[ChiefWiggum]

Hiya! Hope someone can answer this question for me: Is Nursery (pre-school) free for under school age children? Do schools in NZ actually have nurseries, or are they all private concerns...

For example at our local primary school there is a free nursery at which you can start the children on half days from the term in which they become three years of age...

Many thanks for any answers you can give!

[karltsmith]

Hi Chief...or should I say HOW! :laugh


Pre-school in NZ comes in all shapes and sizes! You will find there is generally something for everyone. In a nutshell your choices can be bpoken down as follows

1. The Playcentre organisation is the cheapest form of pre-school education for ages 0-5 years. It provides morning care across the whole pre-school age group. You have to sign up to train as a parent helper and have the commitment to stay and play with all the kids for a couple of terms but once you reach your stage 2 cert (NZQA recognised) you can then leave your kids 2-3 mornings per week and all you have to do is one duty day. Cost NZ$30 per term

2. Home care with a childminder. Cost varies but about NZ$120-180 per child/week

3. Private nurseries such as Kindercare and the like! Cost about NZ$180 per week per child wit a 10% discount for siblings. 7:30am to 5:30pm

4. Community creches. Cost about NZ$8-12 per session, i.e. morning or afternoon sessions.

5. Private Nannies.

6. Kindergartens. register your kids from 2 years of age and they can attend half days initially at age 3 to 4 years old. These are free and are akin to the nursery school system in the UK.

Karl :nice1

[ChiefWiggum]

Thanks Karl. Looks like there is plenty of choice, similar to here in the uk but a wider selection!

That playcenter organisation looks like a pretty good idea, gaining a qualification at the same time.. has to be useful.

Thanks for the reply, I'll show my wife and I'm sure she'll be pretty interested, seeing as she is a teacher aswell as a mother!