Childcare options in Kelburn

We are committed to providing an empowering and enriching environment where your tamariki can develop as a confident explorer and lifelong learner through positive learning outcomes based on the early childhood curriculum, “Te Whāriki”. Johnson’s Kelburn Preschool & Nursery is privately-owned. Located in the quaintly named area of The Glen, it is tucked away in a safe and peaceful haven enhanced by its bright and natural surroundings like the Wellington Botanic Garden and within walking distance to the Cable Car. Your Tamariki can be enrolled into our preschool and nursery from birth and are welcome to stay with us till the enrolment of primary school. We welcome visitors to our preschool and nursery and encourage you to book a time to visit, meet the teaching team and experience our Preschool & Nursery in action.

Our Philosphy 

At Kelburn Preschool & Nursery we offer a safe, respectful and inclusive learning environment where the foundation of learning is based on reciprocal relationships with people, places and things.

This empowers and encourages our tamariki to take full advantage of both our free play and focused learning environment with tamaiti and teacher relationships being cemented through tamaiti and teacher led experiences.

These focused learning times include:

• STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Math) activities
• Literacy activities
• Physical activities
• Art activities

Encouraging imaginative, creative and critical thinking, we believe in a combination of social & emotional competence which allows tamariki to understand and acknowledge what they feel and why they are feeling this way, while teachers use proactive strategies to engage and support social participation and self-discovery.

Fostering each tamariki’s learning and development journey, we respect each individual’s nature and unique learning dispositions where our daily rituals and programme reflects and acknowledges Te Tiriti o Waitangi.

• THIS CENTRE HAS 250 -300 ON THE WAITLIST

Clermont Terrace provides care and education for children from birth to five years. The centre provides an inclusive community atmosphere where children of all ages can interact and siblings of different ages can be together.

Traditionally Clermont Terrace has enrolled children of university staff only. Increasingly, families using this centre are students who are at the Kelburn and Pipitea Campus or caregivers working around the Lambton Quay/Thorndon area.

Children are cared for in three age-based programmes but are able to interact across the age range during parts of the day.

Clermont Terrace has recently been refurbished and is located on a flat, sunny and sheltered section with a large garden for the children to enjoy.

All food is provided, and a weekly menu is displayed for families. Dietary requirements are catered for, so you can be sure of your child’s wellbeing. Parents are just required to provide bottles and nappies.

Our Clermont Terrace Centre is open Monday to Friday from 7.30 am to 5.15 pm and offers a range of session options. We have a minimum booking requirement of two full days or four sessions per week. We need children to have a number of settling in visits before their start date to enable them to become comfortable with the centre and to meet the staff.

Kelburn Playcentre has been supporting tamariki from birth to 6 years to learn in a warm, encouraging, family-based environment since 1941. We are a parent-led cooperative committed to the Playcentre philosophy that parents are the first and best educators of their children, and that children learn best through play. We believe in empowering adults and children to play, learn, and grow together; in providing ongoing educational opportunities for our parent volunteers; and in the educational benefits of messy, noisy and child-directed play.

Our large, purpose-designed space adjacent to Kelburn Normal School offers a wide range of indoor and outdoor play equipment – everything from books to read, painting and art supplies, dolls, duplo and musical instruments to a sandpit, swings and slide, bubble wands, trampolines and big muscle climbing equipment. There is no such thing as a “typical” session at Kelburn Playcentre. Our wealth of resources and the diverse experiences, skills and interests that our parents bring means that new ideas are constantly being brought forward and no two days are the same.

A Kelburn Playcentre parent needs to be prepared to get stuck in and get their hands dirty – or if that’s not your thing you might prefer building… or reading stories… or making an obstacle course… In return we offer a strong adult education programme, a supportive and friendly environment, and plenty of tea and coffee.

If you’d like to come along and find out if our whanau is right for yours, we’d love to welcome you for three no-obligation visits. We run mixed-age sessions for tamariki aged birth to six years on Mondays, Tuesdays, Thursdays and Fridays, and on Wednesday our Pikopiko session is for tamariki aged birth to 2.5 years, and their families. All sessions run from 9am to 12pm.