We have had an excellent first term. Thank you for the support of your children, their learning and the events we have had.

Talofa lava, Malo e lelei, Kia ora whānau

In the past week we have had some very special guests and learning opportunities. We had Hamish Kerr, the Olympian, talk to our middle and senior school before the duathlon. He was most inspirational, I was also most impressed with how well our students pushed themselves to achieve in the duathlon.

The whānau hui was a great night. Thank you to all who attended and gave us your feedback. As a result we are planning a Waitākiri School Kapa Haka Festival, where all three of our Kapa Haka groups will perform. The fire poi after the whānau hui and the following night was pretty amazing too.

I would like to thank the PTA for organising the disco last Friday night. It was a huge success with the students and they raised $3,500. On Monday we had an ‘Opera in Schools’ performance and today we have a Top Team event as reward for superb behaviour throughout the term. Once again thank you to the many parents who have helped out. I would also like to thank the many staff that have put in a lot of extra time and effort to organise these events for the students and community. We are fortunate to have staff who are happy to go above and beyond the call for duty.

Unfortunately, the teachers and principal union have not been able to settle with the government. There has not even been an acceptable offer made. This is really important not just for our teachers but also for our children. There have been many changes in our society and changes to our schools in the past 25 years or so. But staffing in our primary schools has not kept up to ensure all of our children are able to reach their full potential. At Waitākiri we are fortunate to have additional funding through our OSCAR programme and international students and can afford many more learning assistants than other schools. We should not have to fund these ourselves. Staffing in primary schools just needs to be better, we have up to 30% less staff than in secondary schools. I hope no more strikes are needed!!

Our Board of Trustees is looking for an accountant to join the Board for a fixed term period, to assist with the new swimming pool finances and cyclical maintenance. If there is anyone who would be able to assist in this position please contact me at principal@waitakiri.school.nz

Next term I am off on a sabbatical. Dianna Reynolds and Jacqui Malham will be sharing the role of Acting Principal in my absence. I’m really looking forward to the time to reflect, recharge and study. During this time I will train in coaching and mentoring. I am investigating what effective mentoring is and how we can create the best environment for mentoring to flourish, thus creating better outcomes for staff and students.

We have also had many sporting successes during the term with students representing us at the Canterbury Swimming Sports and Triathlon. Both our senior girls cricket teams went through a recent tournament without losing a game. The year six team won the final in a real thriller.

Have a wonderful Easter and school holiday break with your whānau. A reminder that term 2 starts back on Wednesday 26 April (after ANZAC Day). School will be closed on Monday 24 April.

Take care and have a safe holiday break.

Ngā mihi nui

Andrew Barker

Principal