Northern Manawatu Community ‘Relieved’ And ‘Excited’ As ECE Centre Provision Retained

Families in the northern Manawatu who faced losing their early childhood centre say they are “relieved” and “excited” that a new kindergarten will soon open in its place.

Last Friday, the board of Whānau Manaaki Kindergartens confirmed it would open a Kimbolton Kindergarten in the coming weeks. This follows the Ruahine Kindergarten Association’s decision to permanently shut the Kimbolton Early learning Centre on 30 August, citing low attendance.

Whānau Manaaki is a not-for-profit that already operates a homebased service as well as 108 kindergartens across the country,

The organisation met with passionate families from Kimbolton and surrounds who were trying to find solutions to keep the centre open, so that local children could continue having access to quality ECE. With the support of the wider community, and the guidance of the Ministry of Education, Whānau Manaaki are working to open the new kindergarten as soon as possible.

One of the parents, Georgia Jenkins, who was part of a group of parents who advocated for the centre to stay open, said she was relieved with the outcome.

“It comes as a huge relief... the closure of the early learning centre meant that many local children would not have had access to ECE as parents couldn’t travel further to attend other services. Whānau Manaaki have really understood the realities of country life, and the need to keep rural early childhood education alive”.

Whānau Manaaki Board Chair, Martin Robinson, said the Board was concerned when they read about the Early Learning Centre’s imminent closure.

“Kindergarten has a proud 120+ year old history of being nestled in local communities. This means rural communities as well. The challenges of running ECE centres, particularly in rural communities are significant, but rural communities should not go without. Our Board is made up of parents, whānau, and kindergarten staff, so we understand the pressures on families. We want to do everything we can to maintain a service in Kimbolton – we have great community support, so let’s give it a go!"

Whānau Manaaki also operate kindergartens in Taihape, and Shannon and he says the board are looking forward to adding Kimbolton Kindergarten to the network.

Local parent Rosie Edwards says parents, the community and Whānau Manaaki will all work in partnership to ensure the success of the new kindergarten.

“We are really excited to be working alongside Whānau Manaaki to establish this kindergarten. Our community has been 100% behind us in finding a solution because quality ECE not only provides a strong foundation for education, but in an area like ours it provides connection and a place of belonging for young families too”.

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