5 Innes Road, Merivale, Christchurch
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 Fundamentals Merivale are as follows:
Outcome Indicators(What the service knows about outcomes for learners) |
Whakaū Embedding |
Ngā Akatoro Domains |
|
Learning ConditionsOrganisational Conditions |
Whāngai Establishing Whāngai Establishing |
Fundamentals Merivale is one of two services owned and operated by a family business. The service comprises of three separate age-related classrooms. An additional room in the premises is used solely for teacher-led gym sessions. A small number of Māori children attend. The service has made progress in the 2019 ERO report’s key next steps in relation to bicultural practice, internal evaluation and assessment.
Children’s emotional wellbeing is supported through responsive and reciprocal relationships with teachers. Positive guidance strategies are intentional and nurture children’s growing social competence. The programme pace is slow, and there are time and space where infants, toddlers, and young children can lead their learning.
Good progress has been made regarding bicultural practice in the service. Kaupapa Māori concepts have been adopted in the philosophy, and some professional learning focused on the histories of the local area has been undertaken. Leaders and teachers are yet to incorporate local stories and histories of mana whenua in the curriculum. The use of te reo Māori is not consistently integrated in the curriculum.
The aspirations of parents and whānau are sought and inform the curriculum. Teachers use learning outcomes from Te Whāriki, the early childhood curriculum, in assessment documentation. They are yet to show children’s progression of learning in relation to these outcomes. Leaders and teachers could develop a shared understanding of the purpose of these outcomes with parents and whānau to support learner-focused partnerships.
Significant cultural events and the interests of children are reflected through the group planning. There is little evidence in children’s individual documentation to acknowledge their cultures, languages, and identity.
A robust professional growth cycle is in place, and leaders mentor and support teachers through this process. Review is well established. Leaders and teachers reflect on their practice and draw on relevant information to make ongoing improvements. The approach does not yet identify evidence-based judgements about how well teachers’ practices contribute to positive learning outcomes for children.
Fundamentals Merivale will include the following actions in its Quality Improvement Planning:
Develop a shared understanding of the purpose of Te Whāriki learning outcomes in planning with parents and whānau and use these outcomes to develop individualised programmes for their children.
Incorporate local stories and histories of mana whenua into the curriculum.
Increase opportunities for children to hear and use te reo Māori in meaningful contexts.
Develop measurable indicators to inform and guide the review process to better inform judgements and decision making.
Before the review, the staff and management of Fundamentals Merivale 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:
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; safety checking; teacher registration; ratios)
relevant evacuation procedures and practices.
All early childhood services are required to promote children's health and safety and to regularly review their compliance with legal requirements.
ERO identified the following area of non-compliance:
Parents have given prior written approval to their child's participation and of the proposed ratio for a regular excursion to the gym at the time of enrolment.
Licensing Criteria for Early Childhood Education and Care Services, 2008, HS17.
Patricia Davey
Director of Early Childhood Education (ECE)
8 June 2023
|
Early Childhood Service Name |
Fundamentals Merivale |
|
Profile Number |
46055 |
|
Location |
Christchurch |
|
Service type |
Education and care service |
|
Number licensed for |
48 children, including up to 15 aged under 2 |
|
Percentage of qualified teachers |
80-99% |
|
Service roll |
54 |
|
Review team on site |
January 2023 |
|
Date of this report |
8 June 2023 |
|
Most recent ERO report(s) |
Education Review, October 2019; Education Review, June 2016 |
|
Not well placed |
Requires further development |
Well placed |
Very well placed |
Fundamentals Merivale is well placed to promote positive learning outcomes for children.
ERO's findings that support this overall judgement are summarised below.
Fundamentals Merivale is one of two early learning services owned and operated by a family business in Christchurch. Fundamentals Marshlands is the other centre.
Fundamentals Merivale caters for the education and care of children from birth to school age. It is located in a re-purposed villa. There are three designated areas for children aged 0 to 2 years, 2 to 3 years, and 3 to 5 years. There is also an internal gymnasium.
Since the 2016 ERO report there have been significant changes to the ownership, leadership, administration and operation of the service. All of the teachers, including the owner, are either qualified and registered or involved in training.
Leaders and teachers have established a shared vision and philosophy. The vision states ‘our children enjoy a challenging and fun environment that encourages them to think, act and succeed in mind, body and spirit so they can become confident, independent, life-long learners'. The philosophy emphasises active movement, love of learning, respect, fun, and collaboration for children.
This review was one of two education and care reviews in the Fundamentals ECE Ltd service.
Leaders and teachers foster genuine, caring relationships with children and families. These underpin the curriculum and strategic direction of the service to promote positive outcomes for tamariki, whānau and teachers.
The centre's philosophy and practices are inclusive and respectful of families. Emphasis is given to the development of emerging leadership and the empowerment of children and teachers. Relational leadership focuses on building leadership capacity and teacher capability.
The child-centred curriculum, and well written learning records, reflect the priorities for children's learning. This includes promoting children's social competencies, sense of belonging, confidence to explore, physical challenges and fun learning experiences. Teachers are purposeful in the ways they extend children’s oral language and science-related learning.
Teachers work collaboratively to observe, assess and extend children’s emerging interests, strengths and capabilities. Children with additional learning needs are well supported to succeed in their learning. Teachers advocate for the needs of diverse learners and work collaboratively to build trusting professional relationships with families and external agencies.
Infants and toddlers benefit from nurturing and caring interactions that are responsive to their individual needs and preferences. Teachers work effectively together to ensure the wellbeing of children. Unhurried and calm teacher practices promote a sense of belonging. Parent aspirations are valued and well used to inform planning for individual children.
