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Resolution
number HB/2023/94
MOVED by Member A Poppelbaum, seconded by Member S Mills:
That the Hibiscus and
Bays Local Board:
a) whiwhi / receive the updated financial information on the
provision of early childhood education services
b) tuhi ā-taipitopito
/ note that council staff
remain available to respond to any local board queries
c) tuhi ā-taipitopito / note the decision of the Governing Body on 8 June 2023
(GB/2023/100) to withdraw from the direct provision of Kauri Kids early
childhood services as a regional service
d) whakahē / confirm
that the local board will not take over the direct delivery of early childhood
education services at Stanmore Bay and East Coast Bays Kauri Kids centres
e) whakahē / express
disappointment with the Governing Body’s decision to exit the delivery
of Kauri Kids early childhood education centres within three months, noting
the difficulties for:
i.
families to find
alternative early childhood education providers that have space available for
their children;
ii.
families to settle
their children into the early childhood education centre before officially
starting; and
iii.
kaiako / teachers
of the centres to explore other employment opportunities.
f) tuhi
ā-taipitopito / note that the proposed three month exit from Kauri
Kids early childhood education services is an insufficient period of time for
families to find, and get children accepted on waitlists for another early
childhood education centre (bearing in mind that many centres only accept one
new child at a time and there is a standard period of two weeks required for
families to settle the child into the new centre before they start)
g) whakaae / approve the continuation of the early childhood
education services for the remainder of the calendar year (until 22 December
2023) using Locally Driven Initiative opex funding; and allocate the required
additional Local Driven Initiative funds in the 2023/2024 financial year work
programme, based on a pro-rata calculation and other local board decisions on
early childhood education services, to be confirmed by staff
h) tono / request
that this currently confidential report become publicly available information
as soon as possible when the withholding reasons s7(2)(b)(ii) and
s7(2)(h) are no longer relevant under the Local Government Official
Information and Meetings Act (1987)
i) tono / request
that these resolutions be circulated to the following local boards that have
Kauri Kids early childhood education centres:
i.
Devonport-Takapuna
Local Board
ii.
Kaipatiki Local
Board
iii.
Howick Local Board
iv.
Manurewa Local
Board
v.
Ōtara-Papatoetoe
Local Board.
j) tono / request
that these resolutions be circulated to the kaiako / teachers and staff of
Stanmore Bay and East Coast Bays Kauri Kids centres
k) tono / request that
these resolutions be circulated to Phil Wilson, Acting Chief Executive and
Claudia Wyss, Director Customer and Community Services
l) tuhi ā-taipitopito / note that the Governing Body decision requires investment
from existing, limited, local board funding, to continue the delivery of the
services at Stanmore Bay and East Coast Bays Kauri Kids centres.
m) tuhi ā-taipitopito / note that the six local boards who currently directly provide
early childhood education services have had an extremely limited period of
time (six weeks) to consider the options, with necessary financial
information only being made available one week prior to this business
meeting, despite it being requested in 2022
n) tuhi ā-taipitopito
/ note the local board’s disappointment that
it has been placed in an untenable position by the Governing Body in this
regional issue and decision, compounded by a lack of information or proper,
fair consultation conducted with parents and staff
o) tuhi ā-taipitopito
/ note that in its decision making, the local board
considered it did not have a strong enough mandate to fund these services
under the guidance of Hibiscus and Bays Local Board Plan 2020 or draft
Hibiscus and Bays Local Board Plan 2023
p) tuhi ā-taipitopito
/ note that 4.9 per cent of Hibiscus and Bays Local
Board area respondents to the Annual Budget 2023/2024 made reference to the
proposal to end the direct provision of early childhood education services,
with the majority of those who referred to the service wanted to retain the
service
q) whakamihi /
acknowledge the
amount of correspondence the local board has received from both families of
children and staff at Kauri Kids centres who have sought the local board to
provide certainty in exiting the service
r) tuhi
ā-taipitopito / note that upon investigation of five comparable
early childhood education services in the vicinity of East Coast Bays Kauri
Kids as one example (providing at least six month old – five year old
childcare services) there is a mean waitlist time of 7.5 months for under two
year olds and 4.5 months for over two year olds (noting that this waitlist
data is just a crude measure and not indicative of the time it takes in
reality for families to find a centre that is right for their child)
s) tuhi ā-taipitopito
/ note that both Stanmore Bay and East Coast Bays
Kauri Kids centres currently have children who are neurodiverse who benefit
considerably from smaller early childhood education centres, and for whom a
change of centre and teachers will be a significant change that will likely
require longer transition periods before officially starting
t) whakamihi /
acknowledge the
excellent and long-term provision of early childhood education that the kaiako
/ teachers in both the Stanmore Bay and East Coast Bays Kauri Kids centres have
provided to children, creating a safe and caring environment as acknowledged
in their Education Review Office reports over the years
u) whakamihi /
acknowledge that
early childhood education is an important community service that plays a
vital role in the education, safety and well-being of tamariki and as such
the Hibiscus and Bays Local Board currently supports the provision of
affordable early childhood education by:
i.
providing
subsidised community leases to seven early childhood education facilities in
the local board area
ii.
Ko te wai he
taonga: Water is a treasure
iii.
Zero Waste Early
Childhood Education programmes.
Restatement
v) whakaae / agree that the decisions be
released in the open minutes, but the report and its
attachments remain confidential.
UNANIMOUSLY
CARRIED
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