Darfield Playcentre

1 Evaluation of Darfield Playcentre

How well placed is Darfield Playcentre to promote positive learning outcomes for children?

Darfield Playcentre is well placed to promote positive learning outcomes for children.

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

Background

Darfield Playcentre operates as a parent cooperative under the governance and management of the Playcentre Federation, Upper South Island Region. It is licensed for 25 children, including 15 aged under two. The playcentre is open five mornings a week.

The playcentre employs a coordinator. Parents are rostered to help at each session. The Upper South Island Region employs a centre support person and administrator who regularly visit the centre to support the parents and coordinator.

The playcentre's philosophy emphasises the important role of parents in children's learning and wellbeing. It also states the significance of child-led learning in a safe and stimulating environment.

Playcentre parents have made good progress in addressing the recommendations of the last ERO report.

This review was part of a cluster of eight playcentre reviews in the Playcentre Federation, Upper South Island Region.

The Review Findings

Children of all ages are settled and confidently work and play in the playcentre environment. Adults foster positive, supportive and respectful relationships between adults and children. They model care and respect and learning for the children and one another. Families are warmly welcomed and well supported to engage in the programme which supports them to develop a sense of belonging.

Children are active learners and explorers. Adults support children well to follow their interests and to lead and extend their learning. A wide range of activities and resources are accessible to children of all ages. The programme aligns well with children's interests and home lives. Strong links to the community are actively pursued to provide rich learning experiences within and beyond the centre.

Children and adults value te reo and tikanga Māori. Reciprocal learning relationships with the local runanga, the local Kāhui Ako| Community of Learning, local schools and early learning centres help keep te reo and tikanga Māori active in the centre's programme.

Adults are reflective and make good use of strategic planning and internal evaluation to support ongoing improvement and positive learning and wellbeing outcomes for children and adults. They now need to document progress towards strategic goals and the impact of change made as a result internal evaluation and strategic planning, including outcomes for children.

Assessment and planning processes have improved due to a larger number of parents participating in the parent education programme. The playcentre now needs to strengthen the way children's learning is recorded by including children's home cultures and how their learning will be extended.

The parent group work well as a cooperative. It is timely for the playcentre to review and update its philosophy.

There continues to be significant change occurring with the playcentre's governance and management at regional and federation levels.

Key Next Steps

The Upper South Island Region, the playcentre and ERO agree that the key next steps for the centre are to:

• strengthen strategic planning and internal evaluation by documenting progress towards strategic goals and the impact of change made as a result of these activities
• include children's home cultures and how their learning will be extended in assessment records
• review and update the centre philosophy to show the value that adults place on te ao Māori and current teaching and learning priorities, including valued outcomes for children.

Management Assurance on Legal Requirements

Before the review, the staff and management of Darfield 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:

• 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.

To improve current practice, the Upper South Island Region service management should ensure:

• equipment is suitably positioned to ensure children's safety
• indoor spaces provide adequate protection for non-mobile children to move safely.

Dr Lesley Patterson

Director Review and Improvement Services Southern

Southern Region

19 August 2019

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

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

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.

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.