45 Park Street, Ashburton
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 |
At the time of the review, ERO found the service was taking reasonable steps to meet regulatory standards.
Ashburton Playcentre is a parent-led early childhood education service administered by Te Whānau Tupu Ngātahi o Aotearoa – Playcentre Aotearoa. Since ERO’s 2018 report there has been significant restructuring and change at the national playcentre level. Ashburton Playcentre is open three mornings a week. Regular support is provided by a Centre Advisor. A small number of Māori and children from diverse ethnic backgrounds attend the service.
The curriculum is inclusive, and responsive to children as confident and competent learners. Their preferences are respected, and they are involved in decisions about their learning. Assessment, planning, and evaluation demonstrates an understanding of children’s learning, their interests, whānau, and life contexts. Adults providing education and care engage in meaningful, positive interactions to enhance children’s learning and nurture reciprocal relationships.
A sufficient quantity and variety of indoor and outdoor equipment is provided that is appropriate for the learning and abilities of the children attending the service. There are suitable systems and practices in place to promote the health and safety of children enrolled in the service.
Next steps include:
continuing to strengthen the services bi-cultural curriculum in documentation and everyday teaching practices.
The next ERO review is likely to be an Akarangi | Quality Evaluation.
Dr Lesley Patterson
Director Review and Improvement Services (Southern)
Southern Region | Te Tai Tini
21 November 2022
|
Early Childhood Service Name |
Ashburton Playcentre |
|
Profile Number |
70018 |
|
Location |
Ashburton |
|
Service type |
Playcentre |
|
Number licensed for |
30 children, including up to 10 aged under 2 |
|
Service roll |
28 |
|
Review team on site |
14 September 2022 |
|
Date of this report |
21 November 2022 |
|
Most recent ERO report(s) |
Education Review, September 2016; Education Review, June 2012 |
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.
Ashburton Playcentre is located in central Ashburton next door to a local school. It operates five morning sessions a week for up to 30 children from birth-to-school age. One of these sessions is an 'explorer session'. This involves children and their families spending the morning investigating the nearby beaches, bush and local amenities. The playcentre also provides two afternoon SPACE sessions (Supporting Parents Alongside Children's Education). These sessions are especially planned to support first-time parents and their babies. The centre roll has fluctuated as families have moved on, however numbers are beginning to rise again after dropping in 2015.
Each session is led by a paid supervisor and playcentre members. They are gaining playcentre qualifications through an adult-education training programme provided by the Mid Canterbury Playcentre Association.
Ashburton Playcentre is one of seven playcentres in the Mid Canterbury Playcentre Association. The association is made up of a group of dedicated paid and elected members. The association provides a framework for centre management and operations, as well as parent-education programmes and personnel to support centre members in their work with children.
The Mid Canterbury Playcentre Association is experiencing a time of change as all playcentre associations throughout New Zealand merge with the New Zealand Playcentre Federation to reduce duplication and make cost savings. This restructure will mean significant changes at the local association level.
ERO's 2012 report noted a number of areas for review and development. These included strategic and annual planning, self review, assessment and the bicultural programme. ERO found good progress has been made in most of these areas.
This review was part of a cluster of seven playcentre reviews in the Mid Canterbury Playcentre Association.
Children play and learn in calm and inviting indoor and outdoor learning environments. There is a wide range of resources and activities for them to choose from. A separate area provided for infants and toddlers has recently been improved and now offers a comfortable, safe place that is suitably resourced for that age group.
Children of mixed ages play well with and alongside each other. They know each other well and develop friendships with one another. Children have trusting relationships with all the adults at the centre and know their ideas will be listened to. They are purposeful and focused in their play, and are given the freedom to explore and decide what they want to do.
The skilled supervisors are positive role models for parents undergoing playcentre training. On the day of the review, the supervisor had genuine extended conversations with children and encouraged creativity and problem solving. The supervisor and adults work well together during the sessions. They:
join their own and other children in play
follow the children's interests, provide resources and extend their thinking
are responsive to the non-verbal cues of infants and toddlers and support emerging language development.
The supervision team and parents are building their capability in helping children to develop knowledge and an understanding of the cultural heritages of both parties to Te Tiriti o Waitangi. This includes celebrating significant events such as Mātariki, using simple te reo Māori with the children and including Māori perspectives meaningfully in play activities. They should continue to build their confidence in this area.
