ERO missed multiple rules breaches at ECE service

Documents show the Education Review Office was poised to give a positive report to an early childhood service the Education Ministry wanted to shut down due to multiple rules breaches. The ministry had found problems with safety checking, police vetting and supervision of caregivers at the un-named home-based service in March last year, but the review office had found no areas of non-compliance in visits to some of the homes in April. Early childhood researcher and advocate Sarah Alexander told our education correspondent, John Gerritsen, she compared review office and ministry reports several years ago and found conflicting outcomes.