19 Rogers Street, Castlecliff, Whanganui
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.
Barsanti Kindergarten is governed and managed by He Whānau Manaaki o Tararua Free Kindergarten Association Incorporated. A senior teacher provides support and guidance and the head teacher is responsible for the day to day operations. The December 2015 ERO report identified several non-compliances relating to health and safety and premises and facilities. These non-compliances have been addressed.
Children are provided with a range of experiences and opportunities to enhance and extend their learning. The curriculum supports children’s developing social competence. They are involved in decision making about their learning experiences.
Children have opportunities to develop knowledge and understanding of the cultural heritages of both parties to Te Tiriti o Waitangi. Kaiako support children to be confident in their culture and encourage understanding and respect for other cultures.
Online processes are in place to record health and safety practices at the kindergarten. Additional monitoring and rigour are required to ensure that records reflect practices.
Next steps include continuing to:
Since the onsite visit the service has provided ERO with evidence that shows it has addressed the following non-compliances:
The next ERO review is likely to be an Akarangi | Quality Evaluation.
Phil Cowie
Director Review and Improvement Services (Central)
Central Region | Te Tai Pūtahi Nui
21 June 2021
| Early Childhood Service Name | Barsanti Kindergarten |
| Profile Number | 5238 |
| Location | Castlecliff, Whanganui |
|
Service type |
Free Kindergarten |
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Number licensed for |
40 children. |
|
Percentage of qualified teachers |
80%+ |
|
Service roll |
28 |
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Ethnic composition |
Māori 16, NZ European/Pākehā 5, Other ethnic groups 7. |
|
Review team on site |
May 2021 |
|
Date of this report |
21 June 2021 |
|
Most recent ERO report(s) |
Education Review, May 2019; Education Review, December 2015 |
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:
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Not well placed |
Requires further development |
Well placed |
Very well placed |
Barsanti Kindergarten requires further development to promote positive learning outcomes for children.
The association should ensure that teachers are supported to understand and implement the requirements of the Education (Early Childhood Services) Regulations 2008, so that all reasonable steps are taken to safeguard children's health and wellbeing.
ERO's findings that support this overall judgement are summarised below.
Barsanti Kindergarten is in Whanganui. Opening hours are Monday to Friday from 9.00am until 3.00pm. Full day places are available for children aged from two to six years.
The philosophy statement emphasises tangata whenuatanga and whanaungatanga.
The December 2015 ERO report identified that assessment to support planning for children's learning and internal evaluation to improve teaching and learning required improvement. These remain areas for further development.
Barsanti is one of 15 kindergartens governed and managed by Whanganui Kindergarten Association Incorporated (the association). The governing board is responsible for setting the overall strategic direction for the organisation. The day-to-day running of the association is the role of the general manager, who is responsible to the board.
Along with Gonville and Marie McFarland Kindergartens, Barsanti is part of the newly formed Castlecliff/Gonville Hub. This was formed to develop a collaborative approach to strengthening practice and cultural responsiveness. A new senior head teacher was appointed in January 2019. She has overall responsibility for the three kindergartens in the hub. A new team leader was appointed to Barsanti in January 2019. She is responsible for day-to-day operation of the kindergarten.
Since April 2018, the association's programme of professional learning and development and curriculum implementation has been managed by He Whānau Manaaki o Tararua Free Kindergarten Association Incorporated. An association senior teacher and two senior teachers from Whānau Manaaki provide regular support for teachers.
This review was part of a cluster of 15 in Whanganui Kindergarten Association Incorporated.
Children move freely around the kindergarten and independently access resources to support their learning.
Teachers support children's problem-solving and experimentation. They make links across time and activities by revisiting children's interests and ideas. They weave literacy and mathematical concepts across the curriculum. Teachers work with families and external agencies to meet children's individual needs.
Responsive community relationships foster children's sense of belonging within a wider local environment and culture.
The team leader and senior head teacher promote a shared vision and collaborative leadership within the newly-formed team. However, teachers are not yet working effectively together to ensure children's safety and wellbeing. Further work is required to ensure that expectations of practice in relation to the implementation of the Education (Early Childhood Services) Regulations 2008 are consistently applied. In particular, supervision, hazard identification and food hygiene practices.
Māori children's learning is well-supported through a curriculum that successfully reflects Māori concepts, skills, reo and beliefs. Whānau Māori lead customs and practices that promote te ao Māori.
Assessment of children's learning is responsive to their interests, dispositions and strengths. Learning stories capture their engagement in kindergarten activities and beginning to more effectively record progress over time. Teachers and leaders recognise that continuing to strengthen and embed planning approaches that extend individual children's learning is a key next step. ERO's external evaluation confirms this is an area to improve.
Children and families are well supported when they prepare for their move to school. Transition documentation effectively links Te Whāriki, the early childhood curriculum, with the key competencies that children will work towards at school.
Self review for improvement is established and has led to some positive changes. The focus for internal evaluation is developing and teachers are beginning to consider how well the curriculum and teaching practices are supporting improved outcomes for children. This development is ongoing.
The governing board is future-focused and has taken appropriate steps to strengthen opportunities for teachers’ professional learning and development. An association-wide appraisal process is in place to support teacher practice in promoting positive learning outcomes for children. Consistency of its implementation across all kindergartens requires strengthening.
Association leaders and ERO agree that for ongoing and sustained improvement, staff at Barsanti Kindergarten should continue to strengthen:
the use of internal evaluation focused on outcomes for children
assessment, planning and evaluation processes.
The senior management team of Whanganui Kindergarten Association Incorporated should continue to strengthen the implementation of teacher appraisal.
Before the review, the staff and management of Barsanti Kindergarten 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.
ERO identified areas of non-compliance relating to health and safety and premises and facilities. To meet requirements the service needs to improve its performance in the following areas:
hazard identification, with regard to the condition and placement of play equipment
food hygiene
supervision of children while eating
the design and layout of the outdoor premises to support effective adult supervision.
[Licensing Criteria for Early Childhood Education and Care Centres 2008, HS12; HS20; HS22; PF2].
In order to improve practice teachers should:
ensure that at least one of the toilets for use by children is designed to provide them with some sense of privacy.
Since the on-site stage of the review, association leaders have provided ERO with steps taken to address children's privacy when using the toilet.
ERO recommends that the service, in consultation with the Ministry of Education, develops a plan to address the key next steps and actions outlined in this report.
Phil Cowie
Director Review and Improvement Services
Central Region
13 May 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 |
Whanganui |
|
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Ministry of Education profile number |
5238 |
|
|
Licence type |
Free Kindergarten |
|
|
Licensed under |
Education (Early Childhood Services) Regulations 2008 |
|
|
Number licensed for |
40 children, aged over 2 |
|
|
Service roll |
32 |
|
|
Gender composition |
Girls 18, Boys 14 |
|
|
Ethnic composition |
Māori |
14 |
|
Percentage of qualified teachers 0-49% 50-79% 80%+ Based on funding rates |
80% + |
|
|
Reported ratios of staff to children |
1:10 |
Meets minimum requirements |
|
Review team on site |
April 2019 |
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Date of this report |
13 May 2019 |
|
|
Most recent ERO report(s) |
Education Review |
December 2015 |
|
Education Review |
October 2012 |
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|
Education Review |
May 2008 |
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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.