Nga mihi nui kia koutou katoa. Welcome to the Westland High School September newsletter.

This year Westland High School staff have and continue to put in a huge amount of work to assist our Rangatahi to strengthen and improve achievement and progress. We have seen a substantial increase in attendance over the past three terms and a direct increase in the achievement and progress of student NCEA internal achievement in particular.

Further analysis of student achievement data for students in years 7 to 10 indicates improvement and engagement, this is great news and further details of results from mid-year testing and assessment will be available soon.

Sport
Over the next week, many students will be participating in the South Island Secondary Schools sports tournaments in various locations. We wish our teams well, U15 rugby, netball and basketball. A big thanks too, for the extensive community support for our teams and the individual time and commitment by coaches and managers whom without your support many of these events would not take place.

Over the weekend Westland High School girls A netball team played in the premier finals held in the school gymnasium, this was a hard-fought game and a great experience for our girls playing a strong opposition. Our team, unfortunately, was beaten, however, the experience gained from playing a strong team will be of benefit for future competitions. WHS B team also played in the B grade final and displayed some great netball skills on the court. 

Congratulations to all the students who were acknowledged at the Hokitika Netball Centre prizegiving, the School netball teams, Representative teams, players of the day, and umpires. It's encouraging to see so many students engaging in sport.

New Staff 
Welcome Mr Cas Rawlins. Cas will be working out of Te Whare Atawhai for the rest of the school year as our SENCO (Special Education Needs Coordinator). we welcome Cas to Hokitika and Westland High School.

We also welcome Brook Mellsop to our team. Brooke has been with us for a few weeks and is working in the office alongside Judith. Brooke has been invaluable to the team so far, with her keen initiative and drive to help.

Look forward week
Week eight of this term (9 - 13 September), marks the beginning of our planning for subjects and courses in the senior school for 2020. Our aim is to provide you with as much support and information as possible to ensure sensible course selection and great results for the future. We have a busy week of activities, including opportunities for students to look at possible careers, and training options. A full programme is included in this Newsletter and also on Facebook.

Property Update
A - Wing upgrade: The Board of Trustees property committee is meeting this week to review the tenders for this project and select an appropriate builder. The successful tender once selected will work with the school on timing and construction to minimise disruption to our teaching and learning programmes.

Hall, Administration, Student Support hub and Staff room: This project run by the Ministry of Education is commencing in part this school holidays. Preliminary work on assessing the site and removal of some ground waste should start this school holidays. Fencing will also be placed around the gravel car park, so this area will not be accessible into the foreseeable future from the end of this term.

Removal of Classrooms: The tender for the removal of three old classrooms has been let and we are now awaiting a firm start date for the demolition of these units. At this stage, the coming school holidays is looking likely, however, it is still to be confirmed.

School-wide spouting: The tender for this project has also been let, and we expect spouting removal and replacement to be taking place over the balance of this year. This has been a long-overdue project and we are pleased this is finally getting underway.

Sports Hub: This is well underway, which will include a new pavilion, toilet block, covered courts etc. Mondays Hokitika Guardian has a full spread on this project.

Noho ora mai koe i roto i ngā manaakitanga katoa.
Iain Murray
Principal
Westland High School