Childcare options in Birkenhead

The KidsCo learning environment, resources and learning programmes are designed to give KidsCo children a wide range of activities and experiences that enhance their learning and play, enabling them to gain knowledge and independence as they grow. Our loving teachers develop respectful, caring and nurturing relationships and offer support to enable children to explore and grow as curious, confident and competent learners. Our programmes enable children to express their creativity and imagination by offering age appropriate stimulating and challenging experiences and learning programmes based on their interests.

Our philosophy

At KidsCo, the heart of our philosophy is based on five virtues which weave into one other like a whāriki:

Respect is shown by taking care of ourselves, others, and the environment. Honest and open communication supports the notion that we are accepting of each other, aware of each other’s needs and are valued.

Kindness is about showing our appreciation through gestures which are comforting, polite, calm, and gentle. We give our time to each other through actions and words.

Trust is built in an environment where children feel safe, secure, and comfortable. They can rely on others and have faith. Bonds are developed and children develop a sense of belonging.

Love is genuine and unconditional. We show love through acts of kindness, affection, support, and warmth. Love is given in everything we do.

Empowerment is gained when we show value to both efforts and achievements, thus increasing mana. We show a positive attitude and encouragement while children take risks, make decisions, and take ownership. We treat others as confident, competent, and capable learners.

Our philosophy

At Lollipops Birkenhead we aim to empower children to learn, grow and become socially competent individuals. We aim to provide a caring and nurturing environment where children are welcomed and feel a strong sense of belonging.

Our rooms 

Lollipops Birkenhead has two separate rooms, enabling us to deliver safe, nurturing and age appropriate learning experiences for all our children.  

Nursery

Our warm and welcoming Nursery area has its own sleep room plus a fantastic outdoor area with a very popular sandpit.

Preschool

Our classroom for our 2 to 5 year olds has lots of small dedicated spaces where children can immerse themselves in fun activities and learning opportunities. These include a reading area, literacy area, family corner, construction space and art area. We also deliver an excellent transition to school programme for our Rising 5s, which is every day for one hour in the lead up to starting primary school.

Why choose us?

There are a host of reasons why so many families choose Lollipops Birkenhead. Here are just a few of them:

Our team of dedicated teachers provide the  highest quality care and education,  delivering rich and inspiring learning experiences and environments that bring out the best in every child. Unlock your child’s unique potential.

Next Generation Childcare Co Ltd provides quality care and education in an enjoyable home like environment. We are located in suburban streets within Birkenhead. The buildings were previously family homes, but are now sole purpose childcare centres. 

Our programme and environment is designed to develop the whole child; physical, intellectual, emotional and social. It is designed to give children the opportunity to explore and experiment with different materials and activities. A wide range of rich resources are provided so children can make their own decisions as to what they will make or do. This encourages development of problem solving skills, ordering and sorting, responsibility for outcome and independence. All these are vital factors in your child's education. There are set times where we come together for group activities i.e. morning tea, music, sharing time and mat time.

Kia ora and welcome to Chelsea Kindergarten

Chelsea Kindergarten has strong relationships with the local community and school networks, fostering friendships and a smooth transition to school.

We are proud of our sustainability focus and have achieved Silver Enviroschool status. We are passionate gardeners and recycle all sorts of materials for our creative projects.

We have recently had new lino and carpet laid and have purchased new furniture and resources.

We are a multicultural kindergarten where parents contribute through sharing their cultures and customs.

We are seriously committed to creating a fun learning environment.

Our kindergartens have early childhood qualified and registered teachers. The teachers are dedicated to, and passionate about, early childhood education. Quality learning programmes are based on the New Zealand Early Childhood Curriculum, Te Whãriki.

Our learning philosophy

For the past 110 years, the Auckland Kindergarten Association has been igniting young minds by encouraging them to explore their imaginations through play. For many of us, kindergarten was where we began our life of learning; it was where we started learning skills like sharing, tolerance, patience, respect and self-confidence.

We view children as capable, competent, life-long learners, and our philosophy encourages children to make their own learning choices, problem-solve and observe and explore at their own pace…with support from teachers, parents, wider whānau and their peers. We value the importance of child-initiated, play-based experiences. Our kindergarten teachers nurture your children’s interests and natural curiosity by working alongside them, expanding language and introducing mathematical and science concepts, as well as literacy, digital technology and sustainable practices.

Our centres have gardens and natural outdoor spaces where children can create, explore, be imaginative and expressive. There’s plenty of room to safely run about, being imaginative and physically active. In fact, the natural world is essential to free-range play. AKA encourages each kindergarten community to explore and enrich their diversity and uniqueness. Some have regular excursions into the local community; some are Enviroschool kindergartens that live and breathe sustainable practices; while others engage in long-term research on child interest-based programmes of learning.

