FAQs

The best way is to enquire online, either via https://best-start.org/contact-us or via a specific centre if you know where you want to enrol. The enquiry team or centre team can then organise one or more centre visits for you. While it isn’t mandatory, we recommend you visit the centre or centres that may work for you, so you can feel comfortable it feels right for you and your child.

We recommend enquiring about enrolment early to secure a space at your preferred centre. Some centres may be able to have children start very soon after enrolment but others may have a wait list. Our centres have fewer infant spaces than for over 2 year olds, so we advise contacting centres while you are pregnant to ensure your baby can start when you believe you will need this. If you enrol but your circumstances change, you are not obliged to start with us.

Waitlists vary from centre to centre and even within age groups for a single centre depending on demand. You are best to make an enrolment enquiry for one or more BestStart centres, https://best-start.org/contact-us  or via the form on a specific centre webpage and we can advise.

Some centres provide all meals and snacks while others provide morning and afternoon tea only or require parents to supply a lunchbox of food for their child. You can find out what your local BestStart centres offer on the centre web pages on this site by going to the ‘what we are proud of’ section. 

Our centres differ in opening hours depending on the need of the families in the community they serve. You can see the opening hours of BestStart centres in your area by clicking into the relevant centre webpages.

BestStart communicates with parents through email, our myBestStart portal, phone calls and in-person discussions. We use the Storypark app to shares updates on your child’s learning and experiences and what is happening in centre. When children are getting closer to primary school age, centres host parent evenings to talk through our transition programme for children.

Transitioning to kindergarten prior to school is not necessary. BestStart follows the same curriculum as NZ kindergartens and tamariki join our excellent Set for School programme when they turn 4. We support school readiness through play-based learning linked to the school curriculum, making connections with local schools and partnering with parents to ensure children are supported through their school transition. 

In most centres, parents are required to drop off and pick up children as per their centre booking. We do offer van services in a small number of centres for families who would otherwise have difficulty getting their child to and from the centre. 

There are several factors influencing the cost of ECE to families, including the number of hours and days your child is enrolled. However each family has differing childcare needs and circumstances and our fees vary depending on these. We encourage families to discuss this with your local centre manager who can tailor a plan that will work for your family’s budget.

The government provides some free hours and childcare subsidies that you may be eligible for. Your BestStart centre manager can help you find out if you are eligible and provide information on how to apply or claim for these. 

• Children aged 3-5yrs receive 20 hours free ECE per week (if hours are attested to MoE), regardless of parents’ income levels.

• WINZ subsidies to low and middle income families are determined by income thresholds and family size along with the parent’s work, study or training activity.

• Family boost offers a 25% tax rebate on childcare expenses, up to a maximum of $75 per week. Families need to register and apply every three months, providing their ECE invoices for each period. BestStart provides a quarterly invoice to families to make the claim process smoother.

If your child may need additional learning support, please talk to the centre manager when you visit the centre so they can answer any questions. If you enrol, teachers work together with families as a team to build an individual learning plan. This may include additional learning supports to ensure your child thrives.