BestStart Papakura

BestStart Papakura is not only one of Papakura’s hidden gems, it is a top 5 BestStart centre. Families love the teaching team and quality learning their children receive, rating their relationship with the centre and the centre’s performance over 96%

Together We Achieve Success

Walking into BestStart Papakura, you enter a calm, attractive reception area. If you turn left into the Kahurangi space you will feel the love our teaching team has for our youngest discoverers. Really getting to know each child and family means that the child’s care routines are supported and their interests stimulated through many fun and exciting activities. Be careful - you may find yourself in the middle of a bear hunt and then using natural materials to help make a bear.

With strong parent -teacher relationships we discuss when children are ready and plan their adventure to the next room. 

Meandering into Pounamu room you will see our curious and bright toddlers busy with their learning activities. Discovering with their senses means getting in there and messy – loving the waterplay, gardening exploration and art supplies. It may look like play however they are busy building social skills so they understand how their world works alongside others.  We plan, support and educate our curious group through an individual focus to allow children to grow and learn at their own pace.

You will hear the excitement from the Kawakawa Room preschool as you approach. Working in groups on projects, our incredible preschoolers are becoming their own people, and discovering their own interests. Our Be School Ready initiative is carefully designed to support children’s next big learning step when they move to primary school. We support parents and children as they develop the skills and attitudes for being a lifelong learner.  We connect with them regularly to ensure children are familiar with staff and the transition to school is streamlined.

Our success is working together – children, families and teachers. Using NZ’s curriculum Te whāariki guides the children’s learning and development, independence and readiness for school. We were recognized this year by Reader's Digest readers, who awarded us the Gold Quality Service award.

Come along with us and together we achieve success for you and your child.

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.