Ngā mihi nui ki a koutou katoa. Kia ora, Hello, Talofa, Mālō e lelei, Bula, Hola, Fakaalofa atu, As Salam Alaykom, こんにちは, Hallo, Hoy, હ લ ો, Hē leu, Mauri, न म त, Ola , Chum reap suor, Kumusta, Nihao, Xin chào.

Kia ora koutou te whanau

Thank you to everyone who attended the school goal setting interviews last night and to those who will be attending tonight. It is great to see parents making connections with our teachers and having discussions about the learning goals of our tamariki. If you did not get a chance to attend, please take the time to pop in and make contact with your child’s teacher and/or email the office to set up an alternative meeting time. Thank you also to those who attended the Back to School BBQ and the Big Day Back Bash! Both events were nice and relaxed and were an opportunity for connections to be made between home and school.

Camps and Education Outside the Classroom is FREE in 2020

We have entered into the government’s school donations grant this year, so we have received a large amount of extra income that we are using to make all school camps, trips and education outside the classroom experiences free for the year. This is great news and will help parents with their budgets! Please note though, that you must still sign all permission slips and forms etc for each trip.

Condolences

Our sincerest sympathies go out to Aaron Taylor (R10 teacher) whose step father passed away this week and to Caroline Vercoe (R4 Teacher) whose sister also passed away this week. We are all thinking of you both and your families at this sad time.

Canterbury Earthquake Memorial

On Saturday we mark the anniversary of the devastating earthquake that changed our lives forever. This is an important day for us to reflect on and look at how far we have come. We have been on an astonishing journey and faced many challenges together. Thank you!

There are events to commemorate those we lost; and places where the communities can come together to reflect and remember including a public civic service at the Oi Manawa Canterbury Earthquake National Memorial. The service begins at 12.30pm, Saturday 22 February, on the north bank of the Memorial site, on the corner of Montreal Street and Cambridge Terrace in the central city.

Where and when other earthquake commemorations are taking place can be found here.

Board of Trustees Update # 1

At our first meeting of the new year, Julie Batstone was re-elected as the Board Chairperson. We are currently finalising the review of last year's achievement data and updating our charter, strategic plan and annual targets for 2020. We will share these with the school community when they are confirmed. At the end of last year, Sharon McKeeman resigned from the Board. She has been on the board for over a decade and both of her two daughters went through Riccarton Primary are now at University. We would like to thank Sharon for her amazing service and wish her the very best for the future. We will get Sharon in for a farewell morning tea soon!

Our current board is Julie Batstone, Hamish Barclay, Vivian McFie, Tufulasi Taleni, Caroline Vercoe (Staff Rep) and Damien Riddell.

Update on Christchurch School Rebuild Process

As you are aware, we are currently in the Christchurch Schools' Rebuild Process. So what is happening and what will we see occur during this year and into next year?

We are currently completing the Master Planning Stage. Due to the complexities and expanding costs of our build, the Ministry of Education has asked to see four options planned and estimated for cost. These will be presented to the Ministry of Education in Wellington in late March. One of these options will be approved.

Following this, we will enter Stage 2 - the Design Stage: 2-3 months where detailed drawings will be developed for the actual build. This is an exciting stage.

Stage 3 is the construction stage: This is looking likely to be the end of this year / start of next year. We will show you plans when they have been approved.

Some more good news is that the government granted $212,000 to us last year for additional building projects, so we will be progressing with the new playground build, updated basketball court and relining of the pool this year. Watch this space!

Have a fantastic week and please encourage your children to be respectful, responsible, real learners.

Ngā mihi nui

Paul Irving

Tumuaki - Principal