A public health specialist is backing plans to raise the minimum temperature in early childhood centres, saying it will reduce the spread of viruses.
File photo. Photo: RNZ Pacific/Koroi Hawkins
Ministerial papers show the Labour-NZ First government instructed the Education Ministry to consult on increasing the minimum temperature from 16C to 18C and the ministry said it is now talking to sector leaders about it.
The documents said 16C had been set as the minimum because indoor temperatures fluctuated as children went in and out of doors during the day, but now the government wanted to meet World Health Organisation guidelines.
Mike Bedford has been lobbying for an increase for several years after studying indoor temperatures at several Hutt Valley early learning services.
He said his research found 90 percent of the centres did not reach even 16C during the winter and many would struggle to comply with a higher minimum temperature requirement because their heating systems heated the air, rather than surfaces.
"Heat pumps heat the air and they do it by trying to force air downwards. Now, when you've got most of your population in the room being less than a metre tall then the heat doesn't get to those lower levels of the room so you end up with very warm early childhood teachers and cold children. Then, you open the doors and that warm air rushes out - very inefficient."
He said early learning centres would be better off with infra-red heaters that warmed objects and surfaces so heat was not lost when doors were opened.
However, Bedford said some centres might need financial help to change their heating systems.
"If the ministry just puts in 18 degrees and doesn't assist with proper technology for heating, the centres simply won't achieve it," he said.
Maintaining a higher temperature would make a big difference, he said.
"The result should be a reduction in infections. Viruses will die off faster in warmer temperatures," he said.
Bedford said that was why the ministry raised the minimum temperature to 18C during Covid alert level 3 earlier this year.
He said if the ministry increased the minimum temperature, it would need to monitor centres to make sure they were observing it.
Amanda Coulston from Whanau Manaaki, the Wellington region kindergarten association, said the increase was doable, but teachers would have to be careful.
"We had to increase the minimum temperature during the Covid alert levels and we managed to do that. The big issue I would have is just ensuring that [teacher] teams just ensured an indoor-outdoor flow and didn't become confused about children not being allowed to go outside because it was less than 18 degrees," she said.
Coulston said kindergartens monitored indoor temperatures, especially in rooms where there were babies and toddlers.
She said the ministry would have to provide good guidelines and be reasonable in its application of the rules.
"Sometimes what happens with regulations is people become risk averse and then they misinterpret," she said.
Early childhood centre owner Maria Johnson said the minimum temperature should be whatever was safest for children.
"If all of the research shows that 18 degrees is the best temperature for children then I think it's good that we adhere to that," she said.
But Johnson said teachers might have trouble managing children's movement between indoor and outdoor play areas.
"Centres are going to have to look at how they are going to accommodate the indoor-outdoor flow but not have all the doors open so that the heating rushes outside and they're unable to pay these excessive heating bills," she said.
Johnson said centres would need time to adjust to any change in the regulations.
"It comes on the end of a very difficult year with the economy and everything that's going on," she said.
"They need to really listen to the sector about what is feasible, especially in terms of that indoor-outdoor flow."
Johnson said some centres might need to replace their heating systems and they would need time to do that, especially as some were in a difficult financial position.
One of the biggest chains of early learning centres, Best Start, said it was happy with a move to 18C but noted potential difficulties.
"Doors to the outside playground do need to stay open and is a Ministry of Education requirement. There are inherent difficulties keeping heat to internal spaces once doors to the outside are open," it said.
Early Childhood Council chief executive Peter Reynolds said the proposed change seemed reasonable.
"There are some issues and some debate about the workability of that but in general if it's going to keep children safer you'll find most childcare centres would be comfortable with it," he said.
"It only seems like two degrees but there is an additional cost factor involved in that but nevertheless, in principle, we would agree."
The Education Ministry's deputy secretary sector enablement and support, Katrina Casey, said it was talking to the early childhood sector about making permanent the temporary alert level 3 increase to 18C.
She said if the increase went ahead, all licensed early learning services would have to comply.
However, she indicated the ministry would not itself be actively monitoring compliance.
"The change in minimum temperature would become part of our licensing criteria which must be met before we grant new licences. Where concerns are raised with us, we are responsible for ensuring service providers are complying with all the regulatory requirements," Casey said.
She said the Education Review Office also had a role in reviewing and reporting on compliance with licensing criteria.