Bombay

Our Philosophy is: “To provide a safe, caring environment for our children to play and learn, for our whanau to find friendship and support, growing together as part of the Bombay Community”

What’s It All About?
Playcentre is a parent-run co-operative which means that the adults all contribute in some way to the running of the centre. A key difference between Playcentre and other ECEs is that parents stay with children on general sessions. The Playcentre philosophy is based on the idea of parents as the best educators for children. Our motto is “Whanau tupu Ngatahi – families growing together” and there are many opportunities for you to learn alongside your child/ren at Playcentre. We also welcome grandparents and home based caregivers.

How Does It Work?
Sessions run from 9am to 12noon. The group sets up together at 9am and cleans up together from 11.30am. We supervise and support the children’s play as a team. Play is child initiated and Playcentre philosophy is that children learn best through free play. We bring lots of changes of clothes for children and dress for messy play ourselves. Children bring individual lunch boxes for morning tea at 10am and we take turns to provide morning tea for adults.

General sessions (for all ages 0-6) are Monday, Wednesday, and Friday 9am-12noon.

Termly Donation: $30 per child to attend as many general sessions per week as you wish. Under one’s are free. $40 per child per Bumblebee session attended, eg $40 per term to attend all Tuesday Bumblebee sessions.

What Will My Family Get Out Of It?
We are lucky at Bombay to have a wonderful environment, richly resourced, with lots of amazing learning opportunities for children. On top of that we are a friendly centre that enjoys lots of social activities outside of Playcentre. Bombay Playcentre is a place where we find friendship and support as parents/caregivers as well as a place where we can spend quality time with our children.

At Playcentre, early childhood education is a shared journey. We value parents as the first and best educators for their tamariki, which is why parents attend alongside their tamariki – to play, learn and grow together.

Whether you have a new pēpī, preschooler, or are new to a community, Playcentre provides a place for whānau and communities to come together.

If you care for tamariki aged 0-6, we invite you to visit and experience our affordable, unique, and child-led environment. Our centres encourage learning through free play and nurture imagination, confidence, and connection.

Some Playcentres also offer more specialised sessions where there is a real focus on the needs of newborns to 1 year olds, as well as the support and friendship of other new parents. Find out more about our Infant Programmes.

Our licensed early learning centres follow the Ministry of Education’s world-leading bicultural curriculum, Te Whāriki, offering 16 different areas of play set up to cater for different interests, skills, ages and abilities.

We also provide a free, NZQA-approved, adult education programme for enrolled whānau to add practical strategies and skills to your parenting toolbox.

We offer three visits before you enrol. Arrange a visit today and experience our supportive, fun and friendly community for yourself!