139 Queen Street, Northcote Point, Auckland
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 |
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Curriculum |
Meeting |
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Premises and facilities |
Meeting |
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Health and safety |
Meeting |
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Governance, management and administration |
Meeting |
Since the onsite visit, the service has provided ERO with evidence that shows it has addressed non-compliances and is now taking reasonable steps to meet regulatory standards.
Akoteu To'o Lelei is located within the grounds of Mt Hermon Tongan Methodist Church. The service is governed by a board that includes parent representatives. There are six staff including two qualified teachers. A supervisor works closely with an administrator to oversee daily operations. The service’s philosophy promotes Christian values, and the Tongan language and culture.
Faiako provide a curriculum that acknowledges the place of Māori as tangata whenua and supports children to be confident in their own culture. Adults engage in meaningful, positive interactions to nurture reciprocal relationships, and to enhance children’s learning in a Tongan language-rich environment.
The service was not meeting regulatory standards in a significant number of areas. Consistent implementation and monitoring of health and safety practices is needed to maintain licensing requirements. Effective governance and management systems, and ongoing self-review and evaluation that support improvement are yet to be established.
A next step is to:
continue to develop the local curriculum to reflect the things that are important to children and their families, to faiako and the wider community.
Since the onsite visit, the service has provided ERO with evidence that shows it has addressed the following non-compliances:
Ensuring windows or other areas of glass accessible to children are either made of safety glass, covered by an adhesive film, or effectively guarded by barriers which prevent a child falling against the glass (PF7).
Ensuring the outdoor activity space is suitably surfaced, specifically where fixed structures are located, and that fencing is maintained to ensure that children are not able to become trapped (PF13).
Having a procedure for the changing of nappies that aims to ensure that children are treated with dignity and respect (HS3).
Having a current fire evacuation scheme approved by Fire and Emergency New Zealand (HS4).
Ensuring the shelving unit that is used for storing bedding is secured (HS6).
Having a written emergency plan that includes at least: a list of safety and emergency supplies and resources sufficient for the age and number of children and adults at the service; details of how these will be maintained and accessed in an emergency; details of the roles and responsibilities that will apply during an emergency situation; a communication plan for families and support services; and evidence of review of the plan on at least an annual basis and implementation of improved practices as required (HS7).
Having evidence of how evaluation of emergency drills has informed the annual review of the service’s emergency plan (HS8).
Having a written procedure for monitoring children’s sleep that includes an expectation that children are checked for warmth, breathing, and general wellbeing at least every 5 to 10 minutes, or more frequently according to individual needs (HS9).
Having a documented risk management system to record daily hazards and ensuring records are analysed to identify hazards and appropriate action taken to eliminate, isolate, and minimise these (HS12).
Ensuring the temperature of warm water delivered from taps that are accessible to children is no higher than 40°C (HS13).
Ensuring water stored in hot water cylinder is kept at a temperature of at least 60°C (HS14).
Ensuring all records of excursions include the location and method of travel; assessment and management of risk; stated adult:child ratios; evidence of parental permission and approval of adult:child ratios for regular and special excursions and the signature of the person responsible for giving approval for the excursion to take place (HS17).
Having evidence of parental permission for any travel by motor vehicle (HS18).
Promoting best practices for serving food as set out in Ministry of Health: Reducing food-related choking for babies and young children at early learning services, including providing to all parents at the time of enrolment a copy of Ministry of Health: Reducing food-related choking for babies and young children at early learning services (HS22).
Having a procedure outlining the service’s response to injury, illness, and incident, including the review and implementation of practices as required (HS27).
Having a record of the written authority from parents and parent acknowledgement of medicine administered in accordance with the requirement for the category of medicine outlined in Appendix 3 (HS28).
Having a record of training and/or information provided to adults who administer medicine to children (other than their own) while at the service (HS29).
Having a process of self-review and internal evaluation that includes any recorded outcomes showing improvements to the quality of its education and care in the different areas of centre operations (GMA6).
Having a process for human resource management that includes a definition of serious misconduct (GMA7).
Having a written procedure for the safety checking of all children’s workers before employment or engagement of the worker commences that meets the safety checking requirements of the Children’s Act 2014 and maintaining a record of all safety checks and the results (GMA7A).
The next ERO review is likely to be an Akarangi | Quality Evaluation.
Patricia Davey
Director of Early Childhood Education (ECE)
10 October 2023
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Early Childhood Service Name |
Akoteu To'o Lelei |
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Profile Number |
10137 |
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Location |
Northcote Point, Auckland |
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Service type |
Education and care service |
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Number licensed for |
35 children over 2 years |
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Percentage of qualified teachers |
50-79% |
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Service roll |
28 |
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Review team on site |
July 2023 |
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Date of this report |
10 October 2023 |
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Most recent ERO report(s) |
Education Review, June 2020; Education Review, June 2016 |
All services 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:
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Not well placed |
Requires further development |
Well placed |
Very well placed |
Akoteu To'o Lelei is well placed to promote positive learning outcomes for children.
