September 6, 2025 • 36 mins
Around 96.8% of children in New Zealand attend some sort of Early Childhood Education at some point before entering school.
Some begin right from a few months old, while some are only enrolled at 2 or 3 for kindergarten.
But why is ECE so important?
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Speaker 1 (00:05):
You're listening to the Weekend Collective podcast from News Talk,
said B.
Speaker 2 (00:10):
The train to come.
Speaker 3 (00:12):
It's all and around me and I ain't seen the
sunshine on all when I'm stuck and full of Britain,
and time keeps drag and all what that train keeps
all down?
Speaker 2 (00:33):
The same Talky's welcome back to the Weekend Collector. Well,
welcome in.
Speaker 4 (00:38):
If you've missed any of our previous hours, then you
can go and check out the podcast. Go to the
News Talk, SAIDB dot cot in z or to iHeartRadio.
Just look for the Weekend Collective. We get every hour
and loaded up pretty quickly, so everything should be there
if you listen to. But not now, because this is
the Parents Squad and we're gonna have a chat about
early childhood education. By the way, the Johnny Cash thing,
(00:59):
I was thinking, does it time to our education theme?
Speaker 2 (01:02):
And no, probably not.
Speaker 4 (01:03):
It's probably just a something that might produce the Tyra
wants to play to get herself in the mood for
the spring box tonight. I don't know anyway, random comment
from me, but anyway about ninety six I love the
stat when it says around ninety six point eight percent
of children let's just go with ninety six point eight
percent of children apparently attend some form of early childhood
(01:26):
education at some point before entering school. Some begin from
a few months old, while some are only enrolled for
at around two or three for kindergarten.
Speaker 2 (01:34):
And we're just going to have a chat about.
Speaker 4 (01:36):
Why early childhood education is so important and how does
it stack up against being at home with a parent,
for instance, and when should you get your child into
early childhood education because there'll be some people who want
to get their children in because they want to get
them really well prepared for school. Other times it might
literally be because both parents are working and it's you know,
(01:57):
it's something you've sort of got to do. But anyway,
we're joined by the chief operating officer at Bernado's.
Speaker 2 (02:04):
Your name has Head, the tailor. She's with me. Now,
good I here, How are you going?
Speaker 5 (02:07):
Good? Ay? How are you good?
Speaker 2 (02:09):
Good?
Speaker 4 (02:09):
So you as what's Binado's involvement with when it comes
to early childhood education?
Speaker 5 (02:18):
Good question, so Bernardo's. Also, it has been in New Zealand
for fifty five years, and all of that time, long
before early childhood was even a thing. We've been offer
the ring services to children and families across New Zealand.
Currently New Zealand's largest children's charity. But the work that
(02:40):
we do is pretty broad from advocacy, lots of working
with our government systems as well as fundraising for the
work that we do. We work with over thirty thousand
children in families every year, two and a half thousand
in early childhood through our home based and our center
(03:01):
based KAH. So that's our early learning provision, but we're
much broad are in terms of social service and also
our care facilities as well.
Speaker 4 (03:10):
Funny I never thought range, yes, it is because Bernardo's
is I mean, it's a household name, really, isn't it.
And I would confess that if I think of Bernardo's,
I'm not necessarily thinking of early childhood education. I'm thinking
of I don't know, I'm thinking of broader charitable works,
which you've probably just outlined.
Speaker 2 (03:26):
But what would I mean, what what.
Speaker 4 (03:29):
In terms of early childhood education tell us about Bernarda's
involvement with that?
Speaker 5 (03:34):
Yeah? So I guess we work across that whole range
right of children who unfortunately need more significant help, but
through particularly to that early prevention and intervention work that's
where the early childhood space sits for us in terms
of what can we do really early on to support
(03:57):
families with a really tough job right of becoming parents
raising families. Those had kids will know how hard that is,
and so our work there is we do offer early
childhood services, but within those services we liken it to
(04:17):
opening the door to all of the services that we
can offer. So early childhood for us is more than
just an early learning service.
Speaker 4 (04:26):
How important I mean when is it important for children
to actually get into early childhood education? And I mean
how much of that also depends on what their preparents,
their parents are. I'm trying to find out what the
right way of putting this capable of providing, because there'd
be you know, if you've got to stay at home mum,
who's you know? And I'm generalizing here, but let's be honest.
(04:50):
On the average its stay at home mums. So there
are some stay at home dads, but this goes stay
at home parents to be safe, who are excited about
becoming parents and they want to spend time with their children.
They could do a lot with their kids when it
comes to education, and I guess introducing to other children
through social sort of things. But it is the choice
(05:11):
of when you should get your kids into ECE is
that somewhat dependent on parents and their ability to spend
time with their kids.
Speaker 5 (05:20):
Hey, look, I think that's a really complicated answer. There
was a complicated answer to that was a combon, right yeah.
And look, being a parent is not a one person
job or two person job, right we all you know
the old udage that it takes a illution to raise
a child, Well, it absolutely does, and I think certainly
the families that we work within it probably true in
(05:41):
most New Zealanders that you need a team of supporters
around you to be able to navigate that space. And
so I think it's about recognizing the value of those
early years. And there's enough research around the first two
thousand days, and indeed free verse as well, they're done
need and study exactly to show that eighty percent of
(06:04):
the children's brain development happens between pregnancy and their third birthday.
So I guess it's about for us anyway, And I
would personally believe this it's about parent choice in those
in those first two thousand days, of course, But in
terms of that village, I SEEECEE as part of the
ecosystem around a family that can help support them within
(06:28):
those first two thousand days particularly and then obviously on
from there to be able. As you've already mentioned that
word school ready.
Speaker 4 (06:36):
Right, Well, I mean, how much of ec is about
being I crudely summed it up in that sort of
lightening remarks like that. But for many parents it is
about okay, for some parents, many parents, God, I'm going
to second guess himself all afternoon, but you know, because
it's a complex issue, isn't it. But for many parents,
(06:57):
and maybe for me, I think with my kids, we
enrolled them, to be honest, I can't acturely remember what
age they were, but they went to a you know,
a place called Small Miracles. It was a preschool sort
of and I think they must have had probably a
year or two. But that's but vague of me, isn't it.
My wife would shoot me for not knowing exactly how long.
(07:20):
And I think I my goal, our goal as parents,
it would have been, you know, introducing them to social interaction,
the opportunity to play with other children. It might have
only been two mornings a week initially, then a bit more,
and it was about introducing them to an environment where
they're with other kids and they're learning things with different people,
(07:41):
and it sort of rolled from there.
Speaker 2 (07:43):
It's partly so yeah, maybe.
Speaker 4 (07:46):
If I was to think how what the point of
it was, it was just get them started, and it
was maybe in the background it was about getting ready
for school.
Speaker 5 (07:56):
Yeah, look, I think there's you know, there's a lot
of learning that happens before you go to school, right,
School is not the first place it all starts. No,
And I don't know that we visited as a as
a country have probably valued early learning as much as
we possibly could. Right, Those early years are so incredibly important.
(08:16):
And like you, I had the privilege of being home
with my kids for a little while, but unfortunately that's
not the privilege of many. And so you know, early
early childhood has also become I guess the place you
put your children if you need to go back to work. Right,
(08:38):
with cost of living and increases in all of that
that's going on in our society, that early learning has
become not not.
