Small Fries Christian Childcare Centre

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.

ERO’s Judgement

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.

Background

Small Fries Christian Childcare Centre is owned by a private company, Windsor Park Hub Limited. A qualified service provider/centre manager, and general manager together provide governance, management and curriculum support to a large teaching team and support staff. Children enrolled are from diverse cultural backgrounds. 

Summary of Review Findings

Children access an inclusive and responsive curriculum. Their preferences are respected, and they are involved in decisions about their learning. The premises supports the provision of different types of indoor and outdoor experiences. 

The curriculum provides a language-rich environment that supports children’s learning. Teachers take positive steps to acknowledge the aspirations held by parents and whānau for their children. 

Service leaders must ensure health and safety practices and governance, management and administration systems are implemented and monitored to maintain regulatory standards.

Key Next Steps 

Next steps include: 

• Improve the extent to which assessment information shows children’s progress and learning overtime.
• Strengthen the extent to which Information documented about children’s learning reflects their identity, language, and culture.

Actions for Compliance 

Since the onsite visit, the service has provided ERO with evidence that shows it has addressed the following non-compliances: 

• ensuring equipment that could fall and cause serious injury is secured. 
• maintaining a record of the time each child attending the service sleeps, and regular checks made by adults during that time. 
• ensuring the premises and facilities are checked every day of operation for hazards to children, including the condition and placement of learning, play and other equipment and windows and other areas of glass, and that actions are taken to eliminate, isolate or minimise hazards. 
• having evidence of parental permission and approval of adult: child ratios for regular excursions and the assessment and risk management process undertaken. 
• maintaining a record of the written authority from parents for the administration of medicine in accordance with the requirement for categories ii and iii medicine, and evidence of parental acknowledgement they have been advised medication was administered to their child. 
• having a record of training and/or information provided to adults who administer medicine to children (other than their own) while at the service. 
• ensuring all staff in a children’s worker role are police vetted as core workers.
  
  Licensing Criteria for Early Childhood Education and Care Centres 2008; HS6, HS9, HS12, HS17, HS28, HS29, GMA7a.

Next ERO Review 

The next ERO review is likely to be an Akarangi | Quality Evaluation. 

Patricia Davey
Director of Early Childhood Education (ECE)

24 June 2024 

Information About the Service

General Information about Assurance Reviews  

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.  

ERO undertakes an Akanuku | Assurance Review process in any centre-based service: 

• 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. 

Management Assurance on Legal Requirements 

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.