State Highway 12, Waimamaku
View on mapWaimamaku Playcentre
Waimamaku Playcentre - 22/05/2017
1 Evaluation of Waimamaku Playcentre
How well placed is Waimamaku Playcentre to promote positive learning outcomes for children?
Not well placed |
Requires further development |
Well placed |
Very well placed |
ERO's findings that support this overall judgement are summarised below.
Background
Waimamaku Playcentre is open on Tuesday and Thursday each week and is licensed for 30 children, including eight children up to two years of age. The Playcentre operates as a parent co-operative and provides a mixed-age programme. Children currently attending have Māori or Pākehā heritage.
The Playcentre philosophy affirms parents as valued and best educators of their children. Sessions are guided by Te Whāriki, the early childhood curriculum and a commitment to Te Tiriti o Waitangi.
ERO's 2012 report noted that members skilfully supported children's independence and their relationships with others. These features remain evident. ERO recommended that members better monitor their progress towards long-term goals. This work continues to be a priority.
Since 2012, the Playcentre has been relicensed under the Education (Early Childhood Services) Regulations 2008.
A process has begun for Waimamaku Playcentre to become part of the Northland Playcentre Association. The Association provides systems to help members to manage the centres and support their children's learning. It also provides adult education programmes for Playcentre qualifications. As part of a national restructure of Playcentre Aotearoa there will be a new regional manager and new centre support roles.
This review was part of a cluster of three reviews in the Northland Playcentre Association.
The Review Findings
Caring and warm relationships between adults and children encourage children's participation in the programme. Adults work together well and support children to make decisions and express their ideas. They actively listen to children and work well alongside them to support their ideas and interests. Some basic te reo Māori is used in appropriate ways.
Older children involve themselves in meaningful and focused play. Members have identified a need to plan specifically to extend older children's learning. They could also consider how to provide infants with more opportunities for exploration.
A Centre Support Worker (CSW) worked with members to establish a process to record children's experiences in the daily programme. Members are beginning to make links with Te Whāriki, the early childhood curriculum. Individual assessment portfolios show children's interests, and members are increasingly writing about the learning that happens as children play. They now need to plan experiences to extend children's interests and evaluate the impact of these experiences on children's learning.
Experienced members provide leadership and work well together to manage the Playcentre. They help newer members to build their knowledge. Some members are currently enrolled in courses to improve their Playcentre training levels. As a result of Association support, long-term and annual plans have recently been established. Internal evaluation processes have also been implemented. Members are keen to use these new systems to guide the centre's ongoing improvement.
Effective guidance from the CSW has enabled members to make significant improvements to practices and systems. Members appreciate the very good support they have received from Association staff.
Key Next Steps
Key next steps for centre members include:
- developing shared understandings of how to extend children's learning in the different age groups
- using daily programme records to plan meaningful learning experiences in response to children's interests.
To strengthen operations in all Northland Playcentres, key next steps for the Association include supporting members to:
- build upon recently established programme planning and assessment practices
- develop programme evaluation by recording the impact of the programme on children's learning
- evaluate progress towards long term and annual goals.
Management Assurance on Legal Requirements
Before the review, the staff and management of Waimamaku 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.
In order to improve practices, the Association and centre members should ensure that playground soft-fall surfaces meet the required safety standards.
Next ERO Review
When is ERO likely to review the service again?
The next ERO review of Waimamaku Playcentre will be in three years.
Steffan Brough
Deputy Chief Review Officer Northern (Acting)
22 May 2017
The Purpose of ERO Reports
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.
2 Information about the Early Childhood Service
Location |
Waimamaku, Northland |
||
Ministry of Education profile number |
17153 |
||
Licence type |
Playcentre |
||
Licensed under |
Education (Early Childhood Services) Regulations 2008 |
||
Number licensed for |
30 children, including up to 8 aged under 2 |
||
Service roll |
21 |
||
Gender composition |
Boys 11 |
||
Ethnic composition |
Māori |
3 |
|
Reported ratios of staff to children |
Under 2 |
1:3 |
Better than minimum requirements |
Over 2 |
1:5 |
Better than minimum requirements |
|
Review team on site |
March 2017 |
||
Date of this report |
22 May 2017 |
||
Most recent ERO report(s)
|
Education Review |
November 2012 |
|
Education Review |
March 2009 |
||
Education Review |
November 2005 |
3 General Information about Early Childhood Reviews
ERO’s Evaluation Framework
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.
ERO’s Overall Judgement and Next Review
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:
- Very well placed – The next ERO review in four years
- Well placed – The next ERO review in three years
- Requires further development – The next ERO review within two years
- Not well placed - The next ERO review in consultation with the Ministry of Education
ERO has developed criteria for each category. These are available on ERO’s website.
