Christchurch

This is a really tough time for New Zealanders and it’s critical our children and young people get the support and care they need as they return to schools and other learning institutions.

Traumatic Incident support has been offered to all schools, kura and early learning services and we are working to assess their needs.

As all early learning service providers operate independently of the Ministry, either as commercial businesses or one of various types of not-for-profit organisations any decisions about fee charges will be made by the service itself. We believe however that most services will recognise the highly unusual nature of the tragic event and not charge parents for the additional hours while children were involved in the lockdown. We recommend that in the first instance parents should speak to their service about any concerns they may have. 
 
If early learning services have incurred financial loss, services can discuss discretionary funding options with the Ministry.
 
If you have concerns about how to speak with your children about Friday’s events we have some tips on our website we are also able to provide support to services.

Measles outbreak 

This is relevant to everyone, including all staff and children. 

There is a measles outbreak which looks to be spreading, with reported cases in Canterbury and Auckland to date. The Canterbury District Health Board confirms there are now 27 confirmed measles cases in Canterbury. 

Measles is a serious, highly infectious, potentially life-threatening disease and affects everyone; babies, children and adults. 

Symptoms include a fever, a cough, red eyes and a runny nose, sometimes small white spots on the back inner cheek of your mouth; then a rash which develops after about three days. About one in ten people with measles need to be hospitalised and 30% will develop complications.

Parents should contact their GP for advice. Children should not attend early learning services to prevent putting other people at risk, particularly vulnerable people including babies and pregnant women.

To find out more about please go to www.education.govt.nz.
 

You must check all children’s workers

All new children’s workers must be safety checked before they start work. There are 7 components to a safety check for a new children’s worker, and all 7 must be completed before work starts.

All existing children’s workers who you employed prior to 1 July 2015 also need to be safety checked. There are 4 components to a safety check for an existing children’s worker. 

You should have safety checked all your existing core children’s workers by 1 July last year. By 1 July this year, you must safety check all your existing non-core children’s workers.

A police vet is just one component of the safety check for all children’s workers.

You must safety check all your children’s workers every 3 years.

You must have a written safety checking procedure that you follow and you must keep records of all the safety checks and the results for all children’s workers at your service. The procedure and results must be made available to Ministry licensing staff on request.

Read more about your safety checking obligations on our website.

Safety Checking

Poipoia te Mokopuna – upcoming tender (GETS)

We will shortly be seeking proposals to deliver the Poipoia te Mokopuna program from 1 July 2019 –to 30 June 2022. 

Poipoia te Mokopuna is a programme focused on supporting vulnerable Māori whānau and their tamariki aged under three to participate and engage in early learning. The providers we seek to deliver this contract are iwi/hapū providers with strong connections to Te Ao Māori and te reo Māori me ōna tikanga, capable of designing and delivering a programme to support Māori whānau. They must be heavily involved in their community. 

If you are interested, the Request for Proposals (RFP) will be available on GETS in late March 2019. 

GETS is a free service designed to promote open, fair competition for New Zealand contract opportunities. For more information about GETS, visit www.gets.govt.nz 

ECE operational funding update

On 1 March the Ministry paid the latest instalment of early childhood education (ECE) funding to services that submitted their RS7 Return up to and including 8 February.

Services that submit their RS7 return after 8 February, up to (and including) 6 March, will receive funding overnight on Wednesday 20 March 2019.

To find our more about resubmissions and changes to early childhood funding rates read more on our website.







 

Children enrolled in school

Children enrolled in school cannot attend a licensed early learning service, and this applies during school terms and school holidays. 

There are 2 exceptions:

• children with an agreed graduated transition plan, who may attend their early learning service on the days they are not attending school; and
• children attending out-of-school care offered by a licensed home-based service, as long as certain conditions are met. 

Children enrolled in school can be present at an early learning service for short periods of time for a specific purpose, as long as they are supervised by an adult who is directly responsible for them. For example, dropping off a younger sibling with a parent.

Read more on our website.

