141 Universal Drive, Henderson, Auckland
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 Babies and Buddies Early Childhood Centre are as follows:
Outcome Indicators(What the service knows about outcomes for learners) | Whāngai Establishing |
Ngā Akatoro Domains | |
Learning ConditionsOrganisational Conditions | Whāngai Establishing Whakatō Emerging |
Babies and Buddies Early Childhood Centre is a privately owned service. Two age-specific areas provide for children from infants to school age. The service owner is supported by a qualified centre manager, who leads a team of seven, including four qualified teachers and a cook. Approximately one quarter of the children attending are Māori or have Pacific heritage.
Children experience an environment that is calm and respectful with unhurried routines. An understanding of children’s verbal and non-verbal cues enables teachers to provide consistent caregiving practices which respond sensitively to each child’s needs and preferences. Intentionally set-up learning environments encourage children to initiate their own play within the mixed-age grouping. These support peer relationships where children can play and learn with and alongside each other.
Children have opportunities to celebrate cultural events and explore a learning environment where basic Māori words and waiata (songs) are heard. They benefit from a language-rich environment where teachers acknowledge their home languages and cultures.
Learning priorities for children have been identified by teachers to inform the planning and assessment process. They are working to establish learning documentation that more consistently shows children’s individual learning progress over time and reflects their languages and cultures.
Leaders and teachers engage in responsive, reciprocal, and respectful relationships with children and their whānau. They are in the early stages of gathering the aspirations whānau have for their children. A systematic approach for collecting parental aspirations and using them to inform the curriculum has not yet been fully implemented.
Leaders have developed a system of internal evaluation which is still at the early stages of implementation. They have self-identified a need to develop a collective understanding about evaluation amongst the teaching team. This would enable them to use internal evaluation effectively to support ongoing improvement.
Leaders have developed a process for supporting teacher growth through the professional growth cycle. Further work is now needed to guide teachers’ inquiry into their teaching practices and to support them to make evidence-based changes.
Babies and Buddies Early Childhood Centre will include the following actions in its Quality Improvement Planning:
Before the review, the staff and management of Babies and Buddies Early Childhood Centre 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:
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.
Patricia Davey
Director of Early Childhood Education (ECE)
15 July 2024
| Early Childhood Service Name | Babies and Buddies Early Childhood Centre |
| Profile Number | 20472 |
| Location | Henderson, Auckland |
| Service type | Education and care service |
| Number licensed for | 30 children, including up to 10 aged under 2 |
| Percentage of qualified teachers | 80-99% |
| Service roll | 33 |
| Review team on site | March 2024 |
| Date of this report | 15 July 2024 |
| Most recent ERO report(s) | Akanuku | Assurance Review, December 2022; Education Review, May 2018 |
ERO’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 |
|
Curriculum |
Meeting |
|
Premises and facilities |
Meeting |
|
Health and safety |
Not meeting |
|
Governance, management and administration |
Not meeting |
At the time of the review, ERO identified areas of non-compliance with regulatory standards that are an unacceptable risk to children.
Babies and Buddies Early Childhood Centre is a well-established service, which provides education and care within learning spaces for different age groups of children. The service has been owned and managed by the same director for over 16 years. She is supported by a teaching team, most of whom were present during the last review. At the time of the review, almost half of the children enrolled were of Māori or Pacific ethnicities.
Children experience a curriculum which is consistent with Te Whāriki, the New Zealand early childhood curriculum. It is informed by assessment, planning and evaluation that demonstrate an understanding of children’s learning, their interests, whānau, and life contexts. The curriculum is inclusive and responsive to children as confident and competent learners. Children’s preferences are respected, and they are involved in decisions about their learning experiences. Adults providing education and care engage in meaningful, positive interactions that nurture reciprocal relationships.
Stronger systems and processes need to be developed and implemented to ensure the requirements of the regulatory standards are being maintained.
ERO found areas of non-compliance in the service relating to:
the premises being located in a building that has a current fire evacuation scheme approved by Fire and Emergency New Zealand
maintaining a record of emergency drills for all emergency situations relevant to the service, and evidence of how evaluation of these drills has informed the annual review of the service’s emergency plan
having a procedure for monitoring children’s sleep which ensures children do not have access to food and liquids while in bed; and records of sleep checks made by adults every 5 to 10 minutes
implementing hazard checking which contains all considerations of the licensing criteria and accident/incident analysis which ensures that all hazards to the safety of children are eliminated, isolated or minimised
maintaining excursion records that include the full documentation requirements of the licensing criteria
having a record of all medicine which meets its category requirements and includes evidence of parental permission and acknowledgement
ensuring adults who administer medication to children are provided with information and/or training relevant to the task
ensuring where there is a serious injury, illness or incident involving a child while at the service that is required to be notified to a specified agency, the service provider must also notify the Ministry of Education
providing information for parents which informs them of the amount and details of the expenditure of any Ministry of Education funding received by the service
maintaining a written procedure for safety checking all children’s workers in accordance with the Children’s Act 2014, and a record for all safety checks and the results.
[Licensing Criteria for Early Childhood Education and Care Centres 2008, (HS4, HS8, HS9, HS12, HS17, HS28, HS29, HS34, GMA3, GMA7A)]
Since the onsite visit, the service has provided ERO with evidence that shows it has addressed the following non-compliances:
Documenting a procedure for the hygienic laundering of linen (HS2).
Having a written emergency plan that includes all the requirements of the licensing criteria and evidence of review of the plan on at least an annual basis (HS7).
Having a process for ensuring that water stored in any hot water cylinder is kept at a temperature of at least 60 °C (HS14).
Maintaining a record of all food served during the service’s hours of operation which shows the type of food provided and which covers at least the last three months (HS19).
