Kindergartens Aotearoa, the collective representing 365 kindergartens and other early childhood services, congratulates Chris Hipkins on being reappointed Education Minister along with his other new responsibilities.

Spokesperson Pauline Winter who heads the Auckland Kindergarten Association says Chris Hipkins has been a committed and talented minister who has a good understanding of the importance of early childhood education.

The kindergarten movement appreciates his work to prioritise early childhood education within his portfolio, and his commitment to keeping the last government’s promise to restore funding for qualified teachers, even in the midst of a global pandemic.

We look forward to working with minister Hipkins to implement the early learning action plan, He Taonga te Tamaiti - Every Child a taonga.

There is much work to do, to improve the standard of services across the sector, to better meet the needs of children and families and to offer professional pay and conditions to teachers outside of kindergarten who are currently paid much less than kindergarten teachers.

“We know that Chris Hipkins is an ideal minister to build on the work begun in the last term: says Pauline.

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