Rethinking childcare options
Kelly Healey has noticed a change in how parents and educators are thinking about early childhood education as a result of COVID-19.
“People are reconsidering their options – especially those who have children or whānau members with underlying health conditions, like asthma.”
Kelly used to teach in a large childcare centre but now works with home-based educators who care for up to four children at a time. She thinks the small numbers in home-based care settings is a major appeal for parents and teachers.
“Teachers are concerned around going back – it [COVID-19] has made them realise the risk they take each day. I also think they want smaller groups and more one-on-one time with the children.”
MOE Selected Provider
Stacey Dunn’s phone has been ringing ‘off the hook’ since lockdown began. Stacey is a Senior Leader for Edubase (which operates the brands Home Grown Kids and Kids at Home). We were among the small handful of Early Childhood Education providers that were allowed to be included in the ‘bubbles’ of essential workers during Alert Level 4.
“I think the fact that we were considered the safest in the ECE sector to provide care during complete lockdown shows the Ministry of Education consider our environments to be able to be effectively managed in hygiene routines and by their very nature, less risk due to small numbers with our 1:4 ratio.”
“There’s a real opportunity for teachers to explore the realities of a new ‘normal’ and what they are prepared to compromise on in their work/life balance.”
Has your ECE career been affected by the COVID-19 pandemic?
Since the pandemic began our team have been working with some amazing new teachers, many of whom have registered their interest in providing ongoing ECE to children through home-based care.
We have experienced a surge in enquiries as parents are simply not prepared expose their children to the heightened risk that comes with being part of large group settings any more.
We’re looking to recruit both qualified and unqualified teachers to meet this increased demand.
Are you reassessing your current career choices?
- Prior to lockdown how much were you spending a week on child care fees including ECE and afterschool care?
- What were your weekly costs for fuel, parking, public transport, running costs?
- How much time did you spend in the car/traffic doing drop offs and pickups in the mornings and afternoons?
- How did all of that impact your work/life balance?
- Do you or a whānau member have an underlying health issue and want to reduce your own risk?
By becoming an Educator who works from your own home, these concerns become obsolete.
