West End Kindergarten is situated beside West End Park in the suburb of Highfield and offers a well-established and park-like setting where tamariki are empowered to be confident, competent, and capable tamariki with mana through learning ā tōna wā | in their own time.

Ka whāngaia, ka tipu, ka pūawai 

Nurture it, it will grow, then blossom!

West End Kindergarten caters to tamariki aged 4 months to 5 years of age and our two areas have been intentionally named Ruawai |young flax plant and Harakeke |established flax plant to symbolise the growth that occurs over time and with nourishment from the surroundings.

Our Moemoea ‘Growing confident, competent and capable tamariki with mana through learning ā tōna wā | in their own time’ and curriculum priorities Ako, Manaakitanga and Whanaungatanga are what we pride ourselves on and are the learning areas that we value most at our kindergarten.

Ako looks like being curious, resilient, developing leadership skills, being able to communicate, having fun and problem solving. Ako represents a reciprocal non-hierarchical relationship between learner and learner/learner and kaiako, and recognises the knowledge and experiences each person brings to shared learning.

Manaakitanga is all about kindness, being friendly, inclusive, empathetic, helping others, being respectful and environmentally aware. We pride ourselves on providing an inclusive environment where our programme is responsive to the needs of our community and encourages tamariki to learn with and alongside their peers. We are also an Enviroschool and through mahi tahi | working together with our tamariki and whānau we are making progress in reducing, reusing, and recycling.

Whanaungatanga looks like independence, having a good sense of self, confidence, happiness, social and emotional competence, mahi tahi |working together and having coherent transitions within our kindergarten and to kura. Whanaungatanga is also about tamariki and whānau developing collaborative, trusting, and reciprocal relationships with others, as we know that this is vital in supporting tamariki to learn and grow.

We look forward to you joining our kindergarten whānau as we embark on a learning journey together.

Situated at 34 Kiwi Drive, West End TIMARU

Phone: (03) 684 3996

Cell phone (txt messages): 0273 129 982

Email: westend.kindergarten@sck.nz

Hours: Monday to Friday –  7.45am - 5.15pm                                                                                                                                           

Whānau comments:

“We love West End Kindergarten! It’s the perfect setting for my boys who love getting out into nature, the trees, bike track and water play!!  The Teachers are just fantastic and my boys look forward to seeing them everyday. We’ve been going to West End Kindergarten for 4 years now and will be there for another 4 and we couldn’t be happier!”  

"I just wanted to send a quick email to let you know how much I appreciate how easy this transition to Kindy has been for my son and myself. I already knew the team was awesome at West End after being there multiple times with his brother. But I am truly amazed & appreciative of how kind & caring everyone has been! So helpful, the phone calls to let me know he is doing well! I truly couldn’t ask for anything more for my son. Thank you again so much!”

“When a parent doesn’t have to worry about their child being on the care of someone else it really is the biggest compliment my husband and I could give to West End Kindergarten!"

"My son and I have strolled past West End Kindergarten since he was a new born and when the day came that we saw they were opening up a under twos room I just knew that’s where he belonged. He was craving adventure, company of his own age group, challenges, experiences, outdoor time regardless of the weather and to be surrounded by wonderful teachers who know what he needs.  Since attending our son has just gone from strength to strength. His language has just exploded. His skills and interests have flourished. His personality which was already larger than life has really come into his own in a way that a parent can only but smile at and be so proud".

"The teachers at West End really truly care not only for your child but for the family. My son gets so excited for his Kindy days and when we arrive he runs in and doesn’t look back. My husband said to me tonight on showing him the amazing updates that we get at the end of the week showing our son engaging in water play, in the sandpit with the diggers and spades, playing with his friends and having the time of his life “Our son going to West End was really the best thing to ever happen” and I completely and wholeheartedly agree".