Hampstead Free Kindergarten

Education institution number:
5468
Service type:
Free Kindergarten
Definition:
Not Applicable
Total roll:
36
Telephone:
Address:

Cambridge Street, Ashburton

View on map

Hampstead Free Kindergarten

1 ERO’s Judgements

Akarangi | 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 Hampstead Free Kindergarten are as follows:

Outcome Indicators

(What the service knows about outcomes for learners)

Whāngai Establishing

Ngā Akatoro Domains

 

Learning Conditions
Organisational Conditions

Whakaū Embedding

Whakaū Embedding

2 Context of the Service

Hampstead Free Kindergarten is one of five, governed by Ashburton Kindergarten Association. A general manager is responsible for day-to-day operation, and a senior teaching team leads teaching and learning. A long-serving head teacher is supported by an established teaching team. The culturally diverse kindergarten community includes small numbers of Māori children and children of Pacific heritages. Some progress has been made in relation to the 2018 ERO report.

3 Summary of findings

Children experience an inclusive curriculum, with a strong focus on wellbeing and belonging. A well-resourced learning environment provides many opportunities for physical challenge. Teachers encourage children to lead their own learning and take increasing responsibility for themselves, others and the environment. Through meaningful interactions, teachers support children to develop social and emotional competence, and oral language skills. Children with additional learning needs are well supported to achieve their learning goals.

Assessment information makes children's learning visible over time, in relation to the learning outcomes in Te Whāriki, the early childhood curriculum, and the service’s priority for learning. Parent aspirations for their child’s learning are sought and used in planning learning goals. Teachers are yet to use assessment and other information to identify what is working, or not, for identified groups of children.

The service is in the early stages of designing and developing a curriculum that enables Māori children to succeed as Māori. Building leaders’ and teachers’ capability in using te reo Māori and tikanga Māori is required. Further work is required to continue to develop and integrate a localised curriculum that reflects the diverse cultures of all learners.

Leaders foster collaboration and improvement. Senior teachers effectively coach the teaching team to use relevant professional learning to develop their practice and implement a responsive curriculum. Further refinement of the internal evaluation framework, and building teacher capability are required, to better identify effectiveness of teaching strategies on improving outcomes for children.

Those responsible for governance and management do not yet have relevant up-to-date systems, processes and practices to be fully assured of the effective day-to-day operations of the organisation. Some policies and procedures are not fit for purpose. Systems for monitoring compliance have not been robustly implemented across the organisation. Human resource practices are not sufficiently robust.

4 Improvement actions

Hampstead Free Kindergarten will include the following actions in its Quality Improvement Planning:

  • Build teacher capability to integrate te reo Māori and tikanga Māori into day-to-day teaching practice. 

  • Meaningfully integrate children’s cultures, languages and identity throughout the curriculum. 

  • Further refine the internal evaluation framework, and build collective understanding to better measure and monitor the impact of actions on outcomes for children.

  • Those responsible for governance and management to review and improve systems, processes, policies and practices to better manage the day-to-day operation of the organisation.

5 Management Assurance on Legal Requirements

Before the review, the staff and management of Hampstead Free Kindergarten 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.

6 Actions for Compliance

ERO identified the following areas of non-compliance:

  • ensuring the design and layout of the premises support effective adult supervision of children

  • consistently supervising children while eating.

[Licensing Criteria for Early Childhood Education and Care Services, 2008, PF2, HS22].  

During the review, the service provided ERO with evidence that shows it has addressed the following non-compliance:

  • Ensuring heavy furniture and equipment that could fall or topple and cause serious injury or damage are secured (HS6).

7 Recommendation to Ministry of Education

ERO recommends the Ministry follows up with the service provider to ensure non-compliances identified in this report are addressed.

Patricia Davey
Director of Early Childhood Education (ECE)

18 October 2023 

8 About the Early Childhood Service

Early Childhood Service Name

Hampstead Free Kindergarten

Profile Number

5468

Location

Ashburton

Service type

Free Kindergarten

Number licensed for

44 children aged over 2

Percentage of qualified teachers

100%

Service roll

38

Review team on site

June 2023

Date of this report

18 October 2023

Most recent ERO report(s)

Education Review, September 2018; Education Review, May 2014

Hampstead Free Kindergarten - 07/09/2018

1 Evaluation of Hampstead Free Kindergarten

How well placed is Hampstead Free Kindergarten 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

Hampstead Free Kindergarten provides early childhood education for children two-to-five years of age. The kindergarten is licensed for up to 44 children. Children participate in half or whole day learning programmes running from 8.30am to 2.30pm. A significant proportion of children are of Māori and Pacific Island descent.

The vision for all children is that they will develop:

  • self-confidence
  • the ability to lead and manage their own learning (rangitiratanga)
  • curiosity and skills for inquiry
  • the ability to build positive relationships with others (manaakitanga and whanaungatanga)
  • a positive cultural identity (ūkaipotanga).