Implementing a system for ensuring that rooms used by children are kept at a comfortable temperature of no lower than 18 degrees Celsius (HS24).
Having a written complaints procedure which includes the option to contact the local Ministry of Education office and provides contact details (GMA1).
Providing opportunities for parents to contribute to the development and review of the service’s operational documents (GMA4).
ERO recommends that the Ministry reassess the licence issued to this service provider. ERO will not undertake a further review of this service until the Ministry of Education is satisfied that the service meets regulatory standards.
The next ERO review will be in consultation with the Ministry of Education.
Filivaifale Jason Swann
Director Review and Improvement Services (Northern)
Northern Region | Te Tai Raki
5 December 2022
|
Early Childhood Service Name |
Babies and Buddies Early Childhood Centre |
|
Profile Number |
20472 |
|
Location |
Henderson, Auckland |
|
Service type |
Education and care service |
|
Number licensed for |
30 children, including up to 10 aged under 2 |
|
Percentage of qualified teachers |
80-99% |
|
Service roll |
28 |
|
Review team on site |
November 2022 |
|
Date of this report |
15 December 2022 |
|
Most recent ERO report(s) |
Education Review, May 2018; Education Review, June 2014 |
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:
discussions with those involved in the service
consideration of relevant documentation, including the implementation of health and safety systems
observations of the environment/premises, curriculum implementation and teaching practice.
| Not well placed | Requires further development | Well placed | Very well placed |
ERO's findings that support this overall judgement are summarised below.
Babies & Buddies Early Childhood Centre in Henderson is licensed for 30 children including up to 10 children under two years of age. The centre is well established and operates in a renovated house. The roll comprises mainly Pākehā children. Māori children make up 20 percent of the roll and there are a few children from other cultural backgrounds. The majority of families who use the service live outside of the immediate local area.
The centre is organised into two main learning spaces. The Teina area caters for infants and toddlers and the Tuakana space for older children. Both areas have their own outdoor environments. The centre provides children with healthy and nutritious meals. Older and younger children have many opportunities to play together and also come together for meal times.
The centre has been owned and managed by the same director for 12 years. All teachers are qualified and most have worked at the centre for a number of years.
The centre's philosophy promotes positive and respectful relationships with children and families. It encourages an emergent curriculum with a balance of teacher and child-led learning. The 2014 ERO report identified many areas of good practice that continue to be evident, and all next steps noted have been very well progressed.
Since 2014, an extension has been completed for the infants and toddler indoor space. A new central covered area connects both indoor spaces and provides an all-weather play environment. There are plans to further upgrade the Teina outdoor area.
Teachers enact a culturally responsive ethos and use practices that work very well for Māori and Pacific, and for all other children and whānau. They are welcoming and inclusive, and create positive relationships with children and their families. Teachers gather regular information from parents and use it to design and evaluate learning programmes, including the centre's bicultural curriculum. As a result, the needs and preferences of children and whānau are responded to. Children and whānau have a strong sense of belonging in the centre.
Children play and learn within a culture of care and kindness. Babies and toddlers experience gentle, affectionate and nurturing approaches from their teachers. Teachers' very good use of transition and settling practices contribute to children being comfortable with and trusting of teachers. They work with parents to follow children's home routines, respond very well to their individual cues, and capably support them to explore their learning environment.
Older children are respected by their teachers as capable, competent learners and leaders. Their contributions are valued and evident throughout the learning programme. Teachers skilfully guide and mediate children's play and learning, prompting, supporting and extending children's thinking at appropriate moments. They promote literacy, numeracy, science and creativity in the context of children's play, and create an environment where it is safe for children and adults to take learning risks.
Learning environments are well resourced, and resources are open-ended and accessible to children. Older children participate in a very well designed school readiness programme that is planned around children's interests and dispositions, and encourages inquiry and critical thinking. It also appropriately supports children's self-management skills. Excursions extend children's learning and encourage them to be kaitiaki of their local environment and community.
Internal evaluation is very well understood as a tool for ongoing improvement. This good practice includes regular and significant evaluation of the centre philosophy. A meaningful inquiry-focused appraisal process, alongside generous professional learning opportunities, maintains and further improves teachers' skills.
The centre is very well led and governed. The centre director makes carefully considered teacher appointments and respects teachers as valued professionals. Teachers work and lead collaboratively and engage in the strategic planning process as a shared, team experience. As a result, staff morale is high and positive outcomes for children continue to improve.
The centre is very well placed to sustain and further improve practices. Next steps for the centre include refining the centre's strategic planning model, and aligning teachers' professional learning and appraisal with the centre's strategic goals.
Before the review, the staff and management of Babies & Buddies Early Childhood Centre 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 Babies & Buddies Early Childhood Centre will be in four years.
Julie Foley
Deputy Chief Review Officer Northern (Acting)
Te Tai Raki - Northern Region
4 May 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.
| Location | Henderson, Auckland | ||
| Ministry of Education profile number | 20472 | ||
| Licence type | Education & Care Service | ||
| Licensed under | Education (Early Childhood Services) Regulations 2008 | ||
| Number licensed for | 30 children, including up to 10 aged under 2 | ||
| Service roll | 33 | ||
| Gender composition | Boys 17 Girls 16 | ||
| Ethnic composition | Māori Pākehā other | 7 23 3 | |
Percentage of qualified teachers 0-49% 50-79% 80%+ Based on funding rates | 80% + | ||
| Reported ratios of staff to children | Under 2 | 1:3 | Better than minimum requirements |
| Over 2 | 1:7 | Better than minimum requirements | |
| Review team on site | January 2018 | ||
| Date of this report | 4 May 2018 | ||
Most recent ERO report(s)
| Education Review | June 2014 | |
| Education Review | April 2011 | ||
| Education Review | April 2008 | ||
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.