40 King Street, Waiuku
View on mapAkarangi | Quality Evaluations evaluate the extent to which early childhood services have 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 and Early Childhood Education (ECE) Improvement Framework (teacher led services) are the basis for making judgements about the quality of the service in achieving equity and excellence for all learners. Evaluations for improvement | Ngā Aronga Whai Hua is integrated across all of the above domains.
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 | Meeting |
| Governance, management and administration | Meeting |
At the time of the review, ERO found the service was taking reasonable steps to meet regulatory standards.
Creative Garden Early Learning Centre is a privately owned and operated early learning service. The centre manager leads a team of qualified and in-training teachers. The May 2019 ERO evaluation identified that some curriculum and health and safety practices required improvement. Sufficient progress has been made in response.
Teachers respond to children’s learning, interests, strengths and capabilities. Children have opportunities to develop an understanding of the dual heritage of Aotearoa, New Zealand. The design and layout of the premises support the provision of different types of indoor and outdoor experiences. The service provides opportunities for parents to contribute to the centre’s operations and their child’s learning. Teacher appraisal and internal evaluation processes are established. A centre philosophy, policy framework and annual planning guide the service’s operations. Health and safety procedures are regularly monitored, and changes made when required.
The next ERO review is likely to be an Akarangi | Quality Evaluation.
Steve Tanner
Director Review and Improvement Services (Northern)
Northern Region | Te Tai Raki
4 February 2021
| Early Childhood Service Name | Creative Garden Early Learning Centre |
| Profile Number | 47275 |
| Location | Waiuku, Auckland |
| Service type | Education and care service |
| Number licensed for | 55 children, including up to 12 aged under 2. |
| Percentage of qualified teachers | 80%+ |
| Service roll | 65 |
| Gender composition | Male 33, Female 32. |
| Ethnic composition | Māori 12 NZ European/Pākehā 41 South African 5 Other ethnicities 7 |
| Review team on site | 9 November 2020 |
| Date of this report | 4 February 2021 |
| Most recent ERO report(s) | Akanuku|Assurance Review May 2019 |
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.
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:
As part of an Akanuku | Assurance Review ERO assesses whether the regulated 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:
As part of an Akanuku | Assurance Review ERO also gathers and records evidence through:
| Regulatory standards | |
| Curriculum | Not meeting |
| Premises and facilities | Meeting |
| Health and safety | Not meeting |
| Governance, management and administration | Meeting |
At the time of the review, ERO identified non-compliance with regulatory standards that must be addressed.
Creative Garden Early Learning Centre, a privately-owned education and care service, opened in 2017. This is its first ERO review. The centre is organised into three age-based rooms and has a mix of qualified and in-training teachers.
Children participate in a range of experiences in a language-rich environment. They are supported to become confident and competent learners. To meet curriculum regulatory standards, the curriculum must also:
The centre has a sufficient variety of resources appropriate to the learning needs and abilities of children attending. An ongoing process of self-review helps the service maintain and improve the quality of its education and care. Some areas of health and safety need to be addressed.
ERO found areas of non-compliance in the service relating to curriculum and health and safety. To meet regulatory standards the service should ensure that:
Licensing Criteria for Early Childhood Education and Care Centres 2008, C5, C6, HS8. Education (Early Childhood Services) Regulations 2008, Regulation 43, 1a (iv, v), 46, 1a, 1d.
ERO recommends the Ministry follows up with the service provider to ensure that non-compliances identified in this report are addressed promptly.
The next ERO review of Creative Garden Early Learning Centre will be in consultation with the Ministry of Education.
Phillip Cowie
Director Review and Improvement Services Central
Central Region
14 May 2019
| Early Childhood Service Name | Creative Garden Early Learning Centre | |
| Profile Number | 47275 | |
| Location | Waiuku, Auckland | |
| Service type | Education and care service | |
| Number licensed for | 55 children, including up to 12 aged under 2 | |
| Percentage of qualified teachers | 80% + | |
| Reported ratios of staff/to children | Under 2 | 1:4 - Better than regulatory standards |
| Over 2 | 1:8 - Better than regulatory standards | |
| Service roll | 59 | |
| Gender composition | Boys 32 Girls 27 | |
| Ethnic composition | Māori 6 Indian 4 Other 4 Pākehā 45 | |
| Review team on site | March 2019 | |
| Date of this report | 14 May 2019 | |
| Most recent ERO report(s) | First ERO review of the service | |
All services are licensed under the Education (Early Childhood Services) Regulations 2008. The legal requirements for early childhood services also include:
Services must meet the standards in the regulations and the requirements of the licensing criteria to gain and maintain a licence to operate.
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:
As part of an Assurance Review ERO assesses whether the regulated 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:
As part of an Assurance Review ERO also gathers and records evidence through: