‘Blooming Buds’ a tribute to early Croatian settlers in Waitakere
Venkat Raman
Auckland, April 19, 2019
A new Childcare Centre aiming to make a difference in Early Childhood Education has just been opened in West Auckland.
Located at 371-373 West Coast Road in Glen Eden, ‘Blooming Buds’ is the brainchild of Nomita and J P Singh, who have developed the property as ‘A Castle with a Café’ to pay homage to the memory of early Croatian settlers in Waitakere.
According to available information, European settlers began to arrive in the region in the 1830s and the first families from Dalmatia date back to the early 1900s.
Growing ethnicity
‘Blooming Buds’ compliments the growing ethnicity of the Glen Eden and West Auckland region, while the adjacent ‘Café Oro’ has a Mediterranean theme (see separate story).
Speaking at the official inaugural of ‘Blooming Buds’ on Saturday, April 13, 2019, Mr Singh described it as a ‘dream project,’ with challenges and anxieties.
“As well as incorporating a Childcare Centre and Café, this Croatian-themed Castle seeks to immortalise the memories of early settlers in the Waitakeres,” he said.
Mr Singh said that the new, purpose-built facility will provide day-care services in a secure environment with love and understanding.
Raising tomorrow’s citizens
“This is a place where infants, toddlers and pre-schoolers will be nurtured to flourish and grow towards becoming forward thinking and educated citizens of tomorrow. We place great emphasis on encouraging children in developing their social skills and aptitudes, thus, helping them to grow in confidence for the next big step in their lives,” he said.
National MPs Kanwaljit Singh Bakshi, Melissa Lee and Dr Parmjit Parmar were among the more 150 guests, including parents, teachers and businesspersons attended the opening ceremony.
Pleasant environment
Reetu Passi, the Centre’s Director and Manager, said that safety, respect and progress are the hallmarks of ‘Blooming Buds,’ designed to enhance the learning experience of children.
“Our teachers are friendly and approachable and go out of their way to maintain strong relationships with the children, their families and whānau. Every child at our Centre will be an integral part of our personalised and customised care system and a well-knit, stable and passionate team. All of us are excited to be a part of the ‘Blooming Buds’ family in our amazing castle!” she said.
The Age Groups
Children at ‘Blooming Buds’ are categorised into three age groups, namely, ‘Under 2 years,’ ‘Toddlers’ (2 to 3 years) and ‘Pre-Schoolers’ (3 to 5 years).
“Preschool is an age where a child progresses through their final preparation before Primary School. At this stage, we focus on providing them with all the tools that they will need to be confident and curious learners and be ready to engage with larger numbers of children in a more formal setting,” Ms Passi said.
Manoj Kumar Passi and Smeet Girish, who are also Directors of the Centre, said that the objectives of ‘Blooming Buds’ are to promote the independence and active participation of children, develop their creativity, critical thinking and problem-solving skills and facilitate an easy and stress free transition to school.
“We foster strong partnership with families to create high quality outcomes for our children and our core values include honesty, integrity, accountability and transparency,” they said.
About Early Childhood Centres
While Early Childhood Centres have the freedom to operate various services, they are obliged to follow a rigid compliance regime, central to which are principles of safety, health, comfort and care of children. All Centres must be licensed which are renewed after an annual review and audit by the Education Ministry. Licensed Centres qualify for government funding.
“It is the role of the Ministry to oversee and support early learning services, as they empower young children to become competent and confident learners and communicators, healthy in mind, body and spirit, secure in their sense of belonging and in the knowledge that they make a valued contribution to society,” a Ministry notification said.
