Here at Best Start Kelvin Street our kaimahi | staff ensure our tamariki are encouraged to use their imaginations, and to make discoveries about themselves and the world around them. We do this through a safe and secure environment, a fun and nurturing space that is inclusive and allows tamariki time and space to explore. 

Our vision is Tūrangawaewae | A Place to Connect and we do this through our strong connections with whānaungatanga (close connections to people, places and things) and papatūānuku (our environment). Our centre is led by our invaluable centre manager Sarah who has been here for 7 years. She describes herself as caring, flexible and organized and loves working alongside amazing teachers and seeing them empower our tamariki. Elly is our amazing administrator who has been at the centre for 3 years. Her organised, inquisitive and articulate nature guides her in her work as she loves working with all of our wonderful families. 

• Erin is our very capable 2nd in charge and head teacher of both the Pikopiko (0 -1 year old) and the Harakeke (1 – 2 year old) rooms and has been at Kelvin Street for 4 years. She is seen as organised, proactive and creative and loves being a person the children can trust and provide them a home away from home. 
• Kim is the head teacher of the Kahikatea Room (3.5 – 5-year-old) and has been at Kelvin Street for 12 years. She is fun, organised and dependable, and describes her favourite thing about her job as seeing the children grow and develop their skills for future learning while also loving some of the memorable conversations with the children too! 
• Hazel is our newest team member who joined us in January this year. She is the head teacher of Mataī Room (2 – 3.5-year-old) and loves supporting children to learn and grow. Hazel loves seeing the children’s excitement when they discover something new, and her strengths in leadership, respect and being supportive are great attributes to extend our tamariki. 
• Sue is a teacher in the Kahikatea Room and has been at the centre for 12 years. Sue is respectful, accommodating and a team player, who loves that no two days are the same and loves being a part of a great team. 
• Angela is a qualified teacher in Mataī Room and has been at the centre for 13 years. She is hard working, creative and kind and is a true wealth of knowledge. She especially loves creating an environment that is stimulating, fun and full of learning opportunities for all tamariki. 
• Inez is one of our amazing Pikopiko teachers who comes with 10 years’ experience. She describes herself as calm, creative and mindful, and loves watching the tamariki succeed in their big and small achievements. Knowing that she plays a part in the children reaching their goals is a highlight for her also! 
• You will find Akhil in Mataī Room, having loads of fun playing sports with tamariki and helping them to learn new things. Akhil is kind, patient and also likes to learn new things, loving that every day is different. 
• Danielle has been at Kelvin Street for 5 years and you will find her in the Harakeke Room. She has a passion for gardening and is also friendly and caring. She loves watching tamariki develop new skills and being a part of their learning journeys’. 
• Nikita is in the Harakeke room and has been here 18 months as a teacher in training. She enjoys creating inviting and fun experiences for the children to explore and others would describe her as motivated, caring and helpful. 
• Carin joined us in 2023 when she relocated from South Africa and works alongside Inez in our Pikopiko room. Carin loves seeing how the babies develop their speech, physical abilities and watching them becoming more independent and describes herself as helpful, friendly and punctual. 
• Sam is our newest teacher in training who loves the variety her job offers. She loves having the opportunity to work across all age groups and spend one on one time with the children. She is helpful, caring and patient and especially loves reading books to children too! 
• Jamie is our newest team member who is driven, passionate and funny. She spends her time in the kitchen preparing delicious kai for tamariki and when she isn’t doing this, she is helping out the teachers in the classrooms and loves working with the children and seeing them grow up.
• Anne is our Friday caregiver and has been with us for 3 years. She loves working with the amazing staff and being able to work with a diverse and great bunch of children. She describes herself as helpful, friendly and caring. 
• Kevin heads up our Bush Kindy and describes himself as Wild at heart. He is a positive male role model for the tamariki and is driven by tamariki developing an appreciation for nature, where they will develop social skills and risk taking through exploration of the natural world.