Te Ako o te Tui Early Childhood Centre - Grafton

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

At the time of the review, ERO found the service was taking reasonable steps to meet regulatory standards.

Background

Te Ako o Te Tui Early Childhood Centre is one of six services managed by the Campus Life directorate of the University of Auckland. Those attending are primarily children of staff and students at the University of Auckland. A recently appointed general manager and centre leader lead a team of 13 qualified teachers and three support staff. Children attending are from diverse ethnic backgrounds, including a small number of Māori children.

Summary of Review Findings

Leaders and teachers provide a curriculum which is consistent with Te Whāriki, the early childhood curriculum. Adults providing education and care engage in meaningful, positive interactions to enhance children’s learning, and nurture reciprocal relationships.

The curriculum respects and supports the right of each child to be confident in their own culture and encourages children to understand and respect other cultures. A language-rich environment supports children’s learning. The modern design and layout of the premises supports the provision of a range of experiences and opportunities to enhance and extend children’s learning and development, both indoors and outdoors.

Key Next Steps

Key next steps are:

• to build teachers’ collective capability to strengthen planning, assessment, and evaluation for learning

• for teachers to document how children’s dispositions, working theories and learning outcomes are fostered, as described in Te Whāriki, the early childhood curriculum.

Next ERO Review

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

Filivaifale Jason Swann
Director Review and Improvement Services (Northern)
Northern Region | Te Tai Raki

9 November 2022 

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.