BestStart Mount Wellington

BestStart Mount Wellington is an established early learning childcare centre located close to Sylvia Park in Mt Wellington. We're conveniently open from 7am to 6pm and offer a range of childcare options to suit your family’s needs.

Learning areas - Our diverse teaching team are experienced, knowledgeable and enthusiastic.  We have created individual learning areas to inspire our children as they grow. Rooms have resources and activities specific to each age group, supporting them to gain confidence and develop in their own time. Our warm, loving environments ensure all children feel safe and nurtured, leaving them free to explore and discover though child-centered learning.

Inclusive and respectful - We are fortunate to be nestled within a multicultural community and regularly celebrate cultural events and celebrations alongside our children and families. We work closely with our parents and encourage them to be part of our wonderful centre. We have an open door policy and also endeavour to be part of the wider community.

Community connections - We have close connections with a number of primary schools in the local Mt Wellington/Panmure community. We have regular school visits to support a positive transition to school for our older children. As well as our connections with primary schools, we also offer our unique Be School Ready initiative which has been developed to ensure that children leave the centre as confident, capable learners and prepared for the next step in their education journey.

We welcome all whanau and children to come visit us and become part of our well-resourced, quality learning environment.

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.