As an organisation, we formally acknowledge the dual heritage of Aotearoa / New Zealand, and work to uphold the spirit and intent of Te Tiriti o Waitangi in each kindergarten. We are accessible, secular and welcoming to the wide diversity of tamariki and whānau who attend our centres, and value ongoing partnerships between teaching teams and leadership staff with families and whānau. We value ongoing learning for teachers, parents and whānau, and the sharing of knowledge, skills and attributes is fundamental to achieving the best learning outcomes for children. Teachers and staff can access collegial professional time to ensure that quality practice is enhanced so current theories of learning and development within New Zealand’s world-class Te Whāriki early childhood curriculum are shared and understood.

Children learn

Children in our kindergartens have the opportunity to:

• Feel confident, develop responsibility and a sense of independence
• Play meaningfully alongside other children and adults
• Develop effective communication skills
• Persevere, problem-solve and take risks
• Explore limits, boundaries, routines and conflict resolution strategies
• Practice fine motor skills such as threading, writing, cutting and grasping
• Develop gross motor play such as physical games like climbing, throwing, kicking, balancing and lifting
• Develop creative expressions through painting, music, collage, movement, dance, finger-painting, drawing, cutting, pasting and story sharing
• Develop early numeracy, literacy and science skills
• Learn techniques through trial and error
• Explore the world through experimenting, questioning and curiosity
• Develop confidence and celebrate both attempts and successes
• Develop a passion for learning and a love of life
• Have fun!

Older children will be supported in their transition to school to make this process as simple and seamless as possible. Book a visit here on Kindello today, we’d love to meet you.

Please note - This centre is currently full in the under 2 area.

Precious Years is a privately owned, family childcare centre which is committed to providing a warm, loving, learning environment for every child at each stage of their development. We take pride in nurturing children’s natural urge to explore, enquire, question and investigate their own discoveries. is a privately owned, family childcare centre which is committed to providing a warm, loving, learning environment for every child at each stage of their development. We take pride in nurturing children’s natural urge to explore, enquire, question and investigate their own discoveries.

Our licensing hours are from 7am – 6pm, Monday to Friday. We are located in Birkenhead on the North Shore, offering 20 Hours ECE for children 3 years and over.

Precious Years Learning Centre is inspired by the principles of the RIE approach which focusses on the whole child and values the importance of building respectful relationships and interactions, between children and educators. The focus of Te Whāriki, Pikler and Magda Gerber’s Educaring Approach creates a curriculum with an emphasis on quality education and care.

Precious Years supplies nutritious meals to promote healthy children while also promoting healthy learning.

Next Generation Childcare Co Ltd provides quality care and education in an enjoyable home like environment. We are located in suburban streets within Birkenhead. 

The buildings were previously family homes, but are now sole purpose childcare centres. Our programme and environment is designed to develop the whole child; physical, intellectual, emotional and social. It is designed to give children the opportunity to explore and experiment with different materials and activities. A wide range of rich resources are provided so children can make their own decisions as to what they will make or do. This encourages development of problem solving skills, ordering and sorting, responsibility for outcome and independence. All these are vital factors in your child's education. There are set times where we come together for group activities i.e. morning tea, music, sharing time and mat time.

Thinking about Home Based childcare with Home Grown Kids?

All of our Educators are carefully selected and screened including Police Vetting, identity checks, an interview that assess their attitudes and values toward children and an overall assessment of risk.

Enquire today and we’ll be in touch with you soon to provide the perfect option for your family.

Choosing the Best Educator for Your Child

We stand strong alongside our Educators. We care about them and we’re committed to the work they do, supporting and communicating with them every step of the way. We understand that engaged, fulfilled Educators make for happy families and even happier tamariki who thrive in these small group settings.

Small Group Setting

Our Home Based childcare groups are capped at a maximum of four children under the age of six, including Educators’ own children. This means we can offer each child the individual attention they need to flourish.

The best fit for your whānau values

Our Educators offer a range of different programmes based around their beliefs, values, culture, background and philosophies. Over 90% of our Educators hold a recognised ECE qualification. Some of our Educators are mothers and grandmothers with fantastic life skills, experience and knowledge. We’ll listen to your needs and then offer, where possible, a range of Educators. You will get to choose an Educator that you and your whānau connect with and trust.

Exceeding educational standards

An education programme that reflects New Zealand ECE curriculum - Te Whāriki. We are a Ministry of Education approved and licensed Early Childhood Education provider. Regularly reviewed by the

Education Review Office to ensure all our Home Based environments not only meet, but exceed the Ministry of Education’s Licensing Criteria for Home-based Services (2008).

Subsidies available

We’re an approved Work and Income provider and can support you to access a childcare subsidy if you are eligible.

20 hours ECE scheme

The Government subsidises all children aged 3-5 years (or 6 if not enrolled in school) who attend an ECE facility, making access more affordable for all.

