BestStart Mahora

BestStart Mahora is a small early learning centre conveniently located near Mahora Shopping Centre, Cornwall Park and close to Mahora School. Hastings city centre is nearby and the local industrial area on our door step. We're open right through the year and provide a variety of childcare options for children aged 0-5 years old.

We hear you, we see you, we know you

Ko koe kei ngā taringa, Ko koe kei ngā kanohi, ko koe kei te whatumanawa 

At BestStart Mahora our tamariki are nurtured in a caring, inclusive and loving environment. We celebrate each child’s uniqueness, empowering them to flourish and thrive at their own pace. Our learning environment promotes a sense of whanaungatanga and supports our children to work with and alongside each other.  

Our kaiako embrace a strong sense of belonging by fostering respectful relationships that celebrate the cultural diversity of our learning community. 

We believe play and learning should be unhurried, child directed, engaging, and meaningful. We trust and empower tamariki to make their own choices regarding their own learning and centre environment. We promote learning around sustainability and caring for the natural world.  

We weave whānau aspirations into individualised learning plans that enable kaiako to support each child's learning. Every child’s learning journey and milestones are captured and shared through one-on-one communication with whānau, journals and our online learning portfolios on Storypark. These are intended for them to revisit their learning. It is a precious record of their learning throughout their time here at BestStart Mahora.

Who is BestStart?

BestStart is for families who want more from early-childhood education. Safe, nurturing and educationally focused, we’re committed to growing caring people with curious minds.

Together we teach, learn and nurture.

Our vision is to work in partnership with families, whanau and communities to enable children to achieve their learning potential.

Ko tō mātou tirohanga hei mahi ngātahi i te taha o ngā whānau me ngā hāpori, kia āwhinatia ngā tamariki, kia tū pito mata ai rāatou, hei rangatira mō āpōpō.

We are committed to being a progressive and responsive leader in early-childhood education. We do this by enhancing our services, investing in our people, developing our support structure and continuously improving the educational outcomes and experiences of our children, families and the communities we serve.

Some facts:

• We’re licensed to educate and care for 15,000 full-time children daily.
• 18,000 families use BestStart services annually.
• We have over 270 centres nationwide located from Whangarei to Invercargill.
• Each centre is managed by a Centre Manager who is supported by a local Area Manager. This gives our centre teams ongoing quality training and support.
• Te Whāriki, the world-wide acclaimed national early childhood education curriculum, is used in all centres.
• We have over 4500 permanent teachers nationally. Over 90% of our permanent teaching staff are either fully qualified with a diploma or bachelor of teaching (ECE) or higher, or are in training. These figures are very high by national standards within the ECE sector.
• We provide a two-year Advice and Guidance Programme for all recently certified teachers, providing further mentoring and training. This gives strong support for teachers from provisional registration to full teacher registration with the NZ Teachers Council.
• We regularly spend around $4 million on teacher training per annum.

We’re for children

At our heart is our commitment and passion for children. Central to this belief is our focus on the holistic development of children. We support children to explore the world around them, learning through relationships, creating a love of learning in an ever-changing world. Exploration, friendship and fun are part of the journey.

We’re for good

BestStart is a registered charity owned by the Wright Family Foundation. We support initiatives and programmes within BestStart and the wider early-childhood education sector (ECE) that support good outcomes for all children. We do this because we want to make a positive difference to the lives of all children.

Innovation leads us

At BestStart, innovation guides our thinking. We advocate positive change for learners through our research and practice. We’re proud to be thought leaders within ECE, openly challenging ourselves to think differently to provide the best for our children, families and staff.

We’re responsive

Our centres reflect their children, staff and communities. We celebrate individuality, uniqueness and diversity, encouraging a spirit of empathy, understanding and collaboration. Through our responsive relationships and our curriculum, we support learners to choose their own path.

Our people matter

At BestStart people come first. When we grow and develop our people, everyone benefits. We strive for whakamana/empowerment, nurturing a culture of excellence with engaged, talented professionals. Their commitment, skill and passion light our way.