Review Coverage
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.
Waimamaku Playcentre - 26/11/2012
1 Evaluation of the Service
How well placed is the service to promote positive outcomes for children?
Waimamaku Playcentre is very well placed to promote positive outcomes for children.
Context
Waimamaku Playcentre is a small, rural centre that plays a key role in catering for the local community’s younger families. It is open on Tuesday and Thursday each week and provides a programme for infants and children up to five years of age. The Playcentre operates as a parent co-operative and is part of the Mid Northland Playcentre Association. The Playcentre philosophy of children and families learning together is strongly evident.
Centre members demonstrate a strong commitment to maintaining centre viability and building on their Playcentre training levels. More experienced members support and encourage newer members to build their capability.
Regular representation from the Playcentre at Association meetings, followed with feedback to other centre members, helps all members to be informed about Playcentre matters beyond the local level. A current priority for members is the preparation for relicensing with the Ministry of Education under the Education (Early Childhood Services) Regulations 2008.
Centre members responded well to ERO’s 2009 review. They have successfully focused on promoting children’s independence and improving programme provision for literacy, numeracy and science in the curriculum.
Areas of strength
Centre members invest good time and energy into their Playcentre role. The centre is managed effectively. A strategic plan that includes appropriate objectives is in place. Training in self review, guided by a Playcentre trainer, has resulted in the establishment of review processes aimed at improving programme outcomes for children.
Encouraging and positive relationships are a feature of the Playcentre. A culture of openness results in good communication between centre members. Children and families demonstrate a clear sense of belonging within the Playcentre community. Adults support each other very well and inclusive practice is well embedded.
Children enjoy a programme that provides challenge within a supportive environment. Older children engage in collaborative play, independent of adults. They have many opportunities for being creative and imaginative. Adults are sensitive about the needs of children up to two years of age. Purposeful and skilled adults provide a good range of opportunities to extend children’s learning.
The Playcentre’s curriculum is based on Te Whāriki, New Zealand’s early childhood curriculum framework. Children learn through play in a resource-rich environment. The values and priorities of centre families are reflected in the programme as members share their skills and knowledge with others. Centre members are thoughtful about the ways they can provide a bicultural curriculum and encourage the participation of whānau Māori. Significant use is made of trips within the local and wider community to broaden children’s knowledge.
Good information about children’s learning is documented at planning meetings. Centre members share their knowledge of each child, their current learning and developmental stage. Some members skilfully analyse their observations of children and document the links between the programme and children’s learning. Other members continue to develop their skills in this area.
Areas for development and review
ERO and centre members agree that next steps for centre development include:
- planning for the ongoing monitoring and evaluation of the Playcentre’s strategic plan to determine progress against the plan’s objectives and to identify the impact on outcomes for children
- improving the resourcing of Information and Communication Technology (ICT) to support centre members with record keeping and to assist with communication.
2 Legal Requirements
Management Assurance on Legal Requirements
Before the review, the management of Waimamaku 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:
- administration
- health, safety and welfare
- personnel management
- financial and property management.
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.
3 Next Review
When is ERO likely to review the early childhood service again?
ERO is likely to carry out the next review in three years.
Makere Smith National Manager Review Services Northern Region (Acting)
26 November 2012
Information about the Early Childhood Service
Location |
Waimamaku |
|
Ministry of Education profile number |
17153 |
|
Licence type |
Playcentre |
|
Licensed under |
Education (Early Childhood Centres) Regulations 1998 |
|
Number licensed for |
30 children, including up to 8 aged under 2 |
|
Service roll |
17 |
|
Gender composition |
Girls 9, Boys 8 |
|
Ethnic composition |
NZ European/Pākehā Māori |
15 2 |
Review team on site |
August 2012 |
|
Date of this report |
26 November 2012 |
|
Most recent ERO report(s) |
Education Review Education Review Accountability Review |
March 2009 November 2005 March 2002 |
General Information about Early Childhood Reviews
About ERO Reviews
The Education Review Office (ERO) is the New Zealand government department that reviews schools and early childhood services throughout New Zealand.
Review focus
ERO's education reviews in early childhood services focus on the factors that contribute to positive learning outcomes for children. ERO evaluates how well placed the service is to make and sustain improvements for the benefit of all children at the service. To reach these findings ERO considers:
- 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 self review and partnerships with parents and whānau.
Review Coverage
ERO reviews do not cover every aspect of service performance and each ERO report may cover different issues. The aim is to provide information on aspects that are central to positive outcomes for children and useful to the service.