Speaker 4 (08:48):
Choice, I mean a crudely, it isn't it funny that
we're I mean, but we do tip too around these
things because parenting is complex and the reason that parents.
You know, modern life is complex, life is expensive. You know,
not being a stay at home parents a luxury, isn't
it totally?
Speaker 5 (09:07):
Yeah? And I think certainly for many of the families
that we work with. Right, there's also then early learning,
if you did want to choose early learning is a
way for whatever reason, early learning is also becoming incredibly costly,
and so that's also becoming a barrier that even if
(09:28):
you did choose to send your children to an early
learning environment, then actually can you afford to do so?
And if you can't afford to do so, then how
does that impact on everything else that ecosystem I was
talking about.
Speaker 4 (09:39):
Earlier, because that stat that I read out before, around
ninety six point eight percent of children in New Zealand
attend some sort of early childhood education. That number sounds amazing,
but I guess that is it masking? Is it masking
the reality because of some sort for how long?
Speaker 2 (09:58):
I don't know.
Speaker 5 (09:59):
Yeah, And I think there's a lot of statistics kicking about, right.
I think if you were to, if you were to
look carefully at the age groups of that particular number,
I think you'd find if you broadened it, the number
can drop to as little as a third are not
a third of New Zealand's children are not attending an
(10:22):
early learning provision before they start school. There's lots of
different numbers kicking about, and certainly our experience would be
that there's you know, we've had in twenty twenty three
one hundred and seventy early learning services closed. We've had
another thirty seven last year twenty twenty four. It's a
really challenging space to be operating in and yeah, yeah,
(10:48):
it's not as easy as just a choice, right, Sometimes
those early learning services are not there, and I think
that's a reality for a lot of families too.
Speaker 2 (10:55):
At what age, at what age do you think.
Speaker 4 (11:00):
We should really be trying to get our kids into
some form of early childhood education, Assuming that you've got
all the choices in the world, what do you reckon
and what's Bernardo's view of when kids should actually get
involved in early childhood education.
Speaker 5 (11:16):
I think it's about you know, you can call it
early childhood education or you can call it the support
services that reraprirand are under fives. And I think all families,
however young or closer to school, those their children are
probably at some point in that zero to five journey
going to need somebody else's support, and I guess that's
(11:36):
what early learning can provide. So is there one age
that I think or we think, that we should get
our children into early learning. I think if you're a
capable parent and you know what you're doing, and you've
got that team of supporters I was talking about, then
maybe you can. But I also recognize that early learning
(12:00):
provides for those families who, for whatever their reason want
their children to go to early learning that and might
be to get them school with ready because they're not
a teacher. Clearly unfortunate enough, I am why okay, yeah,
And I think if you can provide that environment at home,
(12:21):
then that's great. But the majority of New Zealanders don't
actually or can't for a number of really wide and
varied reasons. Bernardo's alts. You know, in many of our
services take from zero all the way through to five,
and that's because some families need those supports at a
really young age. And so it's about having experienced chaok
(12:45):
or our teachers being able to support in those incredibly
early years all the way through and work with families
with what's right for them.
Speaker 4 (12:56):
We love your calls on this actually, and I know,
look we've done I have probably danced around the question
because it is difficult to work out there's no one
fits all. I think that's what we're establishing. My guest
is here, the Taylor. She's chief operating officer at Bernardo's.
And of course, if you, if you know you are
a parent who is able to provide your kids with
(13:17):
lots of socializing and you love spending time with them
and teach, and then when did how did you make
the decision when you got them into some formal form
of even the word formal, you see, that's the.
Speaker 2 (13:29):
Last word you want to apply to early childhood education.
Speaker 4 (13:31):
So I'm dancing on the head of a pin here,
But when did you get your kids to some form
of early childhood education at what was it?
Speaker 2 (13:37):
Was it kindergarten? Was it preschool? But yeah, we.
Speaker 4 (13:40):
Want your calls on it as well as to how
you worked out why you would want that and were
you getting them ready for school or was it just
part of the growing up and you thought, hell, they're
three years old, I need to introduce them to a
few more kids or other adults. I don't know, but
we'd love your calls on it on eight hundred and
eighty ten eighty. But before we do it is the
biggest challenge Heather for Bernados. Is it just trying to
(14:04):
support family? What's the role that you guys really play
in terms of the core business of Bernados and when
it comes to early childhood education.
Speaker 5 (14:14):
Yeah, it's a really good question. I think it's we
see an incredibly large proportion of New Zealanders it's now
one in seven right children live in material hardship in
New Zealand. I think particularly for us, we see a
(14:36):
massive increase in children experiencing and coming through our doors
with neurodiverse learning needs. The cost of ECE is a
massive challenge. And Bernados is and not for profit organization.
We're also not for loss and so that fundraising part
(14:58):
of our organization is significantly important and we support parents
with the that otherwise wouldn't be able to attend early
learning because of the cost. We have families come through
our door that have housing challenges, so we support them
with that food insecurity and we've got fully catered kitchens
(15:20):
in some of our services and in some of our
services we offer we also offer the transport to go
and pick the kids up, so one of those barriers
exist for families to be able to access early learning,
and Bernardo's al alt Or is there to try and
(15:41):
minimize those barriers as much as we can so that
all New Zealanders, if they want the opportunity to come
into early childhood, that we can provide that for them.
Speaker 4 (15:51):
We love your cause and you can share your thoughts
if you've got any questions for hither at she's chief
operating officer at Bernardo's. Give us a call on eight
hundred eighty t and eight on this on the simple
side of the leader in the question what's your what
was your approach with your kids, with your children when
it came to early childhood education and what was the
motive for getting them involved in it? As you as
(16:11):
you've heard from me, I was a bit vague, actually
because I was trying to remember when we actually did it,
because childhood you're just so busy with kids, and I
think it was when they were around three. But my
felt my wife was listening should be giving me a
rap over the knuckles.
Speaker 2 (16:24):
For not knowing.
Speaker 4 (16:25):
So we'd love your cause on it. Eight hundred and
eighty ten eighty But why is early childhood education so
important for your children? And at what age did it
become important? Give us a call eight hundred eighty ten eighty.
It's twenty three past five News Talks. He'd be back
in a moment.
Speaker 2 (16:53):
Fastly, guess welcome back. I'm Tim Beveridge. This is the
Parents Squad.
Speaker 4 (16:59):
We're talking about early childhood education from quite a sort
of broad perspective.
Speaker 2 (17:03):
Really.
Speaker 4 (17:03):
We're talking with Heather Tailor. She is the chief operating
officer at Bernado's, an organization that provide almost one and
a half million dollars a year and exemptions to help
more than six hundred children get access to early childhood education.
Speaker 2 (17:17):
That sounds like the tip of the iceberg, isn't it, Heather, Yeah.
Speaker 5 (17:21):
It is, it absolutely is. We've seen increased costs as
an organization obviously like everybody else, right, and so for
us being able to support our families as at a
one point five million dollar loss if you like, and
we provide those exemptions to our family so that we
(17:44):
don't have to charge them the fees that they can
ill afford.
Speaker 4 (17:47):
Yeah, should early childhoods of course, if a lot of
issues that come up with social issues and education and
things like that. It always boils down to money and
how much the government's got. But do you think the
government should be spending more to make early childhood education
more accessible to people?
