St Marys Road, Waipu
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.
Waipu Playcentre is an established semi-rural centre that operates as a parent cooperative. Centre practices are based on the Playcentre philosophy of families learning and growing together, and supporting children to become independent learners. It is open for three sessions each week.
Since the 2013 review the centre has gone through a significant change in membership and leadership. Most members are new to the centre and have willingly taken on leadership roles. Many members have completed Course 1 and 2 and are moving onto Course 3 in the Playcentre adult education programme.
The centre is part of the Northland Playcentre Association. The Association is the umbrella organisation for 22 centres in Northland, many of which are semi-rural. The Association provides systems to help members manage their centres and support their children's learning. It also provides adult education programmes for Playcentre qualifications. As part of a current Playcentre Aotearoa national restructure there will be a new regional manager and new centre support roles.
This review was part of a cluster of six reviews in the Northern Playcentre Association.
Children play in a family oriented environment where they feel safe to grow in confidence and capability. When left to their own play, children choose where they want to be and are comfortable to seek out their favourite activities in this well resourced and spacious centre.
Parents/whānau focus on the active participation of children and the development of social skills. They are responsive to children's needs and play with children in group activities that tend to be adult led. It is timely to adjust the focus of activities towards more child-led personalised play. More emphasis could be placed on children following their own interests and strengths with adults in a support role. This strategy is more aligned to helping children to develop independence.
Centre members are accepting, inclusive and supportive of each other's cultures and identities. Bicultural perspectives are strongly integrated into learning experiences. Adults' strengths are used well to enhance programmes for children.
Centre members are developing consultative and transparent internal evaluation systems so that they can make informed decisions about areas that need improvement. A recent review has resulted in a bike track being added to the children's outdoor play area.
Committee members are committed to the success of the centre. They are clear about their roles and welcome other members to join them as they feel ready. Parents/whānau are encouraged to take leadership roles and to share their wide range of strengths and talents. More experienced centre members support others to develop in their role as educators. Continuing education and training for all parents is an ongoing priority.
The Association management team takes responsibility for specific tasks relating to the efficient operation of Playcentres. They actively foster emergent leadership to sustain the Association and centre viability. The Association provides good support to help Playcentres remain well placed to provide positive learning outcomes for children.
Centre members recognise that the key next steps to develop their centre include:
To help strengthen operations in all Northland centres, new regional support personnel should consider ways to:
Before the review, the staff and management of Waipu 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.
The next ERO review of Waipu Playcentre will be in three years.
Steffan Brough
Deputy Chief Review Officer Northern (Acting)
22 May 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 |
Waipu, Northland |
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Ministry of Education profile number |
16689 |
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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 16 aged under 2 |
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Service roll |
19 |
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Gender composition |
Girls 10 |
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Ethnic composition |
Māori |
1 |
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Reported ratios of staff to children |
Under 2 |
1:3 |
Better than minimum requirements |
|
Over 2 |
1:3 |
Better than minimum requirements |
|
|
Review team on site |
March 2017 |
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Date of this report |
22 May 2017 |
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Most recent ERO report(s)
|
Education Review |
December 2013 |
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|
Education Review |
December 2010 |
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|
Education Review |
September 2007 |
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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.
Waipu Playcentre is situated in a small coastal settlement south of Whangarei. It provides early childhood education for children up to six years of age in three family sessions each week. The centre operates as part of the Northland Playcentre Association, which provides a framework of governance and management as well as advice and support. A Centre Support Worker (CSW) visits regularly and a kaiawhina tutors parents in te reo and tikanga Māori.
The playcentre philosophy, which forms the basis for all operations at the centre, values parents as first educators. Parents plan and deliver sessions and keep records of their children's learning. They also participate in playcentre training programmes to learn alongside their children.
In 2010, ERO found the playcentre to be operating well with parents providing good support for their children's play. Centre members agreed that further development of centre management systems and strengthening the quality of learning experiences for children were their next steps for improving the service. Parents continue to make improvements in these areas.
The centre is well placed to provide positive learning outcomes for children. Although family numbers are currently quite low, parents actively engage in the parent education programme and provide good support for newer members to develop their skills and knowledge. Parents are growing their capacity to provide challenging learning experiences for children. They are strongly committed to the playcentre philosophy of supporting children to become independent learners.
Children are happy and settled in the centre. They share warm and trusting relationships with adults and interact confidently with their friends. Children know about making choices and enthusiastically join planned activities or independently select resources. They enjoy programmes that provide good opportunities for them to access a wide range of traditional early childhood play areas. Children have begun to learn about te reo and tikanga Māori. Children under two years old explore resources with confidence, but may benefit from a more toddler-orientated focus in some planned activities.
Parents support children's involvement in the programme well. They consistently work alongside them asking questions, describing play and encouraging children to persist with tasks. Parents support children to become self managing as they prepare for transition to school. They effectively integrate elements of early literacy and numeracy in meaningful contexts to support this process.
Parents plan programmes based on children's interests. They use a simple planning format to individually record play they have noticed and use this information to prepare ideas and resources for subsequent sessions. Parents recognise that a more collaborative approach to documenting play could encourage better analysis of children's learning. Parents also maintain valued portfolios of their child’s playcentre experiences. While their rich narratives are memorable records, parents could review these assessment processes to simplify records and develop concise steps for recognising and responding to learning.
Parents are highly cooperative in their management of the centre. They hold regular meetings, and are guided by an annual plan to achieve goals for property maintenance, fundraising and parent education. As they approach their annual general meeting parents have volunteered for new leadership roles in the centre. A priority task for the new committee is to review the strategic plan. This should include parents considering goals for succession planning and ways to promote the success of Māori children as Māori.
ERO and centre members agree that key next steps for centre development include:
Before the review, the staff and management of Waipu 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.
The next ERO review of Waipu Playcentre will be in three years.
Dale Bailey
National Manager Review Services
Northern Region
2 December 2013
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 |
Waipu, Northland |
||
|
Ministry of Education profile number |
16689 |
||
|
Licence type |
Playcentre |
||
|
Licensed under |
Education (Early Childhood Services) Regulations 2008 |
||
|
Number licensed for |
30 children, including up to 16 aged under 2 |
||
|
Service roll |
16 |
||
|
Gender composition |
Girls 14 Boys 2 |
||
|
Ethnic composition |
Māori NZ European/Pākehā Australian Thai |
3 11 1 1 |
|
|
Reported ratios of staff to children |
Under 2 |
1:3 |
Better than minimum requirements |
|
Over 2 |
1:3 |
Better than minimum requirements |
|
|
Review team on site |
September 2013 |
||
|
Date of this report |
2 December 2013 |
||
|
Most recent ERO report(s) |
Education Review |
December 2010 |
|
|
Supplementary Review |
September 2007 |
||
|
Education Review |
May 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.