Childcare options in Papakura East

Welcome Nau mai, Huānying, Welkom, Afio mai, Talitali fiefia, Welcome; 

We are a fully registered Centre licenced for 30 children between the ages of  2-5.  

For the past fifteen years we have been serving Papakura by providing childcare to the families of our local community.  

We run a Christian based programme and want the children to understand that God loves and cares for them. 

We aim to provide a variety of interesting, challenging, and educational play choices for your child to have fun with, to learn through their play, and acquire self-help skills to prepare them for school.  The programme includes a balance of child and teacher initiated activities which encourages choice, independence and decision-making.

BestStart Papakura East Kindy is an inspiring, culturally diverse home-like Early Learning centre where tamariki have the freedom and opportunities to create, explore and investigate. Tamariki are provided with a large open space to develop ideas, make friends, and establish an enthusiasm for learning. Our rich, safe environment inspires natural curiosity which encourages our young children to explore and extend their learning as they discover their place in the world. 

Where are we? 

BestStart Papakura East Kindy is situated on Winiata Terrace a quiet cul-de-sac close to Red Hill in Papakura, just off Clevedon Road but in very close proximity to Ardmore, Hunua and Papakura township.

We cater for tamariki between the ages of 2 years to 6 years. Our sessions support 20 hours ECE and cater for most families. Our free session kindy times are 8-12 and 12.30-4.30, Monday to Friday. We also have extended day options.

What do we believe in?

BestStart Papakura East Kindy’s focus is on providing quality childcare and education for tamariki in the greater Papakura area. Our kindy has a warm, welcoming atmosphere that encourages the tamariki and their whanau/families to feel nutured, respected, and part of our learning community. We place value in our community through relationships with tamariki, whanau, connections with the Papakura Marae, and local agencies.

BestStart Papakura East Kindy provide tamariki with nutritious healthy meals, with menus supported and approved by the Healthy heart Foundation. Our learning programmes promote authentic learning experiences that arise from the child’s individual learning plans; which provides opportunities for the children to use their courage, curiosity, thinking, questioning, self-competence to further develop and grow their own knowledge.

BestStart Papakura East Kindy has a unique Be School Ready initiative, that supports tamariki love for learning, grows their confidence and build strong esteem for school and their next stage of learning through innovative activities that cater for small groups and individuals.

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.

Galaxy Childcare – Pasifika Bilingual offers the perfect environment for your child to thrive and learn. We provide a rich learning environment full of natural inspired resources that spark children’s imagination and creativity.

You child will bring them their own unique experiences and knowledge that we nurture and grow in a warm, friendly environment. Together with our friendly and professional team of educators, we are focused on fostering strong relationships.

Indoors we have three aged-based rooms architecturally designed to enhance adult supervision that will cater for your child’s development stages in a safe learning environment. Each of the age-based rooms have their own age-based educational resources, separate designated toileting facilities, as well as additional in-room hand wash basins for use before each mealtime.

Outdoors we have two nature inspire age-based playgrounds. This outdoor environment is complemented with naturally landscaped gardens, a separate veggie patch and an emphasis on sensory and water-based learning, this is a fantastic space where children can explore the natural environment and enjoy the fun of playing outdoors.

We would love to meet you! Come in, say hello and take a tour around our school!