Safe, high-quality nature-based ECE needs a clear pathway in Aotearoa.

Primary hashtag: #MakeRoomForNatureKindy

Secondary: #SaveNatureKindy

We are asking the Government to:

Create a clear licensing pathway for safe, high-quality nature-based early childhood education in Aotearoa.

This campaign is not asking every centre to become a nature kindy. It is asking for provision, so families and providers who want safe, high-quality nature-based ECE have a clear pathway.

Make room for Nature Kindergarten. Make room for nature-based ECE.

#MakeRoomForNatureKindy

Nature-based ECE needs a clear licensing pathway.

Current ECE licensing settings are built around fixed premises, indoor space and centre-based provision. These rules make sense for traditional centre-based provision, but they do not provide a dedicated pathway for an early childhood service where the outdoor environment is the normal place of learning.

At the moment, centres can run nature days, bush kindy sessions and outdoor programmes as excursions from a licensed centre.

But that is different from being able to establish a primarily nature-based early childhood service in its own right.

A clear pathway should keep strong safeguards in place, including:

• qualified teachers and skilled adults
• supervision structures
• risk management
• health and safety
• Te Whāriki
• parent communication
• emergency planning
• suitable outdoor learning environments
• Ministry oversight and accountability

Good regulation should protect children and support quality.

It should not shut the door on outdoor learning simply because the model does not look like a traditional indoor centre.

Nature-based learning supports movement, play, confidence, resilience, curiosity, relationships, wellbeing and connection to place. Children learn through movement, play, exploration, risk, imagination, relationships and connection to te taiao. For many tamariki, this is where they thrive.

Aotearoa values the outdoors. Our education system should be able to make room for safe, high-quality learning in nature, too. We are not asking for less safety. We are asking for a better fit.

In 2019, a submission and petition were brought to Parliament asking for a clear pathway for bush kindy, forest school and nature-based early childhood education.

There was cross-party support at the time, but MPs changed, key people left Parliament, COVID hit, and the work lost momentum.

Since then, nature-based learning has continued to grow across Aotearoa.

Many ECE centres now run nature days, bush kindy sessions and outdoor programmes as excursions from licensed centres. Other providers offer forest school, outdoor classrooms, nature play and outdoor learning through community, private, school-based and charitable models.

There is clearly demand from families, educators and communities.

What is still missing is a clear pathway for primarily nature-based early childhood education.

Is this about safety?

No. Nature-based ECE can be delivered safely and well, with qualified teachers, required ratios, risk management and incident reporting. The issue is that the current licensing system does not have a clear place for nature-based ECE.

Why does nature-based ECE need a different pathway?

The current rules are built around fixed buildings, indoor space and centre-based premises. Nature-based programmes deliver early childhood education outdoors, so they do not fit neatly into a system designed for indoor centres. A clear pathway would let these programmes operate safely, legally and confidently.

Why can’t providers just use the existing centre licence?

Some providers do run nature days or outdoor programmes from a licensed centre, usually as excursions. But the existing centre-based licence is still built around fixed premises, including indoor space requirements such as 2.5 square metres per child. That does not fit cleanly when the normal learning environment is outdoors.

There is currently no dedicated pathway for a full-time or primarily nature-based early childhood service, where the outdoor environment is the main place of learning rather than an occasional excursion from an indoor centre.

A dedicated pathway would make expectations clearer for providers, families and the Ministry. It would also bring Aotearoa more in line with international practice, where nature and forest kindergarten models have already been recognised in different ways.

Is this just about one private provider?

No. The Play and Learn situation has brought the issue into focus, but the bigger question is whether Aotearoa will make room for nature-based ECE at all. Many families and educators value bush kindy, forest school, nature play and outdoor early learning. The system needs a pathway that can support this safely and properly.

Are children still getting the early childhood curriculum?

Yes. High-quality nature-based ECE is still early childhood education. It can include qualified teachers, Te Whāriki, planning, assessment, relationships with whānau, and rich learning through play, exploration and connection to place.

Is nature kindy just childcare in a park?

No. Nature kindy is education, outdoors. The setting is different, but the learning is deep. Children are learning through movement, relationships, risk, imagination, observation, care for the environment and connection to te taiao.

What exactly are you asking the Government to do?

We are asking the Government to create a clear licensing pathway for safe, high-quality nature-based early childhood education in Aotearoa. This would protect children, support families, give providers clear expectations, and allow nature-based ECE to operate properly.

Why does this matter for Aotearoa?

Internationally, nature and forest kindergarten models are well recognised, and many countries have found ways to provide for early childhood education where the outdoor environment is the main place of learning. New Zealand has not.

Here, nature-based ECE still has to fit around rules designed for indoor, centre-based provision. That means there is no clear pathway for a full-time or primarily nature-based early childhood service.

This matters because Aotearoa places huge value on the outdoor environment. We see this in the way communities speak up for conservation land, public access, parks, reserves and wild places. More than 24,000 people submitted on the Conservation Amendment Bill, because they value our outdoor environments.

That same value should be reflected in our education system. If we believe connection to nature matters, then early childhood regulations should make room for safe, high-quality learning in nature too.

Do other countries provide for nature-based early childhood education?

Yes. Internationally, nature and forest kindergarten models are well recognised, and many places have found ways to support early childhood education where the outdoor environment is a regular or central place of learning.

Different countries do this in different ways. Some have specific licensing pathways, some have outdoor nursery models, and others support bush kinder, forest school or outdoor early learning through guidance, funding or regulation.

New Zealand has not yet created a clear pathway for full-time or primarily nature-based ECE.

That is the gap.

What can families and supporters do?

You can help in two ways.

First, support the immediate Play and Learn / Nature Kindergarten situation by attending the 24 July event and sharing your Nature Kindergarten story.

Second, support the wider campaign for change by writing to your MP, completing the provider survey if relevant, sharing your story and sharing the campaign.

Use: #MakeRoomForNatureKindy

2018 Full Submission to Parliament

Information about the previous work calling for a clear licence pathway for bush kindergartens, forest kindergartens and nature-based ECE.

Key Regulatory References

• Education (Early Childhood Services) Regulations 2008, Regulation 45 and Schedule 4
• Ministry of Education: Indoor activity areas
• Ministry of Education: Premises and facilities for centre-based ECE services