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To: New Zealand Government

Put Children First - Improve ECE Safety, Quality, and Accountability

Early Childhood Education Parents' Council

We're closing the petition as many of the 'reforms' have happened despite these not being in the best interests of our children and families.

We are working hard to get a voice for parents at the table in early childhood education. It's proving to be very hard and an upward battle - your ongoing support is vital.

Please keep in touch and if you can help in any way, we'd love to hear from you.

We'll post updates on our homepage at https://www.myece.org.nz/ece-parents-council/
All parents and caregivers are invited to join the ECE Parents' Council. You may also like to follow our Facebook page for discussions and updates: https://www.facebook.com/MyECE.NZ

We call on the Prime Minister, ministers of finance and education and the House of Representatives to immediately halt the regulatory reforms and the funding review, and commit to keeping our kids safe, supported, and learning in high-quality ECE.

  1. Press pause on all regulatory and policy changes  — Suspend changes until their effects on children are fully evaluated and parents are properly consulted.

  2. Put children first  — Assess how every change will affect them before moving ahead.

  3. Be open about costs — If services receive public money, ensure families can easily compare fees and understand cost increases.

  4. Keep teaching standards strong — Protect and strengthen requirements so our kids are taught and cared for by more ECE qualified people, not fewer.

  5. Introduce annual spot-check inspections of services — Carry out regular inspections  so we can trust what is happening behind closed doors.

  6. Operate in partnership with parents — Ensure services involve parents and families in decisions that affect their children.

  7. Give parents a voice  — Require  government agencies and ministers to include our parent representatives on every ECE advisory group and related consultations on funding and policy.

Join parents, grandparents, caregivers, aunties and uncles across Aotearoa NZ calling on the Government to keep early childhood education safe, high-quality, and focused on our kids.

Why is this important?

Every family deserves to know their child is safe, nurtured, and receiving high-quality education the moment they walk through the doors of any licensed early childhood service.

Yet, the Government is swinging a wrecking ball through early childhood education — slashing essential regulatory requirements and rushing through a wave of potentially harmful changes under urgency. 

These reforms put profit motives and the interests of service providers ahead of children and weaken the safeguards that give parents and caregivers trust and peace of mind. 

Let’s remind the Prime Minister, ministers of finance and education, the House of Representatives and the world that we don’t cut corners on our kids no matter what. Not here in Aotearoa. Not ever…
 
 👉 See our full article on why this petition is necessary
 👉 Follow our Facebook page for updates

Sign the petition and tell the Government:
  • Put children first ❤️ 
  • Stop harmful ECE reforms  
  • Strengthen safety, quality, and accountability now!

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Links

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Updates

2026-10-22 10:55:31 +1300

Petition is successful with 1,933 signatures

2025-11-18 22:48:36 +1300

1,000 signatures reached

2025-11-11 19:31:07 +1300

500 signatures reached

2025-11-10 19:52:42 +1300

100 signatures reached

2025-11-10 08:46:59 +1300

50 signatures reached

2025-11-09 21:54:18 +1300

25 signatures reached

2025-11-09 20:01:42 +1300

10 signatures reached