Typically responds within
A few hours
Vacancies
Limited availability
BestStart Willowpark Road is located in the heart of the Hastings CBD, across the road from Queen’s Square Park. We are a busy and vibrant early learning centre with two separate rooms to suit the needs of our tamariki. We're open from 7.30am until 5.30pm and only close for public holidays.
Let us keep close together not far apart
Waiho i te toipoto, kaua i te toiroa
Our centre vision represents the merging of cultures in our centre and our wider community. It links to the virtue of atawhai or compassion, and is shown through affection, caring advice and kindness. The selfless concern for the wellbeing of others is what you will experience as part of the BestStart Willowpark Road whānau.
At BestStart Willowpark Road we go above and beyond to ensure our tamariki and whānau enjoy a welcoming experience from the very beginning of their journey with us. We believe in enrolling the whole whanau and we cater transition programmes to suit individual needs.
Togetherness - Relationships are the heart of our centre life. We work in partnership with whānau to ensure that tamariki reach their full potential during their time with us. We value the importance of ngā whakawhanaungatanga – reciprocal and responsive relationships and believe that tamariki learn best in an environment where warm, respectful relationships are established and nurtured.
Empowerment - Tamariki at Willowpark Rd experience an environment that allows them freedom to explore and learn in their own unique ways. We believe in empowering tamariki to become leaders in their own learning. Kaiako acknowledge and extend children’s interests and developing working theories through intentional provocations and teaching strategies. We value Ako and recognise the importance of tuakana /teina relationships.
Pride - Our localised curriculum lays the foundation for tamariki to become curious and resilient learners for life. We support tamariki to walk with mana, secure in who they are and where they come from. We achieve this by instilling the importance of ako, whakawhanaungatanga and manaakitanga. We acknowledge Māori as tangata whenua and recognise the bi-cultural heritage of Aotearoa and work to uphold the spirit and intent of Te tiriti O Waitangi by making Te Reo me ngā tikanga Māori an integral part of our programme.
Our learning spaces - We have two age-based learning rooms to best meet the needs of tamariki as they develop and grow. Our Pukeko Room caters to the needs of our youngest tamariki, infants through to 2-year-olds and our Kiwi Room caters to the needs of our 2 – 5-year-olds. Both Rooms have their own separate outdoors areas. Our Kaiako provide a programme that offers a mix of free play, group learning times and intentional teaching.
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.