Hampstead Kindergarten is one of five kindergartens administered by the Ashburton Kindergarten Association (AKA). A manager oversees the association, under the governance of a board. An education specialist is contracted to give professional advice and guidance on teaching and learning. The day-to-day operation of the kindergarten is managed by a head teacher, supported by three qualified early childhood teachers.

The kindergarten has made some progress in responding to the areas identified for development in the 2014 ERO review, including further strengthening relationships with Pacific families and building teachers' understandings of the Māori principles underpinning the curriculum. Aspects of assessment and planning have also been improved. Self review that leads to changes in practice and improved outcomes for children remains an area for development.

This review was part of a cluster of five kindergartens reviewed in the AKA. The association is a member of the Hakatere Kāhui Ako|Community of Learning (CoL).

The Review Findings

Children are actively involved in making choices and decisions about their learning. Teaching practices, programmes and the learning environment are purposefully designed to encourage children to be curious and to lead their learning through inquiry. Children are supported to be independent and confidently make decisions about how they use learning equipment and resources. Teachers join and follow children's interests. They use open questioning to extend and deepen children's thinking and understandings about the world. Kindergarten routines are flexible and respond well to children's preferences.

Children and their families have a strong sense of belonging in the kindergarten. Teachers have positive, strengths-based interactions with children and work quickly to help them learn kindergarten routines and make connections with other children. Teachers are working in partnership with children's families to build their understandings of children's cultures, languages and family values. These are increasingly reflected in learning programmes and resources, and in assessment and planning documentation. Teachers are more effectively sharing daily learning with children and families and encouraging their contributions.

Relevant teaching and learning priorities have been identified and are providing useful guidance for planning, assessment and teaching practice. These priorities reflect the Te Whāriki national curriculum and the needs of children. Teachers have built their understandings of the Māori principles that underpin their curriculum priorities and are making these more explicit and visible in the way learning is delivered and documented.

Improved planning for individual children is supporting positive learning outcomes. Teachers are more effectively using assessment of each child's learning to identify relevant, individual learning goals. These are discussed with parents and are shared across the teaching team to ensure all teachers contribute to supporting children's learning. Teachers have also strengthened the way they plan to meet the needs of children with additional learning needs. This process is supporting greater consistency in teaching for these children.

Teachers have improved opportunities to lead aspects of teaching and learning. This is supporting more effective collaboration for improvement and engagement with professional development.

The Ashburton Kindergarten Association's vision and strategic goals are well known and reflected in individual kindergarten annual plans. The association has a sound policy and procedure framework in place to provide guidance for kindergarten operations and the monitoring of health and safety.

The quality of teaching and learning in each kindergarten is regularly evaluated by the contracted education specialists. These evaluations are detailed and inform association planning and resourcing. Leaders and teachers have access to relevant professional development and leadership support. The association actively supports equity of outcomes for children by funding additional teaching resource and a speech-language therapist to support work with children with additional needs. Some progress has been made in addressing the areas for development from ERO's 2014 review, including supporting a number of leaders and teachers to participate in professional learning about culturally responsive teaching practice. This continues to be an area of focus for the association, given the growing diversity of kindergarten rolls.

Key Next Steps

The key next steps for teachers, with the support of the Education Support Manager (ESM), are to continue to:

  • embed new processes for planning for individual children (including children with additional needs) and ensure these include parent perspectives and are regularly reviewed
  • refine group curriculum planning to show purposeful implementation of the kindergarten's curriculum priorities and to better differentiate between routine practices and intentional teaching strategies
  • ensure internal evaluation is focussed on important aspects of practice and leads to improvement and change in practice.

The association board, manager and ERO agree that aspects of governance can be improved by:

  • strengthening planning for strategic and annual goals, including identifying relevant measures for knowing about the implementation and impact of goals
  • better aligning reporting from kindergartens and Kidsfirst education specialists with annual goals, in order to know about the implementation and impact of goals
  • improving monitoring of planning for, and outcomes for, priority learners across the association
  • building the internal evaluation capability of head teachers and teachers, particularly around the collection and analysis of evidence of practice.

Management Assurance on Legal Requirements

Before the review, the staff and management of Hampstead Free 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:

  • 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.

Next ERO Review

When is ERO likely to review the service again?

The next ERO review of Hampstead Free Kindergarten will be in three years.

Alan Wynyard

Director Review & Improvement Services Southern

Te Waipounamu - Southern Region

7 September 2018

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

Ashburton

Ministry of Education profile number

5468

Licence type

Free Kindergarten

Licensed under

Education (Early Childhood Services) Regulations 2008

Number licensed for

44 children, aged over 2 years

Service roll

44

Gender composition

Girls: 12

Boys: 32

Ethnic composition

Māori
Pākehā
Pacific
Other ethnicities

11
21
18
1

Percentage of qualified teachers

0-49% 50-79% 80%+

Based on funding rates

80% +

Reported ratios of staff to children

Over 2

1:10

Meets minimum requirements

Review team on site

June 2018

Date of this report

7 September 2018

Most recent ERO report(s)

Education Review:

May 2014

Education Review:

March 2011

Education Review:

October 2007

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.