Speaker 2 (18:05):
What's and what's the gap? What would be the sort
of what would be the ideal billions?
Speaker 5 (18:14):
We haven't it would look it's some realistic to put
a number on that, right, How much would it cost
if every under five, I don't know, let's say for
three is went to an early childhood environment. How many
hours do they go for a day? Six, eight, ten?
You know, I think some of our services are open
nearly ten hours a day so that we can service
(18:37):
the needs of the communities that we work in. And
so yeah, the cost of ecees is vastly more than
the current pot allows. Let's put it like that.
Speaker 4 (18:47):
Some acees free just by virtue of there. I seem
to remember that when it comes to kindergarten, before our
kids went to school, that there was the option of
a free kindergarten somewhere, although the other side of it
was a bitter register for it in a couple of
years in advance. If you're going to have a chance
of getting your child.
Speaker 5 (19:07):
Done, Look, there's so many different models as well. So
kindergarten traditionally, I don't know how old your kids are,
but when my kids went through kindergarten, well tho, yeah, yeah,
nineteen and twenty one, and so then they went sessional.
You know, one went for the afternoon and one went
for a couple of hours in the morning. It's that's
(19:28):
not the reality of what many parents are buying. If
that's the right word or wanting for their children. Then
we've also got play center, We've got so many different types.
We run home based services as well that are able
to probably possibly be a bit more flexible because you're
entering somebody's home and then you negotiate those hours and
(19:49):
days yourself.
Speaker 4 (19:50):
So is that one of the challenges is that early
childhood education is so diverse in terms of what because
there are some parents, I mean school we start at
school at five or you know thereabouts, and that's when
your standard formal education begins. But before then, that's one
(20:12):
of the problems, isn't it. It's such a variety of
needs or non needs in some people's cases, when parents
will spend more time with their kids, is that the
reason it's such a well, seems a very difficult area
to navigate in terms of what the government's role should
be versus what parents want from their communities versus their
(20:33):
educational facilities. I can't get me hit around it.
Speaker 5 (20:38):
It's vastly complex. I try to explain the funding model
will be here all day. I think, let it be
said that it's a diverse, diverse range of service types.
But each of those service types depend on the age
of the children get different funding from the government, dependent
upon I guess a government policy at the end of
the day, So the older the children, the more the
(21:01):
funding rate is per hour per child to enable more
children that are closer to school age to theoretically be
able to attend. It's still only six hours a day,
and the majority of our children attend more than six
hours a day. What pays for the gap?
Speaker 4 (21:21):
I mean six hundred kids that you're supporting, which is great,
but I mean what would the need be in terms
of the number of children that would need your support
or would would that would use it if they could
get it.
Speaker 5 (21:34):
So we've got two and a half thousand children go
through our doors every year in our early childhood environment.
How many more children if we took new Zealand. It's
a third we're saying maybe don't attend for formal let's
use that word early child licensed early childhood services. And
(21:54):
we've seen a significant closure over the last two years.
There's communities now in New Zealand that don't have an
early childhood provider.
Speaker 2 (22:03):
Why have they closed their.
Speaker 5 (22:06):
Financial viability the majority of them.
Speaker 4 (22:09):
Well, because the community can't afford to pay what they
need and they don't get what they need, they.
Speaker 5 (22:13):
Can't You can't run an early childhood service in those
communities with the funding that comes from government or parents
can't pay the residual I guess of the fees that
would be required.
Speaker 4 (22:28):
What is the we were talking earlier at the start
of our conversation. You mentioned the Dunedin study. Well, actually
I mentioned it. I think you talked about research of
the first two thousand days.
Speaker 2 (22:39):
Same thing.
Speaker 5 (22:40):
Yeah, same thing.
Speaker 4 (22:40):
And for those of you who haven't, I mean I
have talked about this affair. But during the course of
all the last few years. Actually the Dunedin study is
a as a groundbreaking study. Was that it's time that
tracked people basically I don't know how many people it
was was at fifteen hundred. It was children much number
basically just tracked their lives and everything their health outcomes from.
(23:04):
You know, everything about how their lives turned out and
the revelations that have come out of it is basically
your first three years or everything.
Speaker 2 (23:13):
Is that right? That's pretty much a nutshell, can it?
Speaker 5 (23:16):
Yeah? The majority of brain development, that eighty percent of
brain development happens between pregnancy and the third birthday, and
the importance of those days on the lifetime outcomes both societal, emotional, physical, cognitive,
all of that, and the Dnadian study has made that
(23:39):
correlation between a strong start in early life to higher
likelihood of success at school, higher earning income, and diminishing
the likelihood that those children will stay out in the
welfare system and the justice system, which inevitably costs New
Zealand less in the long run.
Speaker 4 (23:57):
What are your biggest worries then, in terms of what
you see the need is and what we can what
we are not providing.
Speaker 5 (24:08):
I think, well, we know that families have gott an
amount of pressure upon them right at the moment, and
I think the ECE system that we currently have in
New Zealand was developed twenty odd years ago. It's not
(24:30):
fit for purpose. We're not a society. We don't look
like we looked twenty years ago, and so we're at
a bit of a crossroads, it feels like in the
early childhood sector where we have the choice to redesign
a system that is fit for modern parents, and it's
(24:54):
going to take some brave conversations to change the system
to be able to meet the needs of modern family life.
Speaker 2 (25:02):
What boy, so, what would I mean?
Speaker 4 (25:07):
I'm writing notes frankly in terms of trying to narrow
it down to the question, really, which is I mean,
I guess what system would be fit for modern parents,
because it comes back to what we talked about a
little while ago about the diverse needs of different communities, cultures,
socioeconomic groups. It's a hell of a It's a hell
of a pudding to put together, isn't it?
Speaker 5 (25:29):
It is? It is. Look, I think the government have
made some strong indicators in terms of early intervention, and
if we started calling it that as opposed to early
childhood education and uncouple the fact that children experience life right,
they don't experience education and health and housing and all
(25:53):
the bits of our system in silo. They experience life. Now,
I think if we can open our minds to a
system that is more joined up in real life and
start to think about what are the supports that children
and families need and redesign. Instead of it being where
(26:16):
you go to early childhood to learn, and you go
here for this, and you go there for that, let's
actually create a more broader scope through that door. Actually,
if you walk through the door, then there's somebody there
who's going to help you as a parent to navigate
the system. Now that might be early childhood. You might
(26:38):
need to leave your children for a variety of reasons,
and I would strongly advocate that if you're going to
do that, then you need to have strong kayak or
that know what they're doing with our youngest children. Yeah,
through that door, we can have other things.
Speaker 4 (26:56):
So in other words you're talking about, I mean, we
started this conversation through the sort of prism of early
childhood education, but from chatting to you, we're really talking
about something that's a lot broader than that, isn't It's
about and I'm try not to sell all virtue signally
about this as well, but it's about enabling all kids
to sort of connect with the world beyond their home,
which will include education and a whole bunch of other
(27:19):
things that would recognize what issues a particular family might
have as well as providing base, you know, welcome to kindergarten.
Speaker 5 (27:27):
What's our responsibility as the early childhood providers in our society?
