Community Ownership: Parents likely have a strong say in how the service operates and what happens to children, all money earnt stays within it, and teachers may be paid better and childcare charges may be lower compared to most (but not necessarily all) private and corporate owned services. (Ask: Is it an Incorporated Society? Does it also have charitable status?)
Small Boutique Centre: Centres with 50 or fewer children make it easier for staff to provide a warm and nurturing environment, for children to have their individual needs met and skills, knowledge, and competencies extended. (Ask: For continuity of care and relationships, do children stay with the same group of children and teachers throughout their time at the service?)
100% Qualified Teacher Funded: All staff counted toward meeting the minimum adult-child ratio requirement must hold a practising certificate as a teacher if the service receives this level of Ministry of Education funding. (Ask: Does the service count teachers trained in the ECE of children birth to 5 years and not primary or secondary school trained teachers?)
Men Included on Teaching Staff (as at last year): There are strong benefits of having both men and women on the teaching team for the quality of care and education a service provides to children. Additionally, gender bias in staff recruitment and employment is not generally acceptable in society today. (Ask: How many teaching staff are employed and what proportion are men?)
(as at last year):
Clean Licence Record (last year and the year before): To be licensed a service must comply with regulations that help ensure children’s safety, care, and a suitable standard of education. When requirements are breached the Ministry of Education may downgrade a service’s licence to provisional or issue a suspension. (Check the lists of services placed on a provisional or suspended licence https://oece.nz/public/information/standards/ published each year)
(last year and year before):
Recommended Highly by 80% or More Families: At least 80% of families recommend the service and rate it as being very good to excellent on a range of aspects of quality. (Note that a response rate of at least 51% families on the OECE parent survey https://oece.nz/public/information/resources/parent-survey/ research instrument within the last three years is necessary here)
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1 Review on “Starship Play Service Ward 23B Clinic”
This service changed our experience on the ward! When COVID restrictions lifted and the play centre opened my 6 month old’s experience in the ward improved a lot. Her favourite activities were Snoezelen and music with Olly. She had never seen a guitar before and I loved seeing her look of awe. Olly played calming and interactive music on his guitar and let her play some of the instruments. Snoezelen was very relaxing for my daughter as well as for myself. It was time away from machines beeping, with low light, the sound of the bubbling water tower, and amazing fibre optic lights. One day they had black light paint and I was surprised when they suggested my 6 month old finger paint. It turns out she knew exactly what to do! We will be framing her very first piece of artwork. The play centre allowed us to borrow books and toys to keep in our room. The playroom staff even came to watch my daughter on occasion to give me a break. They made an effort to form relationships with the children as well as the parents. I am grateful for the support and distraction from the serious medical side of this, and I am also thankful for the developmental opportunities provided at a time when most of my daughter’s time was spent in a cot on her back. The play centre allowed more fun to happen in our lives than would have otherwise been possible. We were able to get on with some living!