BestStart Kenderdine Road

BestStart Kenderdine Road is a childcare centre close to the Papatoetoe train station and Allan Brewster Leisure Centre. We cherish our community ties and are a multi-cultural centre, with Samoan, Cook Island, Indian, European, Chinese, Fijian and Maori teachers. If you live in or around Papatoetoe and need childcare, this centre is a great choice for your family.

Nature's Explorers

Why choose BestStart Kenderdine?

We cherish our community ties and are a multi-cultural centre, with  Samoan, Cook Island, Indian, European, Chinese, Fijian and Maori teachers. If you live in or around Papatoetoe and need childcare, this centre is a great choice for your family.

We offer:

• Child-led learning programme - your child will guide us
• Positive behaviour guidance - where your child will learn to respect themselves, classmates, teachers and their environment
• Friendly and approachable staff - that speak a range of languages
• Be School Ready initiative - your child will be ready to begin the next step in their learning when the time comes

Our Learning Spaces

Your child will be supported in their unique learning journey in one of our six rooms designed to meet the needs of each age and stage

Harakeke. In the Harakeke Room, your infant has a teacher dedicated to their needs, whom they will develop a trusting relationship with. They will follow your baby's lead in their daily routine and provide a calm environment, allowing them to develop at their own pace. Their learning will be exciting, with a range of age appropriate learning opportunities.

Kowhai. From 18 months to 2.5 years, your child will be here with a team of teachers that are always prepared to take on the challenges the toddler age group presents. As their emerging physical skills put them at the height of their curiosity, your child will be encourage to explore in a warm and responsive space.

Pohutukawa. Here the focus is on helping your child (2.8 - 3.5 years old) explore and develop their understanding of the physical, social and natural world. They will use a rich variety of resources, thoughtfully presented to evoke curiosity and risk-taking, which will develop self-help and interpersonal skills.

Kea. Creativity, nature learning, shared learning, science and mathematics are used to help your child pursue their interests in meaningful ways in this spacious room with beautifully manicured playgrounds. Kea Room welcomes children from 3.6 to 4 years old. 

The Tui Room. Your child's literacy and mathematics skills are consistently supported through a wide variety of play-based learning experiences.There is also a strong focus on developing self-help skills in children from 4 to 5 years of age.  

For your convenience, we have two entrances - one at 42A Wyllie Road and one at 19 Kenderdine Road.

We were recognised this year by Reader's Digest readers, who awarded us the Gold Quality Service award. 

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.