DOP 9

9.  Management should develop and regularly review a statement of the service's philosophy and the charter, in consultation with educators, parents/guardians and, where appropriate, whānau.

The Statement of Philosophy
Te Kaupapa Kōrero

The written statement of philosophy expresses the fundamental beliefs, vision, values, and ideals by which a service chooses to operate. It provides the basis for decisions on how the service is managed and should be reflected in the service’s day-to-day practice.

Creating and reviewing a philosophy helps parents/whānau, educators, and management to develop shared understandings about their service’s approach to children’s learning and development.

To ensure that everyone has ownership of the statement of philosophy, management can:

• consult fully with educators, parents, guardians, whānau, and, if appropriate, the local community;
• involve educators and parents/whānau in writing the statement;
• ensure that all people new to the service are aware of the statement and have easy access to it;
• determine an ongoing, collaborative process of review.

The Charter
Te Tūtohinga

The charter is a legal undertaking or promise by a service’s management to the Minister of Education to take all reasonable steps to ensure the service is managed in accordance with its charter. Once the charter has been agreed, the service can be funded by the Ministry of Education.

A charter contains mandatory and optional information. Mandatory information includes:

• the revised Statement of Desirable Objectives and Practices – every charter is deemed to contain these, whether they are stated or not;

• the information detailed in section 312 of the Education Act 1989:

• evidence that consultation has occurred in developing the charter,
• the maximum number of children allowed to be present at any one time,
• the procedure for publishing fees,
• the procedure for publishing the level of government funding received,
• an address for the service;
• the charter undertaking, signed by the Ministry of Education and management.¹⁴

Optional information that can be contained in a charter includes any objectives and practices negotiated between the service’s management and the Ministry of Education and approved by the Ministry. These are also signed by management and the Ministry of Education.

Management is responsible for developing plans and policies to meet the requirements of the charter. These are  developed in consultation with parents/whānau. They are not part of the charter and do not require approval by the Ministry of Education.

Developing and reviewing their service’s charter provides an opportunity for management, educators, and  parents/whānau to develop shared understandings about the nature of the service and how it aims to enhance children’s learning and development.

It is management’s responsibility to establish a process for developing and reviewing the charter. However, management should involve educators and parents/whānau throughout the process.

Reviewing a charter involves:

• gathering information on which to base the review;
• analysing and reflecting on this information;
• determining how well the service is meeting the requirements of the DOPs and any other objectives and practices contained in the charter;
• identifying areas where the charter may need to be amended or updated, such as the number of children attending, the fees charged, how information on government funding is published, and the address of the service;
• deciding on changes to the charter.

Once the charter is revised, it must be resubmitted to the Ministry of Education for approval of the revisions. Management should monitor the effects of changes to the charter and develop an ongoing, collaborative process for charter review.

Bicultural Approaches
Ētahi Ara Tikanga Rua

When a service’s charter and philosophy reflect Māori values and beliefs, they contribute to the service’s New Zealand identity and to a sense of belonging among Māori children and their whānau.

To achieve this, services can:

• collaborate with whānau and local Māori in developing the charter and statement of philosophy;
• ensure that reviews consider how well the service reflects a bicultural approach in the goals, objectives, and practices of its charter.

Scenarios
Ētahi Take

Management and educators at a service decide to rethink the way they approach the review process. They trial reviewing a section of the charter at each regular monthly meeting, with an open invitation to parents to attend that part of the meeting. This proves more manageable than an annual review and keeps the charter to the fore in the operations of the service.

A service approaches Māori parents and whānau and asks them to recommend an appropriate consultation process to review the charter, and to nominate a staff member to liaise with.

A service finds that many parents are unaware of the service’s goals and philosophy. Management and educators introduce a procedure to ensure that, after enrolment, copies of the statement of philosophy, the charter, and important service policies are made available to parents.

Signposts
Ētahi Tohu

• The charter is a living document accessible to parents/whānau and educators and regularly referred to and reviewed.
• There is an observable link between the service’s statement of philosophy and its practice.
• Parents/whānau can explain the philosophy, goals, aspirations, and rationale on which the service’s practice is based.\

Reflective Questions
He Pātai hei Whakaaro iho

How often do we refer to our statement of philosophy in our daily work?

How can we make our charter a living, working document?

How do we include Māori whānau in developing and reviewing our service’s charter?

What innovative approaches could we use to make a review of the charter interesting and enjoyable for parents/whānau?

Footnotes

¹⁴ The charter undertaking is signed on the one-page EC/5 form, available from the Ministry of Education’s National Operations Central Management Centre.