Which is the trusted space? We are a trusted space,
right and often the first space that families really start
interacting with the education system. Certainly so, Actually, if we
are that trusted space, then what more can we provide
(27:49):
and support and navigate and help our families with?
Speaker 4 (27:52):
Yeah, we love your calls and your thoughts on this
eight hundred and eighty, ten to eighty, and I'm going
to come back. I'm going to dig into a little
bit more about what Bernardo's about the work that Barnardos
are doing as well. We're with Heather Tailor. She's the
chief operating officer and the number is eight hundred and
eighty ten and eighty will take you. We've got a
few texts to get to which reflect the diversity of
this conversation.
Speaker 1 (28:11):
Actually, not a surprase.
Speaker 2 (28:15):
We'll be back in just a ticket. It's twenty two
minutes to see.
Speaker 4 (28:18):
Yes, we'll with how the Taylor, she's the chief operating
officer at Bernardo's talking about well, we started talking about
early childhood education, but really, what should your child's engagement
I guess with the community look like it because one
part of its early childhood education. And I'm detecting from
what Heather's saying that really we need to be talking
about other connections that children have with communities earlier and
(28:40):
which enables whether it be social or other forms of
support as well in connection with the community, which can
come in so many different shapes and sizes depending on
your you know, your your own resources. I guess actually
here the somebody texted here this is saying. Both of
my children were five months when they started at Bernardo's
(29:01):
Early Learning. I did not have the village that Heather
til talked about, and I couldn't manage alone at home
with them. I was lonely and I felt like my
brain was totally not stimulated. I missed work in adults
around me. It's now part of our village and we
couldn't do without it. Our children have learnt so much,
grown in confidence. They're exposed and new and great experiences
and activities. It's been so huge, so been huge to
(29:24):
who they are today. And so beneficial. That's from LED.
What's nice vote and what?
Speaker 5 (29:33):
Yeah? And I think you know it sums it up.
It's it's the door that opens too many different connections
to provide what families need, whatever that need might be.
And that's the quandary, right, how much do we invest
in the early years? If that's how important it is.
Speaker 4 (29:54):
Does that also go I'll just read it. I've got
a text here, but I've just asked the quick question.
Does that also go for parents as well?
Speaker 2 (30:03):
Though?
Speaker 4 (30:04):
So we talk, we can talk about society needing to
value those years and the investment that we might make
in children.
Speaker 2 (30:11):
We certainly get back.
Speaker 4 (30:13):
And you know, many fold because of fewer negative outcomes.
Speaker 2 (30:19):
And the justice and the health system and all that.
Speaker 4 (30:21):
But do you think that we have a problem in
New Zealand with valuing kids within the family, ourselves personally,
forgetting about who we are voting for, who our government is.
You know, like I had somebody texted here saying, we
did everything in our power to keep our son out
of daycare. He started Montetori kindy just after return too.
(30:41):
We picked up extra jobs, We worked odd hours to
make it work. You can never go back and make
you can always go back and make more money, you
can never get the early days with your kids back.
I mean that's quite a valid point of view, isn't it.
Speaker 5 (30:58):
It is a valid point of view. I think though,
you know, we've got one in seven children in news
and experience and material hardship. That means that they don't
have healthy food on the table, they don't have heating
in their house. If indeed, we've got families that we're
working with or don't even have a house, they don't
have access to good medical care, and they don't have
access to warm clothing. Sometimes it's not a choice, so
(31:22):
those parents have to go to work.
Speaker 2 (31:23):
Yeah.
Speaker 4 (31:24):
I guess that message is really for people who have
the capacity to do that, they've spent the time to
think about it. Whereas you're saying that there are some
parents who they're not even at that level where they
can have that.
Speaker 5 (31:37):
They might want to have seven children.
Speaker 2 (31:39):
Yeah, So tell us.
Speaker 4 (31:40):
About the fundraising if it's you guys at Bernardo's Mate,
because so be people listening who will know the name Barnardo's.
There's so many charities out there doing all sorts of work,
but will be reminded that that's right you know, here's
a charity I'd love to support. How can they best
do it with you guys?
Speaker 5 (31:56):
Yeah, So the easiest way to offer support for Bernados
is through our website, Bernardo's Door Enz. We have hundreds,
hundreds of donors who give anything from five bucks to
a lot more than that every year, and we also
(32:17):
work with and massive thanks to those that do give,
because we wouldn't be able to do the work that
we do without without their help. We also have a
massive number of an increasing number of partners that we
work with across New Zealand businesses and I think that's
a you know, that's a real gift of our society
that more and more businesses want to be able to
(32:39):
support as well and do their bet. I think we're
increasingly realizing life's not just about making as much money
as possible. There's a social thing going on the error
and so we have a lot of partners that help
us do our work and we again wouldn't be able
to do that work without them, so massive thanks to them.
But the average New Zealander can just help us by
(33:03):
jumping on that website and working out what you can give.
Speaker 4 (33:08):
Again, it can't put concrete figures on these things. But
how much are you able to raise or do you
need to raise? How much more do you need to
raise to feel that you're starting to reach some of
the goals of what you want to achieve with the
New Zealand.
Speaker 5 (33:24):
It's a good question, and I think you know we've
really as an organization struggled over the last few years.
It's been really challenging, and our fundraising efforts do support
nearly six million dollars worth of mahe but we do
know that there's an awful lot of children out there
(33:44):
that we can't reach. Our eight hundred What's Up phone line,
which is a counseling phone line that we run for
New Zealanders New Zealand children from age five to nineteen.
We're currently only able to have that open certain hours
of the day. We would love to be able to
(34:05):
that all hours of the day. Children need help when
they need it, not when it's convenient. And look that
that kind of investment is millions of dollars, it's millions
of dollars.
Speaker 2 (34:17):
What made you get involved with Bonardos.
Speaker 5 (34:20):
That's a really good question. I am so I'm a teacher,
that's my profession and I've I've always worked a primary
teacher initially, but always worked in schools where they had
early childhood attached as part of that village, right, And
I think for me, my own boys grew up, hadn't they.
(34:46):
I thought they had a very nice life. Anyway, you
might have been that question, but I think you reach
a point where you just want to give back and
do something more right. And so eight years ago I
came across to lead the early learning portfolio for Bernardo's
Altiero and and actually just a year ago, we have
(35:09):
made a decision that to my earlier point, children don't
receive us in compartments, and therefore we need to join
up some of our work. And so we made the
decision that a more joined up approach to our leadership
was important to us. Now I'm chief operating officer across
our care, our community and early childhood work.
Speaker 2 (35:30):
What keeps you out of mischief? I'm sure it sure does.
Speaker 4 (35:35):
Look Hey, thanks for the chance to have a chat
about these things here. They are really appreciate your time.
And if you want to support Bernardo's you just need
to go to Bernardo's nar dos dot org, dott and
Z and you can get in touch with them if
you would like to, and you can easily donate. There's
an opportunity to get in there. So hey, here that
thank you so much for your time.
Speaker 5 (35:57):
Thank you very much, it's been great talking with you.
Speaker 2 (35:59):
Cheers, bye bye, and we'll be back to talk.
Speaker 4 (36:02):
Well, we're going to have the Sports rapp Jason Pine
and it's not really a wrap of anything more than
it's going to be a preview of the spring Box
and All Blacks in just a moment. It is eleven
minutes to six News Talk SEDB.
