Kia ora koutou,

He aha te mea nui o te ao? He tangata, he tangata, he tangata; What is the most important thing in the world? It is people, it is people, it is people.

As with many of us across the motu this week, my thoughts have been dominated by the tragedy in Whangārei, and I feel deeply for Karnin Petera’s whānau and their community. It has been said many times, no taitamaiti (child) should ever go to school and not come home again. Incidents like this inevitably make you reflect on what is important and what you have to feel grateful for. It is easy to get caught up in deadlines you have missed and tasks you need to get done, and it is important to remember and reflect on what really counts.

I’m grateful for many things in my life. I am tremendously grateful that I can count wholeheartedly on my whānau being there for me when I need them, even from afar. I’m grateful for a team of kaimahi (staff) who care so deeply and genuinely for the learning and wellbeing of our ākonga, and for a school community who support and connect with us so well. Above all else, I’m grateful that our tamariki come to school each day with such joy and curiosity about the world, and that, no matter how tough it gets at times, they keep us smiling. I want to keep this at the forefront for myself going forwards. 

Staffing updates

We have several updates around staffing.

- Harakeke Hub: We have been through a prolonged appointment process for our fifth whānau teacher in Harakeke to replace Jingwen who left earlier in Term 1. After two appointment rounds and working with a recruitment agency, we have been unable to appoint a kaiako of suitable quality and experience in our ways of working. As such, Kirat Singh will move into this kaiako role for the rest of this year. Kirat has been a very valued hub teacher for a number of years at Amesbury, and this year she took over the full time ELL (English Language Learner) position. Kirat has been working in Harakeke Hub extensively this year already, and knows the team and ākonga very well. We are really grateful for Kirat's flexibility and her willingness to shift roles.

Jenny King will take over the ELL role for two days per week. We will continue to connect with the recruitment agency we have been working with, and we will always be on the lookout for high quality kaiako.

- Lisa Bengtsson: Lisa has been granted a year’s leave from Amesbury School. As we have previously communicated with you, Lisa and her whānau have always held plans to move to Sweden, as Lisa and Magnus’s tamariki are both Kiwi and Swedish. They were originally looking at moving to Sweden for longer, but their plans are now for a one year stay.

Lisa has been at Amesbury School since our opening in 2012, and she is a treasured member of the team. As such, the School Board has granted her a year’s leave from her teaching position. The timing of Lisa’s leave is flexible at this point, as it is dependent on visa applications, although it is looking likely at this point that Lisa’s leave will take place early next year.

Netsafe online safety parent session

We have arranged for Netsafe to run a teacher session and a separate parent session with us around ways we can support our tamariki to be safe online. Thanks to those of you who have already replied to confirm you will be attending this session. Unfortunately, Netsafe has had a staffing issue crop up for them, and they need to postpone these sessions. They will still be coming to work with us, but it will happen either later this term or early next term. I will send out further information about this once we have confirmed new dates with them.

Have a lovely weekend, and enjoy time with whānau and friends.

Ngā mihi nui, 

Urs Cunningham