Other positive aspects of the programme that support children's learning include the ways the adults:
provide a wide range of learning experiences, including planning for science, early literacy and mathematics
make connections to children's home lives and experiences outside of the playcentre
provide many opportunities for exploration, risk taking and challenge
integrate the learning from the explorer sessions through a focus on sustainability, nature and fostering children's curiosity.
The supervisors have a purposeful discussion before each session begins to set the direction for the day. After the sessions they discuss what the children were interested in and what activities should be continued in the next session. These discussions and the written notes need to have a greater focus on what learning adults are supporting.
The supervisors and parents have a useful system for planning as a result of the association's improvements in this area. They have recently established a planning wall for individual children which is a visual display of stories, children's interests, dispositions and learning. Parents have termly gatherings to work on children's profiles together, support each other and help new parents learn how to plan for their children. They are still developing their skills in this area.
Ashburton Playcentre has a philosophy that reflects the shared values and beliefs of the parents. Centre documentation and the conversations ERO had with parents showed that they have clear ideas about what the desired learning outcomes are for their children. When the philosophy is next reviewed, these desired learning outcomes should be included, and linked to aspects of planning and self review.
The process of self review is used well to make improvements to aspects of the playcentre programme and practices. Self review has been a collaborative exercise involving many of the parents. The process would be further improved by developing and using indicators (criteria showing what good practice looks like) at all stages of the review. The supervision team and parents need to develop a schedule to ensure they review key aspects of the playcentre's programmes and practices over time.
The playcentre has a strategic plan that clearly shows the key priorities guiding the playcentre's direction. The next step is to develop annual planning relating to the strategic plan. It should then be implemented and regularly monitored.
The parents meet regularly to oversee the smooth running of the playcentre. All parents are encouraged to complete adult-education programmes so there are enough qualified adults to run the sessions. This is an ongoing priority for the playcentre.
The Mid Canterbury Playcentre Association responded well to the issues and trends emerging from the 2012 ERO reports for each playcentre. The board is very supportive of the playcentres and provides additional support for playcentres in response to their needs. It should ensure it receives evaluative reporting on key aspects relating to the centre support and supervisor support roles.
The board has a strategic plan with purposeful actions to help guide its work. This should be more formally monitored. Board members meet regularly to discuss key aspects of the smooth running of the association. They are working proactively to assist the smooth transition through the New Zealand Playcentre Federation changes. The board has an expectation that each playcentre will have its own annual plan, however these are not yet in place. The association's appraisal system for the supervisors has been reinstated and needs to continue to be embedded.
Key next steps for the association are to:
monitor the board's annual plan and support all playcentres to prepare annual plans
ensure it receives evaluative reporting on key aspects of playcentre operations.
The Ashburton Playcentre supervisors and parents, with the support of the Mid Canterbury Playcentre Association, need to:
review the playcentre philosophy to include their desired outcomes for children
refine aspects of self review
continue to refine assessment, planning and evaluation practices
develop and implement an annual plan that aligns with the strategic plan
continue to build the bicultural programme.
Before the review, the staff and management of Ashburton Playcentre 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.
The next ERO review of Ashburton Playcentre will be in three years.
Lesley Patterson
Deputy Chief Review Officer Southern
27 September 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 |
Ashburton |
||
|
Ministry of Education profile number |
70018 |
||
|
Licence type |
Playcentre |
||
|
Licensed under |
Education (Early Childhood Services) Regulations 2008 |
||
|
Number licensed for |
30 children, including up to 10 aged under 2 |
||
|
Service roll |
31 |
||
|
Gender composition |
Boys: 18 Girls: 13 |
||
|
Ethnic composition |
Māori Pākehā European Chinese South American |
1 26 2 1 1 |
|
|
Percentage of qualified teachers |
Parent Led |
||
|
Reported ratios of staff to children |
Under 2 |
1:1 |
Better than minimum requirements |
|
Over 2 |
1:5 |
Better than minimum requirements |
|
|
Review team on site |
July 2016 |
||
|
Date of this report |
27 September 2016 |
||
|
Most recent ERO report(s) |
Education Review |
June 2012 |
|
|
Education Review |
March 2009 |
||
|
Education Review |
August 2005 |
||
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.
