165 Renall Street, Masterton
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.
Westside Playcentre is licensed to provide mixed-age education and care for 30 children, three sessions a week. This includes provision for 15 children aged up to two years. At the time of the review there are 40 children enrolled.
During 2018, playcentres are transitioning from operating as 32 regional associations to becoming one national body, Playcentre Aotearoa. In the lower North Island eight associations have merged into a region renamed Playcentre Aotearoa Lower North Island Region. Playcentre Aotearoa is governed nationally through an annual general meeting and a trustee board that reflects the organisation’s bicultural partnership model. The board includes equal membership from a general Tangata Tiriti caucus and Te Whare Tikanga Māori, a group of consisting of whānau Māori.
The philosophy of Playcentre Aotearoa, 'Whānau tupu ngātahi – families growing together', is to empower parents and children to learn, play and grow together. Alongside this, the centre philosophy acknowledges that, 'children initiate their own play' and they 'can help, teach and learn from each other'.
A centre support worker and an administrator are employed to visit playcentres and provide professional advice and support, and to promote improvement. For Westside Playcentre, the region’s centre support co-ordinator and te ao Māori field worker are yet to be appointed. Responsibility for day-to-day operation is undertaken by members who are office holders. Each session is supported by a team of parent educators who hold, or are working towards, Playcentre Education Awards.
Prior to 2018, little support was being provided to members at Westside Playcentre. New support staff acknowledge the need to prioritise this centre's contact and monitoring to improve some areas of practice. At the time of this review, support was in the beginning stages.
The November 2014 ERO report for Westside Playcentre identified areas for development for the centre and the former Wairarapa Association. Members were to continue to build the quality and consistency of assessment practices, enhance culturally responsive practices and build strong sense of team culture and emergent leadership. Progress in these areas is ongoing.
This is one of a cluster of two playcentre reviews in the Playcentre Aotearoa Lower North Island Region.
Members have successfully maintained a positive learning environment for children during periods of reduced association support. They collaborate as a whānau, working respectfully alongside their own and other children to support their learning and wellbeing.
Children have good opportunities to make decisions and choices about their involvement in play. Positive interactions and tuakana teina relationships are evident. Thoughtful outdoor spaces invite children's exploration and discovery.
Some aspects of kaupapa Māori are evident. Plans are in place to build members' knowledge through valuable whānau expertise, Playcentre Aotearoa support and professional learning with local iwi. This should assist the centre to develop culturally responsive practices that support tamariki Māori and enact a localised bicultural curriculum, unique to Westside Playcentre.
Adults document useful observations and analysis of children's individual and group interests. Clear communication strategies are used to plan activities that allow children to revisit experiences. Members are alert to the valuable learning opportunities within play experiences, and usefully link assessment documentation to learning dispositions and Te Whāriki, the early childhood curriculum. A next step is to plan strategies that challenge children to extend their learning. As the cycle of assessment, planning and evaluation develops, regional staff should support members to use cultural information to strengthen their response to children's culture, language and identity.
At regional level, clear roles and expectations for centre support staff have been established. These include building effective internal evaluation practices at centre level. A more evaluative approach, including reporting more deliberately about impacts for children should assist both centre and regional personnel to know how well planned actions improve outcomes for all.
The organisation has useful monitoring and reporting systems, and these with clearer support and management roles, are likely to promote improvements. A good range of communication strategies is in place to inform parents and whānau of ongoing changes and invite their input. Some current policies and processes remain in place until new systems are implemented nationally. An emphasis on establishing consistency and efficiency, to better support effective practice in centres, is evident.
At Westside Playcentre, the priorities are to:
develop the cycle of assessment, planning and evaluation
build the bicultural curriculum and culturally responsive practices.
For regional staff, priorities are to support members to strengthen their:
understanding and implementation of new policies and systems
understanding of effective internal evaluation.
ERO recommends that regional staff actively support and monitor the quality and effectiveness of playcentre practices, in order to be assured that outcomes for children and their whānau are improved through effective systems, processes and internal evaluation.
Before the review, the staff and management of Westside 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 Westside Playcentre will be in three years.
Alan Wynyard
Deputy Chief Review Officer Central (Acting)
Te Tai Pokapū - Central Region
24 July 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 |
Masterton |
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Ministry of Education profile number |
60010 |
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Licence type |
Playcentre |
||
|
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 |
40 |
||
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Gender composition |
Girls 24, Boys 16 |
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Ethnic composition |
Māori |
1 |
|
|
Reported ratios of adults to children |
Under 2 |
1:2 |
Better than minimum requirements |
|
Over 2 |
1:2 |
Better than minimum requirements |
|
|
Review team on site |
May 2018 |
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Date of this report |
24 July 2018 |
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Most recent ERO report(s) |
Education Review |
November 2014 |
|
|
Education Review |
March 2013 |
||
|
Education Review |
June 2009 |
||
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.
