582 Blockhouse Bay Road, Blockhouse Bay, Auckland
View on map|
Not well placed |
Requires further development |
Well placed |
Very well placed |
ERO's findings that support this overall judgement are summarised below.
Blockhouse Bay Playcentre is a parent cooperative service that operates adjacent to Blockhouse Bay Primary school. The centre provides four morning sessions each week. Programmes for children are underpinned by the Playcentre philosophy of parents and children playing and learning together. The centre is able to cater for 30 children, including 15 up to two years of age.
The centre is part of the newly established Auckland Central Playcentre Region. Regional systems support centre members to manage their centres and to provide educational programmes for their children. Playcentre personnel also provide training programmes for parents/whānau to achieve Playcentre qualifications.
ERO's 2015 report recommended more regular use of written assessment and session evaluation to plan for future learning, and documentation of children's learning to show progress over time. Centre members have made significant progress in establishing these processes. Levels of Playcentre course qualifications are high in the centre.
This review was part of a cluster of three Playcentre reviews in the Auckland Central Playcentre Region.
Children are confident, capable learners, who engage enthusiastically with the programme. Adults work closely with them, supporting their self-chosen play through conversations and open-ended questions. Children respond positively to the skills and knowledge that adults share with them. Centre members demonstrate their understanding of children through their discussions and written observations. Trusting relationships between children and adults are evident.
Centre members are highly culturally responsive. They encourage their members to feel confident in sharing their cultures and using their home languages both in writing and speaking. Families share cultural festivals, values and beliefs as part of programmes.
A particular focus has been on strengthening understanding of te ao Māori and the inclusion of te reo me ōna tikanga Māori. Centre members strongly embrace te Tiriti o Waitangi as a guiding document. They are working as a team to ensure that Treaty principles are part of their practice.
Assessment processes are well-established. Centre members contribute to children's portfolios and encourage each other to make meaningful entries about the child, with a focus on progress over time. Evaluation meetings at the end of each session are prompting centre members to think more deeply about the value of the play they have observed. Planning is thoughtful, well recorded and about outcomes for children.
Centre members share a clear understanding of the vision they have for the centre. Strategic and annual planning help to guide centre operations. More experienced members support those who are new to the centre in order to ensure sustainability and build confidence and capability in operating the centre effectively. Succession planning is also in place to sustain the level of qualified members to meet future needs.
Internal evaluation is well-established and used to help in shared decision-making about how the centre operates. Policies and procedures are regularly reviewed.
The regional management team takes responsibility for supporting effective operations. The team is aware of the strengths and needs of each centre and provides professional leadership to promote improvement and growth. Centre support workers are guided by regional centre support coordinators. Individual and effective support helps each centre to continue to develop quality programmes for children, and sound health and safety monitoring requirements.
Key next steps are to continue:
using and strengthening current effective internal evaluation processes
building on assessment, planning and evaluation, and bicultural practices.
To enhance practices in all Auckland Region Playcentres, the regional manager and support personnel should consider ways to:
better support adult education, with consideration about the timing of workshops
provide additional support to increase centre members' understanding and use of effective assessment, planning and evaluation processes, bicultural practices and internal evaluation
support centres to further develop and link strategic and annual planning to create more systematic consideration of the long-term needs within their centres.
Before the review, the staff and management of Blockhouse Bay 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 Blockhouse Bay Playcentre will be in four years.
Steve Tanner
Director Review and Improvement Services
Te Tai Raki - Northern Region
17 January 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.
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Location |
Blockhouse Bay, Auckland |
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Ministry of Education profile number |
22019 |
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Licence type |
Playcentre |
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Licensed under |
Education (Early Childhood Services) Regulations 2008 |
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Number licensed for |
30 children, including up to 15 aged under 2 |
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Service roll |
26 |
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Gender composition |
Girls 16 Boys 10 |
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Ethnic composition |
Pākehā |
10 |
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Percentage of qualified teachers |
0-49% |
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Reported ratios of staff to children |
Under 2 |
1:3 |
Better than minimum requirements |
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Over 2 |
1:3 |
Better than minimum requirements |
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Review team on site |
October 2018 |
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Date of this report |
17 January 2019 |
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Most recent ERO report(s) |
Education Review |
May 2015 |
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|
Education Review |
April 2012 |
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Education Review |
November 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:
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.
|
Not well placed |
Requires further development |
Well placed |
Very well placed |
ERO's findings that support this overall judgement are summarised below.