Speaker 1 (36:13):
For more from the weekend collective, listen live to News
Talk SEDB weekends from three pm, or follow the podcast
on iHeartRadio.
You're listening to the Weekend Collective podcast from News Talk,
said B.
Speaker 2 (00:10):
The train to come.
Speaker 3 (00:12):
It's all and around me and I ain't seen the
sunshine on all when I'm stuck and full of Britain,
and time keeps drag and all what that train keeps
all down?
Speaker 2 (00:33):
The same Talky's welcome back to the Weekend Collector. Well,
welcome in.
Speaker 4 (00:38):
If you've missed any of our previous hours, then you
can go and check out the podcast. Go to the
News Talk, SAIDB dot cot in z or to iHeartRadio.
Just look for the Weekend Collective. We get every hour
and loaded up pretty quickly, so everything should be there
if you listen to. But not now, because this is
the Parents Squad and we're gonna have a chat about
early childhood education. By the way, the Johnny Cash thing,
(00:59):
I was thinking, does it time to our education theme?
Speaker 2 (01:02):
And no, probably not.
Speaker 4 (01:03):
It's probably just a something that might produce the Tyra
wants to play to get herself in the mood for
the spring box tonight. I don't know anyway, random comment
from me, but anyway about ninety six I love the
stat when it says around ninety six point eight percent
of children let's just go with ninety six point eight
percent of children apparently attend some form of early childhood
(01:26):
education at some point before entering school. Some begin from
a few months old, while some are only enrolled for
at around two or three for kindergarten.
Speaker 2 (01:34):
And we're just going to have a chat about.
Speaker 4 (01:36):
Why early childhood education is so important and how does
it stack up against being at home with a parent,
for instance, and when should you get your child into
early childhood education because there'll be some people who want
to get their children in because they want to get
them really well prepared for school. Other times it might
literally be because both parents are working and it's you know,
(01:57):
it's something you've sort of got to do. But anyway,
we're joined by the chief operating officer at Bernado's.
Speaker 2 (02:04):
Your name has Head, the tailor. She's with me. Now,
good I here, How are you going?
Speaker 5 (02:07):
Good? Ay? How are you good?
Speaker 2 (02:09):
Good?
Speaker 4 (02:09):
So you as what's Binado's involvement with when it comes
to early childhood education?
Speaker 5 (02:18):
Good question, so Bernardo's. Also, it has been in New Zealand
for fifty five years, and all of that time, long
before early childhood was even a thing. We've been offer
the ring services to children and families across New Zealand.
Currently New Zealand's largest children's charity. But the work that
(02:40):
we do is pretty broad from advocacy, lots of working
with our government systems as well as fundraising for the
work that we do. We work with over thirty thousand
children in families every year, two and a half thousand
in early childhood through our home based and our center
(03:01):
based KAH. So that's our early learning provision, but we're
much broad are in terms of social service and also
our care facilities as well.
Speaker 4 (03:10):
Funny I never thought range, yes, it is because Bernardo's
is I mean, it's a household name, really, isn't it.
And I would confess that if I think of Bernardo's,
I'm not necessarily thinking of early childhood education. I'm thinking
of I don't know, I'm thinking of broader charitable works,
which you've probably just outlined.
Speaker 2 (03:26):
But what would I mean, what what.
Speaker 4 (03:29):
In terms of early childhood education tell us about Bernarda's
involvement with that?
Speaker 5 (03:34):
Yeah? So I guess we work across that whole range
right of children who unfortunately need more significant help, but
through particularly to that early prevention and intervention work that's
where the early childhood space sits for us in terms
of what can we do really early on to support
(03:57):
families with a really tough job right of becoming parents
raising families. Those had kids will know how hard that is,
and so our work there is we do offer early
childhood services, but within those services we liken it to
(04:17):
opening the door to all of the services that we
can offer. So early childhood for us is more than
just an early learning service.
Speaker 4 (04:26):
How important I mean when is it important for children
to actually get into early childhood education? And I mean
how much of that also depends on what their preparents,
their parents are. I'm trying to find out what the
right way of putting this capable of providing, because there'd
be you know, if you've got to stay at home mum,
who's you know? And I'm generalizing here, but let's be honest.
(04:50):
On the average its stay at home mums. So there
are some stay at home dads, but this goes stay
at home parents to be safe, who are excited about
becoming parents and they want to spend time with their children.
They could do a lot with their kids when it
comes to education, and I guess introducing to other children
through social sort of things. But it is the choice
(05:11):
of when you should get your kids into ECE is
that somewhat dependent on parents and their ability to spend
time with their kids.
Speaker 5 (05:20):
Hey, look, I think that's a really complicated answer. There
was a complicated answer to that was a combon, right yeah.
And look, being a parent is not a one person
job or two person job, right we all you know
the old udage that it takes a illution to raise
a child, Well, it absolutely does, and I think certainly
the families that we work within it probably true in
(05:41):
most New Zealanders that you need a team of supporters
around you to be able to navigate that space. And
so I think it's about recognizing the value of those
early years. And there's enough research around the first two
thousand days, and indeed free verse as well, they're done
need and study exactly to show that eighty percent of
(06:04):
the children's brain development happens between pregnancy and their third birthday.
So I guess it's about for us anyway, And I
would personally believe this it's about parent choice in those
in those first two thousand days, of course, But in
terms of that village, I SEEECEE as part of the
ecosystem around a family that can help support them within
(06:28):
those first two thousand days particularly and then obviously on
from there to be able. As you've already mentioned that
word school ready.
Speaker 4 (06:36):
Right, Well, I mean, how much of ec is about
being I crudely summed it up in that sort of
lightening remarks like that. But for many parents it is
about okay, for some parents, many parents, God, I'm going
to second guess himself all afternoon, but you know, because
it's a complex issue, isn't it. But for many parents,
(06:57):
and maybe for me, I think with my kids, we
enrolled them, to be honest, I can't acturely remember what
age they were, but they went to a you know,
a place called Small Miracles. It was a preschool sort
of and I think they must have had probably a
year or two. But that's but vague of me, isn't it.
My wife would shoot me for not knowing exactly how long.
(07:20):
And I think I my goal, our goal as parents,
it would have been, you know, introducing them to social interaction,
the opportunity to play with other children. It might have
only been two mornings a week initially, then a bit more,
and it was about introducing them to an environment where
they're with other kids and they're learning things with different people,
(07:41):
and it sort of rolled from there.
Speaker 2 (07:43):
It's partly so yeah, maybe.
Speaker 4 (07:46):
If I was to think how what the point of
it was, it was just get them started, and it
was maybe in the background it was about getting ready
for school.
Speaker 5 (07:56):
Yeah, look, I think there's you know, there's a lot
of learning that happens before you go to school, right,
School is not the first place it all starts. No,
And I don't know that we visited as a as
a country have probably valued early learning as much as
we possibly could. Right, Those early years are so incredibly important.
(08:16):
And like you, I had the privilege of being home
with my kids for a little while, but unfortunately that's
not the privilege of many. And so you know, early
early childhood has also become I guess the place you
put your children if you need to go back to work. Right,
(08:38):
with cost of living and increases in all of that
that's going on in our society, that early learning has
become not not.
Speaker 4 (08:48):
Choice, I mean a crudely, it isn't it funny that
we're I mean, but we do tip too around these
things because parenting is complex and the reason that parents.