Westside Playcentre is one of three parent-led early childhood centres administered by the Wairarapa Playcentre Association, (the association) which oversees governance operations. An executive committee provides the adult education programme, guidance and support for members. A centre support person is employed by the executive to visit playcentres and provide professional advice and feedback to strengthen practice and promote improvement.
The playcentre operates mixed age sessions, three mornings per week. Each session is run by a team of parents whose responsibility it is to set up, maintain activities and complete the end of session evaluation and planning for the next week. Playcentre philosophy recognises parents as the first teachers of their children and emphasises the importance of child-initiated play.
Concerns identified in the March 2013 ERO report have been, or are in the process of being, addressed. The New Zealand Playcentre Federation has provided centre members with professional learning and development (PLD) in self review; planning, assessment and evaluation, and positive guidance. This training has had a positive impact on the quality of the children’s programme.
This review was part of a cluster of three playcentre reviews in the Wairarapa Playcentre Association.
Children enthusiastically engage in a child-initiated play-based programme. Playcentre philosophy guides practice and is underpinned by the early childhood curriculum, Te Whāriki.
Since the previous ERO review, members have been developing their assessment, planning and evaluation of children’s learning. As a result, there is improved quality and consistency in practice. Centre members have identified they should continue to access PLD to embed these processes to enhance children’s learning outcomes. Each child’s journey of learning and development is recorded in their individual portfolios, which are contributed to by parents and playcentre members.
Vibrant and stimulating indoor and outdoor spaces are organised to encourage children to learn, explore and develop their physical skills. Individuals confidently make decisions about their participation in play and activities. They take part in sustained cooperative engagement with peers.
Information provided by parents guides understanding of each child’s personality, communication skills and particular needs. Adults engage in conversation with children to extend language and thinking. Opportunities for children to be creative, imaginative and messy are abundant. Adults are highly attuned to children’s needs.
Infants and toddlers are well supported to explore, interact, plan and have fun with attentive adults and each other. Babies have the protection of a designated area within the main play space.
Literacy, numeracy, mathematics and science learning are integrated throughout the curriculum in appropriate ways.
Te ao Māori is reflected through waiata, signage and modelling basic te reo Māori. Increasing the capability of centre members and continuing to develop programmes that are responsive to the cultural identity of families is a next step.
Well thought out strategies support children’s and families’ induction and welcome into the centre. Succession planning for leaders is designed to ensure sustainability. Centre members see this as an ongoing development. Self review effectively informs improvement and change.
Strategic and annual planning clearly identifies the playcentre’s priorities and goals. They are strongly linked to positive learning outcomes for children.
Members have identified that they should continue to:
build the quality and consistency of assessment practices
enhance culturally responsive practice
build strong and sustainable playcentre through increasing a sense of team culture and emergent leadership.
The association provides good support and a range of training for members. Since the previous ERO review it has provided new personnel to support centres. The association should:
assist members to address the key next steps they have identified
engage with iwi to encourage a wider involvement of Māori
seek support to further develop cultural competencies
ensure the team leader's development needs are suitably identified and addressed through a robust appraisal process.
Before the review, the staff and management of Westside 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:
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; 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 Westside Playcentre will be in three years.
Joyce Gebbie,
National Manager Review Services Central Region,
28 November 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 |
Wairarapa |
||
|
Ministry of Education profile number |
60010 |
||
|
Licence type |
Playcentre |
||
|
Licensed under |
Education (Early Childhood Services) Regulations 2008 |
||
|
Number licensed for |
30 children, including 15 aged up to 2 |
||
|
Service roll |
35 |
||
|
Gender composition |
Girls 23, Boys 12 |
||
|
Ethnic composition |
Māori NZ European/Pākehā Japanese |
1 32 2 |
|
|
Reported ratios of staff to children |
Under 2 |
1:1 |
Better than minimum requirements |
|
Over 2 |
1:2 |
Better than minimum requirements |
|
|
Review team on site |
October 2014 |
||
|
Date of this report |
28 November 2014 |
||
|
Most recent ERO report(s) |
Education Review |
March 2013 |
|
|
Education Review |
June 2009 |
||
|
Education Review |
April 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:
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.