Wellington CBD, Wellington
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 Victoria University of Wellington Fairlie Terrace Early Childhood Service 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 |
Victoria University of Wellington Fairlie Terrace Early Childhood Service, along with the nearby Clermont Terrace services, are owned and administered by Victoria University. Children learn in age-related groups in adjacent buildings. New leadership has been in place this year. Children attending the service represent culturally diverse backgrounds. Over ten percent of enrolled children are Māori.
Children’s mana and identity as successful learners are promoted by the responsive curriculum and skilled teachers. Children show strong ownership of the environment which is richly resourced to invite exploration and creative thought. The participation and wellbeing of all children, including those requiring additional support, are fostered through teachers highly attuned to individual preferences and partnerships with families. Te reo Māori and tikanga Māori, local excursions and nature-based learning are established priorities.
Planning for learning strongly celebrates children’s voices, interests and dispositions. Teachers plan for individuals and record progress in narrative assessment. Carefully considered practice has strengthened parent input and collaboration in the planning process. Support for children’s transitions into and through the service, and on to school, is well developed. There is work to do to more clearly show children’s learning and progress in relation to the learning outcomes in Te Whāriki, the early childhood curriculum and to strengthen the visibility of families’ cultures in documentation. Evaluation linked to the success of teaching strategies in progressing learning could be improved.
Strong leadership, and relational trust, promote staff wellbeing and teamwork. A collective sense of responsibility has resulted from the teams’ work to identify values and curriculum priorities. This, together with a targeted approach to teacher development, has resulted in clear direction for teaching and learning.
Organisational conditions are well aligned to drive development. Internal evaluation informs ongoing improvements and leads to well considered change. Measures to support evaluation of progress in meeting strategic goals around curriculum priorities are in place but have not yet been evaluated.
Victoria University of Wellington Fairlie Terrace Early Childhood Service will include the following actions in its Quality Improvement Planning. This includes to:
children’s developing capabilities in relation to the learning outcomes from Te Whāriki to better show learning and progress over time
evaluate how well the strategic goals around the local curriculum have been met.
Before the review, the staff and management of Victoria University of Wellington Fairlie Terrace Early Childhood Service 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-compliance:
nappy changing facilities for infants are located in an area also used for play. The design and layout of the facilities do not ensure that children’s right to privacy is respected.
Licensing Criteria for Early Childhood Education and Care Services 2008; PF25.
Kathy Lye
Director Review and Improvement Services (Southern)
Southern Region | Te Tai Tini
2 March 2023
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Early Childhood Service Name |
Victoria University of Wellington Fairlie Terrace Early Childhood Service |
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Profile Number |
60253 |
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Location |
Wellington |
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Service type |
Education and care service |
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Number licensed for |
77 children, including up to 37 aged under 2 |
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Percentage of qualified teachers |
80-99% |
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Service roll |
74 |
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Review team on site |
September 2022 |
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Date of this report |
2 March 2023 |
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Most recent ERO report(s) |
Education Review, April 2018; Education Review, March 2015 |
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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.
Victoria University of Wellington Fairlie Terrace Early Childhood Service, is situated in Kelburn near the university. The service provides education and care for children aged from three months to five years. Both part and full-time sessions are offered, five days a week. At the time of this evaluation six Māori and three children of Pacific heritage were enrolled.
Most teachers are fully qualified and represent a diverse range of cultures. The centre, along with the nearby Clermont Terrace service, is owned by Victoria University of Wellington. An associate director of campus and student living, is employed by the university to provide strategic management, curriculum support and guidance for three head teachers and the teaching team.
The March 2015 ERO report identified areas requiring further improvement. These included: developing teacher practice to fully respond to the complex nature of individual children; strengthening assessment, planning and evaluation; and including te reo and te ao Māori experiences for children into the curriculum. Good progress has been made in addressing these areas.
The centre is divided into three adjacent learning areas. Te Whare Mokopuna caters for infants from three months to approximately 24 months of age. Toddlers then move across to Te Whare Mākaro, which cater for children aged from 24 months to three years. From here, children aged three to five years transition to Te Whare Matiu until they begin school.
Children confidently engage in an inspiring play-based curriculum. Teachers work closely alongside individuals and groups, supporting their learning. Interactions are highly respectful, responsive and fun. Growing children's independence and social competence is well supported. They have opportunities to challenge themselves and take risks. The creative arts and nature-based learning opportunities are centre strengths.
Infants and toddlers benefit from highly responsive interactions. They are respectfully offered space, time and choices. Teachers know children and their families very well, and tailor their practice accordingly. A well-considered range of open-ended, inviting sensory resources are offered for children to explore at their own pace.
Leaders and teachers continue to build their knowledge and understanding of te ao Māori, to assist them in developing a meaningful everyday bicultural curriculum. Aspects of kaupapa Māori are promoted in the centre, including children's pepeha, wall displays and artefacts. Leaders should continue to encourage teachers’ use of te reo Māori in conversations with children.
Whānau expertise and the university resources are used to extend and enhance children’s learning experiences. Children, teachers and whānau are provided opportunities to engage with te ao Māori and tikanga practices in meaningful ways.
The service is in the process of defining and unpacking its valued outcomes. As this process unfolds, they should consider ways to develop an overarching philosophy to support all three learning spaces. Indicators of good practice related to this philosophy should include specific strategies for working alongside whānau, targeting the educational success of Māori and Pacific children.
Assessment documentation highlights teachers’ close, positive relationships with children and their families. They draw on strong pedagogical knowledge to build valuable assessments that celebrate children’s skills, interests, dispositions and development. Leaders agree that their next step is to use these assessments, along with whānau aspirations and cultural information, to plan and evaluate specific teaching strategies that enhance children’s learning. This should be clearly evident in documentation.
Comprehensive, flexible processes are highly supportive of children and families as they transition into and through the centre. Useful settling strategies are sensitively tailored to individual children. It is timely for the teaching team to explore how a wider range of tailored strategies could better promote children’s confident transition to school.
Teachers collaborate on useful, child-focused reviews of their practice. Good quality information from discussion, reflection, research and observation, along with whānau and community consultation, informs improvements to the programme. Leaders should consider ways they can continue to build on teachers' knowledge and capability to use internal evaluation. This should assist them to better measure how their practices impact on children's learning.
An effective appraisal system is in place. Leaders and teachers use an inquiry and
knowledge-building approach to meet appraisal goals. Aligning goals to strategic plans will further enhance the process.
A highly effective, collaborative leadership model is in place. Leaders have high professional expectations, and have purposefully built a cohesive, positive team culture. There is a clear sense of purpose and commitment to enacting the philosophy in practice. Teachers have many opportunities to engage in professional development and debate, and to grow their leadership skills.
ERO, leaders and teachers agree that the next steps for improvement are:
Before the review, the staff and management of Victoria University of Wellington Fairlie Terrace Early Childhood 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:
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 Victoria University of Wellington Fairlie Terrace Early Childhood Service will be in three years.
Alan Wynyard
Deputy Chief Review Officer Central (Acting)
Te Tai Pokapū - Central Region
6 April 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 |
Wellington |
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Ministry of Education profile number |
60253 |
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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 |
77 children, including up to 37 aged under 2 |
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Service roll |
75 |
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Gender composition |
Girls 29, Boys 46 |
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Ethnic composition |
Māori |
6 |
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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 |
1:8 |
Better than minimum requirements |
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Review team on site |
March 2018 |
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Date of this report |
6 April 2018 |
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Most recent ERO report(s)
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Education Review Education Review |
March 2015 June 2010 |
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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.