You know, modern life is complex, life is expensive. You know,
not being a stay at home parents a luxury, isn't
it totally?
Speaker 5 (09:07):
Yeah? And I think certainly for many of the families
that we work with. Right, there's also then early learning,
if you did want to choose early learning is a
way for whatever reason, early learning is also becoming incredibly costly,
and so that's also becoming a barrier that even if
(09:28):
you did choose to send your children to an early
learning environment, then actually can you afford to do so?
And if you can't afford to do so, then how
does that impact on everything else that ecosystem I was
talking about.
Speaker 4 (09:39):
Earlier, because that stat that I read out before, around
ninety six point eight percent of children in New Zealand
attend some sort of early childhood education. That number sounds amazing,
but I guess that is it masking? Is it masking
the reality because of some sort for how long?
Speaker 2 (09:58):
I don't know.
Speaker 5 (09:59):
Yeah, And I think there's a lot of statistics kicking about, right.
I think if you were to, if you were to
look carefully at the age groups of that particular number,
I think you'd find if you broadened it, the number
can drop to as little as a third are not
a third of New Zealand's children are not attending an
(10:22):
early learning provision before they start school. There's lots of
different numbers kicking about, and certainly our experience would be
that there's you know, we've had in twenty twenty three
one hundred and seventy early learning services closed. We've had
another thirty seven last year twenty twenty four. It's a
really challenging space to be operating in and yeah, yeah,
(10:48):
it's not as easy as just a choice, right, Sometimes
those early learning services are not there, and I think
that's a reality for a lot of families too.
Speaker 2 (10:55):
At what age, at what age do you think.
Speaker 4 (11:00):
We should really be trying to get our kids into
some form of early childhood education, Assuming that you've got
all the choices in the world, what do you reckon
and what's Bernardo's view of when kids should actually get
involved in early childhood education.
Speaker 5 (11:16):
I think it's about you know, you can call it
early childhood education or you can call it the support
services that reraprirand are under fives. And I think all families,
however young or closer to school, those their children are
probably at some point in that zero to five journey
going to need somebody else's support, and I guess that's
(11:36):
what early learning can provide. So is there one age
that I think or we think, that we should get
our children into early learning. I think if you're a
capable parent and you know what you're doing, and you've
got that team of supporters I was talking about, then
maybe you can. But I also recognize that early learning
(12:00):
provides for those families who, for whatever their reason want
their children to go to early learning that and might
be to get them school with ready because they're not
a teacher. Clearly unfortunate enough, I am why okay, yeah,
And I think if you can provide that environment at home,
(12:21):
then that's great. But the majority of New Zealanders don't
actually or can't for a number of really wide and
varied reasons. Bernardo's alts. You know, in many of our
services take from zero all the way through to five,
and that's because some families need those supports at a
really young age. And so it's about having experienced chaok
(12:45):
or our teachers being able to support in those incredibly
early years all the way through and work with families
with what's right for them.
Speaker 4 (12:56):
We love your calls on this actually, and I know,
look we've done I have probably danced around the question
because it is difficult to work out there's no one
fits all. I think that's what we're establishing. My guest
is here, the Taylor. She's chief operating officer at Bernardo's.
And of course, if you, if you know you are
a parent who is able to provide your kids with
(13:17):
lots of socializing and you love spending time with them
and teach, and then when did how did you make
the decision when you got them into some formal form
of even the word formal, you see, that's the.
Speaker 2 (13:29):
Last word you want to apply to early childhood education.
Speaker 4 (13:31):
So I'm dancing on the head of a pin here,
But when did you get your kids to some form
of early childhood education at what was it?
Speaker 2 (13:37):
Was it kindergarten? Was it preschool? But yeah, we.
Speaker 4 (13:40):
Want your calls on it as well as to how
you worked out why you would want that and were
you getting them ready for school or was it just
part of the growing up and you thought, hell, they're
three years old, I need to introduce them to a
few more kids or other adults. I don't know, but
we'd love your calls on it on eight hundred and
eighty ten eighty. But before we do it is the
biggest challenge Heather for Bernados. Is it just trying to
(14:04):
support family? What's the role that you guys really play
in terms of the core business of Bernados and when
it comes to early childhood education.
Speaker 5 (14:14):
Yeah, it's a really good question. I think it's we
see an incredibly large proportion of New Zealanders it's now
one in seven right children live in material hardship in
New Zealand. I think particularly for us, we see a
(14:36):
massive increase in children experiencing and coming through our doors
with neurodiverse learning needs. The cost of ECE is a
massive challenge. And Bernados is and not for profit organization.
We're also not for loss and so that fundraising part
(14:58):
of our organization is significantly important and we support parents
with the that otherwise wouldn't be able to attend early
learning because of the cost. We have families come through
our door that have housing challenges, so we support them
with that food insecurity and we've got fully catered kitchens
(15:20):
in some of our services and in some of our
services we offer we also offer the transport to go
and pick the kids up, so one of those barriers
exist for families to be able to access early learning,
and Bernardo's al alt Or is there to try and
(15:41):
minimize those barriers as much as we can so that
all New Zealanders, if they want the opportunity to come
into early childhood, that we can provide that for them.
Speaker 4 (15:51):
We love your cause and you can share your thoughts
if you've got any questions for hither at she's chief
operating officer at Bernardo's. Give us a call on eight
hundred eighty t and eight on this on the simple
side of the leader in the question what's your what
was your approach with your kids, with your children when
it came to early childhood education and what was the
motive for getting them involved in it? As you as
(16:11):
you've heard from me, I was a bit vague, actually
because I was trying to remember when we actually did it,
because childhood you're just so busy with kids, and I
think it was when they were around three. But my
felt my wife was listening should be giving me a
rap over the knuckles.
Speaker 2 (16:24):
For not knowing.
Speaker 4 (16:25):
So we'd love your cause on it. Eight hundred and
eighty ten eighty But why is early childhood education so
important for your children? And at what age did it
become important? Give us a call eight hundred eighty ten eighty.
It's twenty three past five News Talks. He'd be back
in a moment.
Speaker 2 (16:53):
Fastly, guess welcome back. I'm Tim Beveridge. This is the
Parents Squad.
Speaker 4 (16:59):
We're talking about early childhood education from quite a sort
of broad perspective.
Speaker 2 (17:03):
Really.
Speaker 4 (17:03):
We're talking with Heather Tailor. She is the chief operating
officer at Bernado's, an organization that provide almost one and
a half million dollars a year and exemptions to help
more than six hundred children get access to early childhood education.
Speaker 2 (17:17):
That sounds like the tip of the iceberg, isn't it, Heather, Yeah.
Speaker 5 (17:21):
It is, it absolutely is. We've seen increased costs as
an organization obviously like everybody else, right, and so for
us being able to support our families as at a
one point five million dollar loss if you like, and
we provide those exemptions to our family so that we
(17:44):
don't have to charge them the fees that they can
ill afford.
Speaker 4 (17:47):
Yeah, should early childhoods of course, if a lot of
issues that come up with social issues and education and
things like that. It always boils down to money and
how much the government's got. But do you think the
government should be spending more to make early childhood education
more accessible to people?
Speaker 2 (18:05):
What's and what's the gap? What would be the sort
of what would be the ideal billions?
