Heads-up | He kupu puaki#
Director of Regulation#
The Director of Regulation role has been established within the Ministry, to:
- oversee the issuing of licenses and monitoring and enforcing compliance, including by undertaking investigations and prosecutions, as appropriate
- provide information, and guidance to service providers, parents, caregivers and other interested parties, and lift understanding of what makes a good quality early childhood education experience.
Acting Group General Manager, Operational Standards and Support, Te Mahau Education Services Helen Hurst will act in the role until an appointment is made, anticipated later this month.
While the Director role starts within the Ministry of Education, the Government has announced its intention to transfer ECE regulatory functions, including this role, to the Education Review Office in 2026.
Existing licensing, monitoring and compliance processes remain in place through our regional offices. Your usual Ministry contact remains your go-to and can help with any questions you may have.
Ministry organisational update#
Our leadership structure has been updated as part of our ongoing efforts to strengthen the organisation and enhance service delivery. The new leadership structure took effect on 2 March. We do not anticipate any immediate changes to your key Ministry contact or how you work with us. More information can be found at:
Ministry organisational update
Clarification to website guidance on mattresses#
Thank you to those of you who contacted us to query guidance on mattress thickness.
After reviewing the guidance in liaison with Health New Zealand | Te Whatu Ora, we have removed reference to mattress thickness.
We appreciate your ongoing attention to detail and commitment to supporting safe sleep environments for children. You can find advice on safe sleeping to reduce risk of SUDI here:
SUDI (Sudden Unexpected Death of an Infant) – Health New Zealand
Early learning key documents and resources poster#
A new poster designed to help you to navigate key documents and resources that guide early learning has been developed in response to sector feedback and insights from the ECE Regulatory Review consultation.
This poster provides a clear overview of:
- documents services must know: Te Whāriki, licensing criteria, and the ECE regulations
- non-mandated resources on Tāhūrangi: Kōwhiti Whakapae, He Māpuna te Tamaiti, Te Kōrerorero, Te Whatū Pōkeka
- professional learning and cultural capability frameworks: Tātaiako, Tapasā, Leadership Capability Framework.
You can download the poster here:
Navigating key early learning documents with confidence – Tāhūrangi
For now, the poster is being made available online only, allowing us to update it easily if needed.
Kōwhiti Whakapae maths activity examples#
In September 2025, services received a package of printed Kōwhiti Whakapae resources. To support the use of the maths practice cards, activity examples have been developed.
These can be used with your teams or home-based educators and downloaded at:
Kōwhiti Whakapae printable resources – Tāhūrangi
If you did not receive a printed resources pack in September, these can be ordered from:
