Jenny's Update

I'm so sorry I was unable to make it to this year's AGM due to a family bereavement - it is always such a special event, and one that epitomises and celebrates all that is Kidsfirst. It's one of the only times of the year that we all get together in one place, and I was sad to have missed it, and all of you. 

As always, the #BetterBecause Values Awards created a lot of buzz. The judging panel was very impressed with both the quantity and quality of the entries. The awards grow in popularity each year, and I would encourage you to start thinking now about projects you might be doing or planning that could be good for an entry next year. As well as celebrating excellence, it's a great way to come together as a team, showcase the great work you are doing, and share your wonderful mahi across the network. 

Thanks for all your efforts to increase Child Funded Hours, they're making a difference that we can see in the numbers, and despite the Covid dip, we are tracking well above last year. 

Here are our star performers for the month of June, using more than 95% of their maximum child funded hours:

Alexandra            96.87

Belfast                 96.90

Burnham              96.19

Cashmere            97.61

Cotswold             96.87

Hargest                95.18

Hawea                 99.84

Hei Hei                 96.19

King St                  98.13

Mairehau             97.84

Northcote           98.89

South Brighton   95.77

Sumner                96.55

Templeton          97.08

The Bays              96.73

Wales St              99.22

Woolley St          97.02

This is fantastic work, especially seeing some of the kindergartens who have struggled in the past sitting in this list. Ka mau te wehi – awesome!

I'm also loving seeing so much pro-activity across the network right now, with stories in local community newspapers, other organisations sharing our posts or information about events, and even teaching teams promoting events through their own personal Facebook pages. Every little bit of local promotion counts, and after eighteen months now of working closely with our Focus kindergartens who are very active in these ways, we know that: 

• Kindergartens that make the most of the raised brand profile we are achieving (Google and Facebook ads, Mall Doors) by taking the initiative locally, grow their rolls and wait-lists faster

• The templated, individual kindergarten promotional materials that are available to you on the shared drive make the job easier for your team, get the messages across effectively and consistently and help ensure that the Kidsfirst brand is used appropriately

We need to be very careful with messaging to ensure that any material you are using does not breach Commerce Commission guidelines.

Please use the templated material whenever possible, and if you're thinking about creating something new, email it to me for review before distribution. If you're looking to promote an event we're already promoting on Facebook, you can share the event or post directly from there, rather than creating something new. 

Keep the ideas coming!