Speaker 5 (18:14):
We haven't it would look it's some realistic to put
a number on that, right, How much would it cost
if every under five, I don't know, let's say for
three is went to an early childhood environment. How many
hours do they go for a day? Six, eight, ten?
You know, I think some of our services are open
nearly ten hours a day so that we can service
(18:37):
the needs of the communities that we work in. And
so yeah, the cost of ecees is vastly more than
the current pot allows. Let's put it like that.
Speaker 4 (18:47):
Some acees free just by virtue of there. I seem
to remember that when it comes to kindergarten, before our
kids went to school, that there was the option of
a free kindergarten somewhere, although the other side of it
was a bitter register for it in a couple of
years in advance. If you're going to have a chance
of getting your child.
Speaker 5 (19:07):
Done, Look, there's so many different models as well. So
kindergarten traditionally, I don't know how old your kids are,
but when my kids went through kindergarten, well tho, yeah, yeah,
nineteen and twenty one, and so then they went sessional.
You know, one went for the afternoon and one went
for a couple of hours in the morning. It's that's
(19:28):
not the reality of what many parents are buying. If
that's the right word or wanting for their children. Then
we've also got play center, We've got so many different types.
We run home based services as well that are able
to probably possibly be a bit more flexible because you're
entering somebody's home and then you negotiate those hours and
(19:49):
days yourself.
Speaker 4 (19:50):
So is that one of the challenges is that early
childhood education is so diverse in terms of what because
there are some parents, I mean school we start at
school at five or you know thereabouts, and that's when
your standard formal education begins. But before then, that's one
(20:12):
of the problems, isn't it. It's such a variety of
needs or non needs in some people's cases, when parents
will spend more time with their kids, is that the
reason it's such a well, seems a very difficult area
to navigate in terms of what the government's role should
be versus what parents want from their communities versus their
(20:33):
educational facilities. I can't get me hit around it.
Speaker 5 (20:38):
It's vastly complex. I try to explain the funding model
will be here all day. I think, let it be
said that it's a diverse, diverse range of service types.
But each of those service types depend on the age
of the children get different funding from the government, dependent
upon I guess a government policy at the end of
the day, So the older the children, the more the
(21:01):
funding rate is per hour per child to enable more
children that are closer to school age to theoretically be
able to attend. It's still only six hours a day,
and the majority of our children attend more than six
hours a day. What pays for the gap?
Speaker 4 (21:21):
I mean six hundred kids that you're supporting, which is great,
but I mean what would the need be in terms
of the number of children that would need your support
or would would that would use it if they could
get it.
Speaker 5 (21:34):
So we've got two and a half thousand children go
through our doors every year in our early childhood environment.
How many more children if we took new Zealand. It's
a third we're saying maybe don't attend for formal let's
use that word early child licensed early childhood services. And
(21:54):
we've seen a significant closure over the last two years.
There's communities now in New Zealand that don't have an
early childhood provider.
Speaker 2 (22:03):
Why have they closed their.
Speaker 5 (22:06):
Financial viability the majority of them.
Speaker 4 (22:09):
Well, because the community can't afford to pay what they
need and they don't get what they need, they.
Speaker 5 (22:13):
Can't You can't run an early childhood service in those
communities with the funding that comes from government or parents
can't pay the residual I guess of the fees that
would be required.
Speaker 4 (22:28):
What is the we were talking earlier at the start
of our conversation. You mentioned the Dunedin study. Well, actually
I mentioned it. I think you talked about research of
the first two thousand days.
Speaker 2 (22:39):
Same thing.
Speaker 5 (22:40):
Yeah, same thing.
Speaker 4 (22:40):
And for those of you who haven't, I mean I
have talked about this affair. But during the course of
all the last few years. Actually the Dunedin study is
a as a groundbreaking study. Was that it's time that
tracked people basically I don't know how many people it
was was at fifteen hundred. It was children much number
basically just tracked their lives and everything their health outcomes from.
(23:04):
You know, everything about how their lives turned out and
the revelations that have come out of it is basically
your first three years or everything.
Speaker 2 (23:13):
Is that right? That's pretty much a nutshell, can it?
Speaker 5 (23:16):
Yeah? The majority of brain development, that eighty percent of
brain development happens between pregnancy and the third birthday, and
the importance of those days on the lifetime outcomes both societal, emotional, physical, cognitive,
all of that, and the Dnadian study has made that
(23:39):
correlation between a strong start in early life to higher
likelihood of success at school, higher earning income, and diminishing
the likelihood that those children will stay out in the
welfare system and the justice system, which inevitably costs New
Zealand less in the long run.
Speaker 4 (23:57):
What are your biggest worries then, in terms of what
you see the need is and what we can what
we are not providing.
Speaker 5 (24:08):
I think, well, we know that families have gott an
amount of pressure upon them right at the moment, and
I think the ECE system that we currently have in
New Zealand was developed twenty odd years ago. It's not
(24:30):
fit for purpose. We're not a society. We don't look
like we looked twenty years ago, and so we're at
a bit of a crossroads, it feels like in the
early childhood sector where we have the choice to redesign
a system that is fit for modern parents, and it's
(24:54):
going to take some brave conversations to change the system
to be able to meet the needs of modern family life.
Speaker 2 (25:02):
What boy, so, what would I mean?
Speaker 4 (25:07):
I'm writing notes frankly in terms of trying to narrow
it down to the question, really, which is I mean,
I guess what system would be fit for modern parents,
because it comes back to what we talked about a
little while ago about the diverse needs of different communities, cultures,
socioeconomic groups. It's a hell of a It's a hell
of a pudding to put together, isn't it?
Speaker 5 (25:29):
It is? It is. Look, I think the government have
made some strong indicators in terms of early intervention, and
if we started calling it that as opposed to early
childhood education and uncouple the fact that children experience life right,
they don't experience education and health and housing and all
(25:53):
the bits of our system in silo. They experience life. Now,
I think if we can open our minds to a
system that is more joined up in real life and
start to think about what are the supports that children
and families need and redesign. Instead of it being where
(26:16):
you go to early childhood to learn, and you go
here for this, and you go there for that, let's
actually create a more broader scope through that door. Actually,
if you walk through the door, then there's somebody there
who's going to help you as a parent to navigate
the system. Now that might be early childhood. You might
(26:38):
need to leave your children for a variety of reasons,
and I would strongly advocate that if you're going to
do that, then you need to have strong kayak or
that know what they're doing with our youngest children. Yeah,
through that door, we can have other things.
Speaker 4 (26:56):
So in other words you're talking about, I mean, we
started this conversation through the sort of prism of early
childhood education, but from chatting to you, we're really talking
about something that's a lot broader than that, isn't It's
about and I'm try not to sell all virtue signally
about this as well, but it's about enabling all kids
to sort of connect with the world beyond their home,
which will include education and a whole bunch of other
(27:19):
things that would recognize what issues a particular family might
have as well as providing base, you know, welcome to kindergarten.
Speaker 5 (27:27):
What's our responsibility as the early childhood providers in our society?
Which is the trusted space? We are a trusted space,
right and often the first space that families really start
interacting with the education system. Certainly so, Actually, if we
are that trusted space, then what more can we provide
(27:49):
and support and navigate and help our families with?
