BestStart Portage Road Kindy

BestStart Portage Road Kindy is a unique childcare centre for 2 to 5-year-olds. Our childcare centre is situated on the border of Otahuhu and Mt Wellington with an outdoor environment that overlooks the lovely Mt Richmond Park. To support our whānau, our kindy is open from 8am until 5pm.

Our uniqueness is what makes us beautiful

Children lead their own learning
At BestStart Portage Road Kindy, children are empowered with learning opportunities in guiding them to feel valued, capable and to realise they play the role of creator in their own lives and futures. Children are empowered to lead their own learning by doing education together with our Kaiako’s. We believe by modelling and reflecting our own belief in our children’s abilities, we encourage their own empowerment by supporting their growing self-confidence.

Children need space and time to grow
As an educator, we believe holistic approaches to child development and learning is identified in the connectedness of mind, body, and spirit. By having this understanding, our teachers focus rather on the development of the child as a whole rather than focusing only on cognitive aspects of learning.

“To be loved, to be valued, and to be listened to…to have the space and time to play and explore… the children will learn” - Suzanne Axelsson

Our learning spaces
We have 4 rooms designed to meet the social and educational needs of our tamariki:
Laititi Kiwi Potu [ 2 year olds ]
Te Karearea Whanau [ young 3 year olds ]
The Pukeko Nest  older [ 3 - 4 year olds ]
Tui Fânau Fale  [ 4 - 5 year olds ]

Family and Community
Whānau and Community engagement is important to us and we value your involvement in your child’s learning. Whether it is through face to face, a parent evening or through Storypark, it takes a village to raise a child. Even during Covid lockdown we were in contact with our families daily on Storypark and interactively using Zoom.

We value our community and to show our appreciation we host various community agencies including, Plunket B4 School checks, fitness classes and such in our Community Room. We are fortunate to have a van driver so can not only do pick-ups and drop-offs but also visit our local library and park

“Nā to rourou, nā taku rourou, ka ora ai te iwi with your food basket and my food basket, the people will thrive” This acknowledges that in Portage Kindy, everybody has something to offer, a piece of the puzzle, and by working together we can flourish and therefore thrive, this refers to us all working together.

We Value Relationships & Respect
As a team, we believe that loving, stable and responsive relationships are very important to children development. In our programme we thrive to promote close and caring ongoing relationships which promote trust and security for our children and family. Positive relationships between teachers and children are strongly related to positive outcome for children’s learning. Through relationships, children learn how to think, understand, communicate, behave, express emotions, and develop social skills.

Having a respectful practice is a key value that our teachers hold within our space. Trusting relationships are established between tamariki and Kaiako through these respectful care moments and the process starts by first creating a positive and reciprocal relationship during our settling in process on transition visit.

We have a free pickup and drop off service available for families who need it. The vans are fitted with safety approved car seats and our driver holds a current New Zealand drivers license and first aid certificate.

Come discover what we can offer your child today!

For more information about the specific fees for your centre, please contact us directly (09) 550 0483 / portage.kindy@best-start.org You might be eligible for support paying their childcare fees. For more information click here.