Hampstead Free Kindergarten - 29/05/2014

1 Evaluation of Hampstead Free Kindergarten

How well placed is Hampstead Free Kindergarten to promote positive learning outcomes for children?

Not well placed

Requires further development

Well placed

Very well placed

Hampstead Free Kindergarten is well placed to promote positive learning outcomes for children

ERO's findings that support this overall judgement are summarised below.

Background

Hampstead Kindergarten is one of five kindergartens administered by the Ashburton Kindergarten Association. A manager oversees the association under the governance of a board. An education service manager provides advice and guidance to teachers on the curriculum and programme. The head teacher manages the day-to-day operation of the kindergarten. The kindergarten provides care and education for children from two years old until school age.

Since the March 2011 ERO review, there have been changes in staff, and an increase in Māori and Pacific families attending the kindergarten.

This review was part of a cluster of four reviews in the Ashburton Kindergarten Association.

The Review Findings

Children experience a programme where they can lead their own learning, regulate their time, make choices and decisions about their learning, and develop problem-solving skills.

Teachers place emphasis on supporting children to develop successful relationships with others and effective social skills. This includes a focus on cooperation, collaboration, taking turns and supporting children to teach and learn from each other (ako).

Children benefit from a well-resourced, spacious learning environment. Resources that promote literacy such as books, music, writing tools and displays were very evident in the kindergarten environment and well used by children.

Teachers respond well to children’s interests and reflect on positive strategies that support children’s learning. They make good use of research and professional development opportunities to improve practice and increase teacher’s knowledge. Teachers are making good use of the appraisal system to reflect on their teaching and receive feedback.

Teachers use positive and effective strategies to support children’s learning. They regularly listen and respond to children’s ideas and encourage them to wonder about things, set their own challenges and find answers to their own questions. Children are encouraged to develop self-help skills.

Teachers promote a welcoming and inclusive environment. Leaders and teachers have a strong awareness of priority learners and their needs. They actively seek ways to help children with the greatest learning needs have a successful learning experience at the kindergarten. This includes a ‘no fees’ policy, targeted professional development and an awareness of larger education plans to support these learners. They make good use of external specialists when needed. Māori children are able to succeed and learn as Māori. Both Māori and Pacific cultures are visible in kindergarten environment.

Leaders are focused on valuing and respecting the needs, interests and backgrounds of children attending the service and their families. They are strong advocates for children and their families. The education service manager is providing useful guidance and advice to the teaching team. The introduction of indicators of good practice is helping teachers reflect more deeply on their practice and outcomes for children. Teachers have also revisited the kindergarten vision and are making better use of this to guide self review.

Teachers have positive relationships with whānau. They provide opportunities for parents to contribute the views and aspirations they have for their children’s learning.

The kindergarten association has a comprehensive policy and procedure framework in place to provide good guidance for kindergarten operations and the monitoring of health and safety. Association goals are well known by all staff. These appropriately include a goal focused on promoting leadership. Since the 2011 ERO review, the association has improved the quality of the information the manager receives about the effectiveness of each kindergarten’s programme. The association initiative of employing a speech language therapist to work with identified children is resulting in improved learning outcomes for some children and providing helpful additional support for families and teachers.

Key Next Steps

Managers and teachers have identified, and ERO agrees, that the key next steps for improving outcomes for children include:

  • strengthening planning and assessment practices

  • improving the documentation of self review to more clearly show the robustness of the process followed, what changes have been made and the impact of these changes

  • teachers becoming more proactive in using children’s home languages (Pacific and Māori) during the programme and increasing their understanding of the Māori values already evident in the programme.

  • building on existing practices to further strengthen relationships with Pacific families and support children and families who do not have English as a first language.

The new board has identified that they require more training to familiarise themselves with their roles and responsibilities, and further develop the following areas of governance:

  • association strategic planning

  • the board’s role in supporting kindergartens to respond to priority learners within their communities, such as the growing populations of children and families from Māori and Pacific backgrounds and children who do not have English as their first language.

Management Assurance on Legal Requirements

Before the review, the staff and management of Hampstead Free 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:

  • 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.

Next ERO Review

When is ERO likely to review the service again?

The next ERO review of Hampstead Free Kindergarten will be in three years.

Graham Randell

National Manager Review Services

Southern Region

29 May 2014

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

Ashburton, Mid Canterbury

Ministry of Education profile number

5468

Licence type

Free Kindergarten

Licensed under

Education (Early Childhood Services) Regulations 2008

Number licensed for

44 children, aged two years and over

Service roll

48

Gender composition

Girls 25

Boys 23

Ethnic composition

Māori

NZ European/Pākehā

Pacific

Other Ethnicities

10

25

10

3

Percentage of qualified teachers

0-49% 50-79% 80%

Based on funding rates

80%

Reported ratios of staff to children

Under 2

   
 

Over 2

1:10

Meets minimum requirements

Review team on site

March 2014

Date of this report

29 May 2014

Most recent ERO reports

Education Review

March 2014

 

Education Review

October 2007

 

Education Review

February 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.