Speaker 4 (27:52):
Yeah, we love your calls and your thoughts on this
eight hundred and eighty, ten to eighty, and I'm going
to come back. I'm going to dig into a little
bit more about what Bernardo's about the work that Barnardos
are doing as well. We're with Heather Tailor. She's the
chief operating officer and the number is eight hundred and
eighty ten and eighty will take you. We've got a
few texts to get to which reflect the diversity of
this conversation.
Speaker 1 (28:11):
Actually, not a surprase.
Speaker 2 (28:15):
We'll be back in just a ticket. It's twenty two
minutes to see.
Speaker 4 (28:18):
Yes, we'll with how the Taylor, she's the chief operating
officer at Bernardo's talking about well, we started talking about
early childhood education, but really, what should your child's engagement
I guess with the community look like it because one
part of its early childhood education. And I'm detecting from
what Heather's saying that really we need to be talking
about other connections that children have with communities earlier and
(28:40):
which enables whether it be social or other forms of
support as well in connection with the community, which can
come in so many different shapes and sizes depending on
your you know, your your own resources. I guess actually
here the somebody texted here this is saying. Both of
my children were five months when they started at Bernardo's
(29:01):
Early Learning. I did not have the village that Heather
til talked about, and I couldn't manage alone at home
with them. I was lonely and I felt like my
brain was totally not stimulated. I missed work in adults
around me. It's now part of our village and we
couldn't do without it. Our children have learnt so much,
grown in confidence. They're exposed and new and great experiences
and activities. It's been so huge, so been huge to
(29:24):
who they are today. And so beneficial. That's from LED.
What's nice vote and what?
Speaker 5 (29:33):
Yeah? And I think you know it sums it up.
It's it's the door that opens too many different connections
to provide what families need, whatever that need might be.
And that's the quandary, right, how much do we invest
in the early years? If that's how important it is.
Speaker 4 (29:54):
Does that also go I'll just read it. I've got
a text here, but I've just asked the quick question.
Does that also go for parents as well?
Speaker 2 (30:03):
Though?
Speaker 4 (30:04):
So we talk, we can talk about society needing to
value those years and the investment that we might make
in children.
Speaker 2 (30:11):
We certainly get back.
Speaker 4 (30:13):
And you know, many fold because of fewer negative outcomes.
Speaker 2 (30:19):
And the justice and the health system and all that.
Speaker 4 (30:21):
But do you think that we have a problem in
New Zealand with valuing kids within the family, ourselves personally,
forgetting about who we are voting for, who our government is.
You know, like I had somebody texted here saying, we
did everything in our power to keep our son out
of daycare. He started Montetori kindy just after return too.
(30:41):
We picked up extra jobs, We worked odd hours to
make it work. You can never go back and make
you can always go back and make more money, you
can never get the early days with your kids back.
I mean that's quite a valid point of view, isn't it.
Speaker 5 (30:58):
It is a valid point of view. I think though,
you know, we've got one in seven children in news
and experience and material hardship. That means that they don't
have healthy food on the table, they don't have heating
in their house. If indeed, we've got families that we're
working with or don't even have a house, they don't
have access to good medical care, and they don't have
access to warm clothing. Sometimes it's not a choice, so
(31:22):
those parents have to go to work.
Speaker 2 (31:23):
Yeah.
Speaker 4 (31:24):
I guess that message is really for people who have
the capacity to do that, they've spent the time to
think about it. Whereas you're saying that there are some
parents who they're not even at that level where they
can have that.
Speaker 5 (31:37):
They might want to have seven children.
Speaker 2 (31:39):
Yeah, So tell us.
Speaker 4 (31:40):
About the fundraising if it's you guys at Bernardo's Mate,
because so be people listening who will know the name Barnardo's.
There's so many charities out there doing all sorts of work,
but will be reminded that that's right you know, here's
a charity I'd love to support. How can they best
do it with you guys?
Speaker 5 (31:56):
Yeah, So the easiest way to offer support for Bernados
is through our website, Bernardo's Door Enz. We have hundreds,
hundreds of donors who give anything from five bucks to
a lot more than that every year, and we also
(32:17):
work with and massive thanks to those that do give,
because we wouldn't be able to do the work that
we do without without their help. We also have a
massive number of an increasing number of partners that we
work with across New Zealand businesses and I think that's
a you know, that's a real gift of our society
that more and more businesses want to be able to
(32:39):
support as well and do their bet. I think we're
increasingly realizing life's not just about making as much money
as possible. There's a social thing going on the error
and so we have a lot of partners that help
us do our work and we again wouldn't be able
to do that work without them, so massive thanks to them.
But the average New Zealander can just help us by
(33:03):
jumping on that website and working out what you can give.
Speaker 4 (33:08):
Again, it can't put concrete figures on these things. But
how much are you able to raise or do you
need to raise? How much more do you need to
raise to feel that you're starting to reach some of
the goals of what you want to achieve with the
New Zealand.
Speaker 5 (33:24):
It's a good question, and I think you know we've
really as an organization struggled over the last few years.
It's been really challenging, and our fundraising efforts do support
nearly six million dollars worth of mahe but we do
know that there's an awful lot of children out there
(33:44):
that we can't reach. Our eight hundred What's Up phone line,
which is a counseling phone line that we run for
New Zealanders New Zealand children from age five to nineteen.
We're currently only able to have that open certain hours
of the day. We would love to be able to
(34:05):
that all hours of the day. Children need help when
they need it, not when it's convenient. And look that
that kind of investment is millions of dollars, it's millions
of dollars.
Speaker 2 (34:17):
What made you get involved with Bonardos.
Speaker 5 (34:20):
That's a really good question. I am so I'm a teacher,
that's my profession and I've I've always worked a primary
teacher initially, but always worked in schools where they had
early childhood attached as part of that village, right, And
I think for me, my own boys grew up, hadn't they.
(34:46):
I thought they had a very nice life. Anyway, you
might have been that question, but I think you reach
a point where you just want to give back and
do something more right. And so eight years ago I
came across to lead the early learning portfolio for Bernardo's
Altiero and and actually just a year ago, we have
(35:09):
made a decision that to my earlier point, children don't
receive us in compartments, and therefore we need to join
up some of our work. And so we made the
decision that a more joined up approach to our leadership
was important to us. Now I'm chief operating officer across
our care, our community and early childhood work.
Speaker 2 (35:30):
What keeps you out of mischief? I'm sure it sure does.
Speaker 4 (35:35):
Look Hey, thanks for the chance to have a chat
about these things here. They are really appreciate your time.
And if you want to support Bernardo's you just need
to go to Bernardo's nar dos dot org, dott and
Z and you can get in touch with them if
you would like to, and you can easily donate. There's
an opportunity to get in there. So hey, here that
thank you so much for your time.
Speaker 5 (35:57):
Thank you very much, it's been great talking with you.
Speaker 2 (35:59):
Cheers, bye bye, and we'll be back to talk.
Speaker 4 (36:02):
Well, we're going to have the Sports rapp Jason Pine
and it's not really a wrap of anything more than
it's going to be a preview of the spring Box
and All Blacks in just a moment. It is eleven
minutes to six News Talk SEDB.
Speaker 1 (36:13):
For more from the weekend collective, listen live to News
Talk SEDB weekends from three pm, or follow the podcast
on iHeartRadio.
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