Early Childhood Centres
Is it safe for Auckland's early childhood centres to open at level 3?
Should early childhood centres be allowed to open in Auckland when the region reaches alert level 3? Early childhood education centres are currently required to open at level 3, if there is demand… Audio
Early childhood centres bursting at the seams
Public health expert Mike Bedford says overcrowding stemming from financial pressure on parents, as well as out-dated minimum standards, are turning early childhood centres into childminding services.
…ECE centres crowded, noisy, cold - research
A group of researchers is warning that too many early childhood centres are crowded, noisy and cold because the minimum requirements are too low. They want the Education Ministry to review its… Audio
ECE centres crowded, noisy, cold, researchers warn
Researchers are warning that many early childhood centres are crowded, noisy and cold because the minimum requirements are too low. Pre-schools must have at least 2-and-a-half square metres per child… Audio
Need for gun safety kit for under-fives questioned
Early childhood teachers are critical of a gun safety kit an early childhood company has created for under five-year-olds.
Early childhood teacher shortages 'reaching crisis point'
Early childhood centres are struggling to hire qualified teachers and say a massive teacher shortage is to blame.
ECE leaders warn of "toxic stress" for under-two-year-olds
Inadequate care at early childhood centres, including the flouting of minimum staffing levels, may be causing babies and infants to suffer what's being described as toxic stress levels. John Gerritsen… Video, Audio
Early childhood centres unsafe - teachers
Some early childhood centres are repeatedly falling below the minimum staffing levels designed to keep children safe, teachers say.
Labour pledges more money for more early childhood teachers
The party would pay early childhood centres more money if they employ more qualified teachers, and require all centres to ensure 80 per cent of their teachers are qualified by the end of 2020. Audio
Record number of ECE complaints
Complaints about early childhood centres have reached a new high. Audio
ECE children speak many languages
Samoan, Sign Language and Chinese are the most widely-spoken languages in early childhood centres after English and Maori.