ERO's findings that support this overall judgement are summarised below.
Akoteu To'o Lelei is an early childhood centre located on the grounds of Mt Hermon Tongan Methodist Church, Northcote Point. It is licensed to provide full-day care for 35 children aged from two to six years. The philosophy promotes Christian values and early childhood education through total immersion in Tongan language and culture.
The service provider is the Auckland Manukau Tongan Methodist Parish. The centre is governed by a board that consists of staff, church leaders and a co-opted representative of the service provider who is the acting chairman. The acting chairman has been providing governance support for the board since mid-2019. Board members are all from the Mt Hermon Tongan Methodist Church community and some are also employees of the akoteu.
Staff include a new centre manager, a cook, maintenance person and an administrator, and two qualified teachers, one of whom is the new supervisor. One teacher holds full certification and the other holds provisional.
The 2016 ERO report noted that internal evaluation was promoting positive outcomes for children. It identified next steps for improvement in curriculum, extending the complexity of children's play, internal evaluation and strengthening partnerships with parents.
Children are warmly welcomed by teachers and settle quickly to play. They work cooperatively in groups with high levels of conversation in Tongan language and friendships. They make choices about their play and are supported to deepen their thinking and extend their play through conversations with teachers. Positive and calm relationships between teachers and children encourage children to learn about self-management and resilience.
Teachers work closely with children and provide sensitive and caring support for younger children settling into the centre. Older children are given deliberate opportunities to practise tuakana/teina responses to younger children. The sense that this is a family-oriented service is evident in mixed-age play throughout the akoteu.
Teachers' assessment, programme planning and evaluation is developing, and needs further refinement. Linking the three processes as one cycle of work should help teachers to better consider the positive outcomes for children. Teachers use a messenger service to inform parents of their children's progress. This has encouraged more frequent sharing about children's development over time and helped to build closer learning partnerships with parents.
The governance board has a clear vision, philosophy and strategic direction. Members have implemented useful strategic plans that prioritise key centre goals. These include a marketing plan to increase enrolments and strategies to improve its financial position. Strategic and annual plans should make better use of teachers' internal evaluation to plan improved outcomes for children aligned to Te Whāriki, the early childhood curriculum. This should help the board, managers and staff to collaboratively build an organisational culture that supports ongoing improvement.
The board has developed a new policy framework to guide centre operations and implemented a cycle of policy review. It is continuing to develop a full complement of policies to ensure that requirements are met. Akoteu leaders should ensure that policy review is in consultation with staff and parents. This should help to build shared ownership and understanding of policies and procedures and improve consistency of practice.
Accountability systems have been strengthened. Regular board and staff meetings include established lines of reporting including curriculum, financial management, health and safety and policies. Teachers' appraisals have been updated to align with Teaching Council requirements.
It is timely for the manager and supervisor to access external professional development for teachers to grow their leadership capacity and internal evaluation that informs decision making and improvement. Budgeted staff professional development and resourcing should be allocated to enhance positive outcomes for children. Employing an additional, qualified teacher to ensure that expected ratios are met is also an important consideration for the board.
The priorities for improvement are for:
the board, leaders and teachers to develop an organisational culture that supports ongoing improvement, and enhances shared decision making and responsibility
teachers to access external professional development to grow internal evaluation and leadership capacity
the board, leaders and teachers to review all excursion policies and procedures to ensure that current practices are strengthened for the safety and wellbeing of children.
ERO has requested from the service provider an action plan that shows how the key next steps will be addressed. ERO will request progress updates against the plan.
Before the review, the staff and management of Akoteu To'o Lelei 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 visit, the service has provided ERO with evidence to show that:
Steve Tanner
Director Review and Improvement Services (Northern)
Northern Region - Te Tai Raki
5 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 |
Northcote, Auckland |
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Ministry of Education profile number |
10137 |
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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 |
35 children over the age of 2 years |
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Service roll |
16 |
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Gender composition |
Girls 9 Boys 7 |
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Ethnic composition |
Tongan |
16 |
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Percentage of qualified teachers |
80% + |
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Reported ratios of staff to children |
Over 2 |
1:8 |
Better than minimum requirements |
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Review team on site |
February 2020 |
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Date of this report |
5 June 2020 |
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Most recent ERO report(s) |
Education Review |
June 2016 |
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|
Education Review |
March 2014 |
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|
Education Review |
November 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:
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.