Leaders in development practices for each child

All our Educators are supported and guided by our Visiting Teachers who are Qualified certificated ECE teachers with many years’ experience and expertise in early childhood education. Our Visiting Teachers regularly attend professional development to keep up-to-date with current research and theory for best practice for Education and care for under fives.

Our philosophy, vision and mission

• Our Vision– The why – The reason we exist:

To provide a family friendly wrap around support service that enables all tamariki/whanau to learn, grow and thrive in a home-based setting. Investing in cultivating kindness, strong and professional relationships, in all our people to continue growing as lifelong learners

• Mission Statement – The How -How are we going to achieve the Vision?

We will achieve our Vision through ensuring that every team member is emotionally invested in the well-being of our people including tamariki, whanau, Educators, communities and our Edubase family. We value successes and that these are not ours alone, the greatest success comes from the strengths of many. Our passion, knowledge and commitment will be the catalyst that enables everyone to learn, thrive and achieve.

• Philosophy Statement

Edubase is a Home Based Early Childhood Education service that is committed to providing nurturing learning environments where tamariki thrive as individuals through an authentic play-based, natural learning education and care programme, in a home setting.

To enrich the learning of each tamariki we form strong community connections, developing links within the home and the learning environments of our Kaiako. Tamariki learn respect for people, places and things, shaping Aotearoa and developing an appreciation of New Zealand’s dual heritage. We continually strive to develop knowledge and an understanding of the cultural heritages of both partners to Te Tiriti o Waitangi – supporting a holistic approach to learning which is guided by our NZ Early Childhood Curriculum, Te Whāriki.

Educators and Nannies offer comfortable, small group sizes, fostering respectful and reciprocal relationships, promoting tikanga Māori within their practice.

As an Organisation, we pride ourselves on cultivating strong, professional relationships, strengthening capability in all our people to continue growing as lifelong learners.

Edubase celebrates the diversity and uniqueness of each tamaiti, whanau and Kaiako and the gifts they bring. They are taonga, a treasure or gift. All things cultural are affirmed and celebrated, aiming to support children in gaining a positive awareness of their own and other cultures.

Tiaki nga tamariki – take care of the children

The Early Learning Centre is licensed for 25 children aged from birth to school age.

Highbury House Early Learning Centre has been serving its local community for over 30 years and continues to provide high-quality care and early childhood education.

Our superb reputation in the community and the sector attests to the quality of the service we provide due to the dedication and passion of our teaching team and the commitment of our governance and management team to provide an excellent service.

Our Philosophy

As our name suggests, we are a house, a whare, a home away from home where everyone is embraced in a whànau inspired environment. Where older tamariki can care for younger tamariki and younger tamariki can learn alongside older tamariki; where teachers/kaiako, parents, caregivers, and tamariki learn and grow together in a loving, accepting, caring, kind, safe, and nurturing environment.

At Highbury House ELC you will see us dancing in the rain; jumping in the mud; painting ourselves; sliding down a grass bank; building huts, playing make-believe, being adventurous, being playful, and being involved in challenging play as we believe these are all necessary elements of childhood.

At Highbury House ELC, tamariki are embraced in an environment that allows them to be children. To develop and grow at their own pace while being inspired and challenged by wondrous provocations and Kaiako who are passionate, authentic, dynamic, and embrace their own journey of continued learning.

Welcome to Childspace

Childspace Preschool is childcare where thoughtful programme planning scaffolds children's learning. Where children learn through their own creative and imaginative exploration, and through engaging teacher-led learning opportunities promoting literacy and numeracy, delivered by a team of passionate teachers. "The magic word for Childspace is L O V E !" It’s not only our anthem, it perfectly reflects our approach – where a seemingly musical experience of singing a song is taken as an opportunity to weave in elements of literacy and promote a sense of well-being and belonging. 

We are passionate about the learning opportunities we provide in a mixed aged group environment. Younger children are organically extended by more knowledgeable peers who role model and scaffold their learning. The reciprocal benefit for our older children being the perception of themselves as leaders capable of teaching and looking out for others.

Birkenhead Point Montessori (BPM) is a boutique preschool licenced for 30 children aged 2.5 to 6 years. We operate form a beautifully converted villa nestled at Birkenhead Point on the North Shore Auckland.

Our centre is a place where we respect each child’s personality, potential is nurtured and a child’s unique and natural sense of wonder is encouraged and celebrated. A place of love, laughter, friends and memories.

We have a high quality of care ratio (teacher to child). Caring and skilled teachers are trained to offer a diverse range of enriching learning opportunities tailored to each child’s innate interests and abilities.

At BPM art is one of our favourite things! We have specialised teachers and a dedicated Art Studio with a wide variety of equipment and materials children can use to express themselves, their ideas, creativity and feelings.