Ashburton Playcentre is one of eight playcentres managed by the Mid Canterbury Playcentre Association. The association provides the framework and support for the operation of the centre. The parents and supervisors are responsible for the daily management of the centre and the programme provided for children. High child to adult ratios are maintained at mixed-age sessions.
Ashburton Playcentre provides good quality education and care for children. Children experience warm and affirming relationships. The supervisor and parents respect children and encourage them to make choices about their play and learning. They ask a good range of questions that help children to build upon their ideas and solve problems.
Children participate in sustained and meaningful play. They make effective use of the wide range of equipment and resources to explore and develop their understanding of the wider world. Literacy and numeracy are well integrated into the programme.
Association personnel provide a good range of support and training for parents. They help parents ensure the centre maintains a high level of health and safety. They provide programmes and guidance to help supervisors and parents develop the skills, knowledge and confidence to successfully manage the centre and promote positive learning outcomes for all children.
ERO, the association managers, the supervisor and parents agree that the next steps to improve children’s learning include:
ERO is likely to carry out the next review in three years.
Education reviews in early childhood services focus on the factors that contribute to positive learning outcomes for children. To reach these findings ERO evaluates:
Within these areas ERO considers the effectiveness of partnerships with whānau and self review. ERO evaluates how well placed the centre is to make and sustain improvements for the benefit of all children at Ashburton Playcentre.
Children and families from the town and the rural community attend this centre. Parents have chosen this centre so that they can be actively involved in all aspects of their children’s early childhood years.
The playcentre philosophy states that the centre operates as a parent cooperative where parents are recognised as the child’s first and best educator. The family unit is valued, promoted and supported. Each child is accepted, nurtured and provided with a stimulating and creative environment. Te Tiriti o Waitangi is reflected in the centre environment and culture.
This review was conducted as part of a trial of ERO’s revised approaches to reviews in early childhood education services. The trial used a cluster approach for the reviews of eight playcentres within the Mid Canterbury Playcentre Association umbrella organisation.
Children experience warm and affirming relationships with the supervisor and parents. Older children readily play with and support younger children. Children are confident and happy in the playcentre environment.
Parents support each other and willingly look after each other's children and share responsibilities within the playcentre. Parents told ERO that a strength of playcentre is the time that they can spend with their own children and be part of their learning. They make good use of the parent education programme to develop their skills, knowledge and confidence as parents and educators of their children.
The supervisor and parents respect children and encourage them to make choices about their play and learning. They give children the time and space that that they need to actively explore and develop their own ideas and understandings. Children participate in sustained and meaningful play individually and in small, mixed-age groups.
Children’s learning is promoted by the way the supervisor and parents ask a range of questions that help them to extend their thinking, develop ideas and solve problems. The wide range of equipment and resources is well used to help children explore and develop their understanding of the wider world.
Children have many opportunities to develop literacy and mathematical skills. The supervisor and parents make good use of children’s interests to introduce these concepts within the context of their play. Story reading is well integrated into the programme.
The supervisor and parents are well supported by the association in the day-to-day operation, parent training and leadership within the centre.
ERO, the association managers and centre parents agree that the next steps to improve learning outcomes for children include:
Before the review, the staff of Ashburton Playcentre 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 documentation, including policies, procedures and records of recent use of procedures. ERO also checked elements of the following areas that have a potentially high impact on outcomes for children:
ERO is likely to carry out the next review in three years.
Graham Randell
National Manager Review Services Southern Region
21 June 2012
|
Location |
Ashburton |
|
|
Ministry of Education profile number |
70018 |
|
|
Licence type |
Full Licence, Sessional Playcentre |
|
|
Licensed under |
Education (Early Childhood Services) Regulations 2008 |
|
|
Playcentre roll |
52 |
|
|
Gender composition |
Girls 30; Boys 22 |
|
|
Ethnic composition |
NZ European/Pākehā Māori Pacific |
48 3 1 |
|
Review team on site |
May 2012 |
|
|
Date of this report |
21 June 2012 |
|
|
Most recent ERO report(s) |
Education Review Education Review Accountability Review |
March 2009 August 2005 May 2001 |