 

Thank you – feedback on the draft Strategic Plan for Early learning

Consultation closed on Friday, 15 March for He taonga te tamaiti, the new draft strategic plan for early learning. Thank you for taking the time to tell us your thoughts. We have had 2,239 individual survey responses, over 140 submissions and 44 hui with over 1900 attendees!
 
All feedback received, together with the themes and findings from the Home-based review and the broader Education Conversation, will be passed on to the groups working on the final plan.
 
We will keep you updated in this Bulletin about the Plan’s progress.
 
There are other consultations happening this year, such as Tomorrow’s Schools Review, that you may also like to contribute to. Please see the Education Conversation website for the latest information on the different consultations.
 
Education Conversation

Tomorrow’s Schools Review public engagement meetings

Public engagement meetings for the Tomorrow’s Schools Review are continuing around the country. You can now provide oral submissions via 0800 FOR TSR (0800 367 877).

Written submissions can be emailed to tomorrows.schools@education.govt.nz and the online survey is open until 31 March.

You can access the online survey and further information about the Tomorrow's Schools Review on the website below.

Kōrero Mātauranga – Education Conversation website

ECAC update

The Early Childhood Advisory Committee (ECAC) last met on Wednesday 6 March.

ECAC meets 4 times a year with senior Ministry of Education staff to share information, provide feedback on proposals, and discuss strategic challenges and opportunities for the early learning sector.

More information about ECAC, including minutes from recent meetings, can be found on our website.

Early Childhood Advisory Committee (ECAC)

Entries close on 5 April for Prime Minister’s Education Excellence Awards

Entries for the 2019 Prime Minister’s Education Excellence Awards are still open and close on 5 April. If your team is achieving great things for learners, their whānau and your community, it’s time to share your story so others can follow in your footsteps.

2019 Prime Minister’s Education Excellence Awards





 

Financial reporting due 30 June 2019

Early learning services that have operated for a full financial year in 2018 and have received income of over $80,000 (including GST) from the Ministry of Education must submit audited financial statements. These must be accompanied by a declaration form and be sent to the Resourcing Division, Ministry of Education, PO Box 1666, Wellington 6140 or email resourcing@education.govt.nz by 30 June 2019. 

You can read more about the financial reporting requirements on our website.

Financial declaration for early learning services

Declaration form (DOCX, 73kb)

Voting closing soon – Teaching Council election

Voting is underway in the Teaching Council Board election.

Please encourage your colleagues to exercise their democratic right to make a difference and vote for their Council. Teachers and leaders from the early learning sector, teachers and principals from the primary and secondary sectors, and teacher educators, will each select a candidate to represent them on their professional body. 

For most teachers voting will be online. Each registered teacher and holder of a Limited Authority to Teach (LAT) should have received an email or letter with a unique access code and password. Those who have not should contact Election Services at 0800 922 822 or info@electionservices.co.nz.

Voting closes at midday on 26 March. 

After the elections, Education Minister Chris Hipkins will appoint a further 6 board members. More information about the elections can be found on the Teaching Council website.

Teaching Council

Playgroup news from around the country

Please see the Regional News section for stories about playgroups in the following regions:

• Tai Tokerau
• Waikato
• Otago/Southland

Calling for Playgroup story ideas

Do you have a story that you would like to share with other playgroups? The Ministry welcomes contributions from the early learning sector for He Pānui Kōhungahunga – The Early Learning Bulletin. To find out more about how to submit an article, contact us at earlylearning.bulletin@education.govt.nz 

Education Gazette - early learning stories

The Education Gazette Tukutuku Kōrero aims to inspire teaching and learning, and celebrating success and innovation. This month there are two new stories from early learning services:

• New carving provides gateway to learning
• Country atmosphere and animal contact provide rich experiences
• Learning the wonder of science – together
• Understanding the Privacy Act
• Tomorrow’s Schools Review

Contribute to He Pānui Kōhungahunga - The Early Learning Bulletin

The Ministry welcomes contributions from the Early Learning sector for He Pānui Kōhungahunga – the Early Learning Bulletin. To find out more about how to submit content, contact us at earlylearning.bulletin@education.govt.nz