Blockhouse Bay Playcentre in West Auckland is a parent-led service that provides five morning sessions each week. The well established centre caters for up to 25 children per session from birth to school age. The Blockhouse Bay Playcentre philosophy recognises that children learn through child-initiated play with the support of parents as first educators. The centre’s philosophy is very evident in the centre documents and practice.
The positive features identified in the 2012 ERO report continue to be evident. The report recommended that centre members continue to strengthen the use of planning, assessment and evaluation to cater for children’s strengths and interests. It also recommended continuing to develop self-review practices. Members have increased their understandings and capabilities in these areas.
The centre is part of the Auckland Playcentres Association, which provides playcentre adult education, frameworks of management, policies and procedures, and personnel support. Each centre contributes to the make-up of the Association and has representatives at Association level.
At present the Playcentre Federation is undertaking a restructure with the aim of maintaining the viability of Playcentres throughout New Zealand. This is likely to change the current structure of the Auckland Playcentres Association.
This review was part of a cluster of nine Playcentre reviews in the Auckland Playcentres Association.
Children are encouraged to become confident and competent learners, developing skills for self management and independence. Their play is purposeful and children express themselves well. Children are developing very good social competencies.
The programme supports mixed-aged learning opportunities for all children, including infants and toddlers. Adults play alongside children, listening to and responding to them. They encourage children to make decisions and provide additional resources to extend their play. Centre members affirm children’s efforts and value their ideas and opinions. They have flexible routines so that children can concentrate on their play for long periods of time.
The cooperative of diverse families works well together to provide early childhood education based on Te Whāriki, the early childhood curriculum. An extensive range of resources is available. Effective planning, evaluation and assessment practices help adults to respond to individual children’s strengths and interests. They plan, prepare and evaluate the programme for infants, toddlers and older children. They document children’s learning well, using learning stories, observations and photographs in children’s assessment portfolios.
Te reo Māori and bicultural perspectives are being introduced into the programme and environment in meaningful ways. This work has been led by a parent and is supported by all centre members. The coordinator considers that integrating te reo me ona tikanga Māori is a continuing development focus.
Centre members, led by the joint coordinators, manage the centre efficiently. They use the Association policies well to develop specific centre based policies. Clear roles and responsibilities promote emergent leadership. All members are encouraged to take on leadership roles in this supportive environment. Roles are shared and for a fixed term, so that building leadership capacity is continuous and sustainable.
Parents/whānau frequently reflect on their practice to improve programmes for children. They are encouraged to use their strengths and talents and to incorporate their cultures in the programmes. Regular meetings help members to share in the decision making process to make ongoing improvements. Participation in adult education courses is an integral part of centre practice.
The Association’s strategic plan provides a guide for governance and is regularly monitored. Management and governance processes are well established. The Association provides assistance for centres, and appropriate playcentre training courses. It provides regular visits every term from a curriculum and programme supporter. Association office holders are highly committed to the playcentre philosophy and to maintaining playcentre as a valuable education option for parents/whānau.
Centre members agree that the key next steps are to:
Before the review, the staff and management of Blockhouse Bay 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:
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 Blockhouse Bay Playcentre will be in three years.
Dale Bailey Deputy Chief Review Officer Northern
25 May 2015
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 |
Blockhouse Bay |
||
|
Ministry of Education profile number |
22019 |
||
|
Licence type |
Playcentre |
||
|
Licensed under |
Education (Early Childhood Services) Regulations 2008 |
||
|
Number licensed for |
30 children, including up to 15 aged under 2 |
||
|
Service roll |
30 |
||
|
Gender composition |
15 Boys 15 Girls |
||
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Ethnic composition |
Pākehā Indian Chinese Sri Lankan other |
20 4 2 2 2 |
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|
Reported ratios of staff to children |
Under 2 |
1:2 |
Better than minimum requirements |
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Over 2 |
1:2 |
Better than minimum requirements |
|
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Review team on site |
March 2015 |
||
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Date of this report |
25 May 2015 |
||
|
Most recent ERO report(s) |
Education Review |
April 2011 |
|
|
Education Review |
November 2008 |
||
|
Education Review |
October 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:
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.