The owner and centre manager have high expectations and a systematic approach to the management and operation of the service. There is a deliberate focus on building leadership capacity, teacher capability and a collaborative team culture. Targeted external and internal professional development and individual support and mentoring are aligned to service priorities. A strong appraisal process and measured approach to inquiry and internal evaluation are developing teachers' understanding of reflective and evaluative practices. Leaders value and make good use of the strengths and skills of the teaching team to promote positive outcomes for children.
The service leaders have identified, and ERO agrees, that the key next steps are to:
ERO and service leaders agree that refining the strategic plan, to clearly identify key annual priorities and actions, would enable them to effectively monitor, evaluate and report on the progress of these strategic goals.
Before the review, the staff and management of Fundamentals Merivale 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.
During the on-site stage of the review ERO identified a number of non-compliances. These included potential hazards in relation to safety in the event of an earthquake and the safe use of heaters. Service leaders acted promptly to provide ERO with evidence that these non-compliances have been addressed.
While hazard identification and management processes have been improved, the centre must ensure that robust processes for identifying and managing hazards are sustained. The manager should receive ongoing assurance that all health and safety requirements are being met.
Dr Lesley Patterson
Director Review and Improvement Services Te Tai Tini
Southern Region
15 October 2019
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 |
Christchurch |
||
|
Ministry of Education profile number |
46055 |
||
|
Licence type |
Education & Care Service |
||
|
Licensed under |
Education (Early Childhood Services) Regulations 2008 |
||
|
Number licensed for |
48 children, including up to 15 aged under 2 |
||
|
Service roll |
51 |
||
|
Gender composition |
Girls 27, Boys 24 |
||
|
Ethnic composition |
Māori |
5 |
|
|
Percentage of qualified teachers 0-49% 50-79% 80%+ Based on funding rates |
80% + |
||
|
Reported ratios of staff to children |
Under 2 |
1:4 |
Better than minimum requirements |
|
Over 2 |
1:6 |
Better than minimum requirements |
|
|
Review team on site |
July 2019 |
||
|
Date of this report |
15 October 2019 |
||
|
Most recent ERO report(s)
|
Education Review |
June 2016 |
|
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.
|
Not well placed |
Requires further development |
Well placed |
Very well placed |
Fundamentals Merivale Preschool is well placed to promote positive outcomes for children.
ERO's findings that support this overall judgement are summarised below.
Fundamentals Merivale is one of two privately owned centres owned and operated by the current owner. It was opened in 2013 in a large villa and provides full-day care and education for up to 50 children including 12 children under two years of age.
The leadership team is made up of a supervising manager, an assistant manager and a lead teacher in the preschool and nursery. Other teachers have leadership roles in the daily running of the centre.
Concepts of physical development and challenge underpin the centre's programme to support children to think, act and succeed in mind, body and spirit and to be confident learners.
This review was part of the review of the two centres in the Fundamentals Preschool organisation.
Teachers welcome children and their families and use a number of effective ways to help children settle easily into the programme. They are comforted promptly, where necessary, and sensitively helped to settle into the programme.
Children learn through a range of structured activities, and planned group times. During the day children have free choices in their learning. Teachers provide a good range of opportunities for children to develop their imaginative and creative play, and to follow their interests.
Teachers give literacy and numeracy prominence in the programme during group times. In the best practices observed, teachers integrated these skills and understandings in meaningful ways during children’s free play.
Teachers deliberately plan for the intended learning. They regularly reflect on the programme and the intended outcomes for children.
Teachers sometimes use te reo and tikanga Māori and phrases with children to increase their understanding of New Zealand's bicultural heritage.
Transition into and within the centre is well planned and managed.
The quality of interactions with teachers and children is variable across the centre. In the preschool a high proportion of the morning programme involves teacher-directed activities. This limits children’s ability to follow their interests and make decisions about their own learning. Effective interactions observed included teachers having meaningful conversations with children about their learning.
Children would benefit from greater opportunities to explore, to experiment and make their own discoveries. They would also benefit from having more in depth and meaningful conversations with teachers about their learning and to extend their thinking.
Children in the under two programme each have caring, calm interactions with primary nursery teachers who are familiar to them. They help strengthen children's sense of attachment and growing independence as they progress through their time in the nursery.
In the nursery ERO observed:
The Fundamentals Preschool owners and leaders have provided suitable resources and equipment to support the philosophy of children's physical development.
As a result of research and professional learning and development (PLD):
Leaders have identified priorities for improvement through evaluation practices, including gathering parents' ideas and opinions. Relevant PLD and appraisal goals have been aligned to the areas for improvement.
ERO has identified and the licensee and head teacher agree, that the following next steps would support the on-going improvement to provide high-quality learning outcomes for all children.
Leaders and teachers now need to review and evaluate the:
Fundamentals Preschool leaders need 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 Fundamentals Merivale will be in three years.
Lesley Patterson
Deputy Chief Review Officer Southern
27 June 2016
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 |
Christchurch |
||
|
Ministry of Education profile number |
46055 |
||
|
Licence type |
Education & Care Service |
||
|
Licensed under |
Education (Early Childhood Services) Regulations 2008 |
||
|
Number licensed for |
50 children, including up to 12 aged under 2 |
||
|
Service roll |
52 |
||
|
Gender composition |
Boys 24; Girls 28 |
||
|
Ethnic composition |
Māori Pākehā Samoan Other Ethnicities |
1 40 2 9 |
|
|
Percentage of qualified teachers 0-49% 50-79% 80%+ Based on funding rates |
80% + |
||
|
Reported ratios of staff to children |
Under 2 |
1:4 |
Better than minimum requirements |
|
Over 2 |
1:8 |
Better than minimum requirements |
|
|
Review team on site |
May 2016 |
||
|
Date of this report |
27 June 2016 |
||
|
Most recent ERO report |
No previous report |
||
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.