Chair Report - May 2019 - Liz Wootton

It is my great pleasure to provide a ‘brief’ report of what the current Board has achieved and what the future priorities may be for the new incoming Board.

When I reflect on this wonderful wee school that is at the heart of our community, I think about the school’s vision that is A tatou tamariki kaitiaki hei muri. Ako pai ai. This means: All children guardians of the future. Learn well. I also see our new school sign proudly standing in front of the newly extended car park welcoming us on to the school grounds where there is an awesome Dry Riverbed play area, sand pit, pizza oven, productive vegetable garden, trees to climb, a court to bounce balls on, a freshly painted veranda, a large playing field, plus a stinky swamp! All this clearly reflects the current board members commitment to working with and consulting with the staff, students and the community to make positive improvements to the school environment. These decisions and the evidence that I see, clearly reflects also the nine values that underpin the school’s vision which include the key values of respect, wonder, creativity, and confidence.

Its no wonder that our children do not want to go home at the end of the day.

Community engagement is one of eight principles in The New Zealand Curriculum that provide a foundation for schools' decision making. Karitane school responds to this by delivering a curriculum that is meaningful, relevant, and connected to our students’ lives. The school continues to have close community links with Kati Huirapa runaka and the marae, and the Rivercare Estuary group. Parents and whanau are encouraged to actively engage in the planning for their children’s learning at the school. The 2018 ERO report acknowledged this stating:

“The strong sense of whanaungatanga helps build students’ sense of belonging. Caring and respectful relationships are highly evident.

Parents, whānau and the community are respected and valued partners in learning. The school proactively draws on local community members to enhance students’ learning opportunities, achievement, and to promote wellbeing.”

It also stated:

“The school’s broad, localised curriculum has been developed in consultation with the students, parents, whānau and the wider community. Teachers know the students well and adapt programmes to cater for their individual needs.”

Future developments for the school environment are key goals for Karitane School for providing a safe, physical and emotional environment. As I’ve said already, we’ve established strong and positive relationships with the local Runaka, the Rivercare Estuary group, and local pre-schoolers are welcome to come along to the Learn and Share programme in the Junior room. The Run Road Safety and Kia Kaha programmes were well received along with the DCC acknowledging and rectifying the need to improve the design of road safety for our children. It’ll be interesting to see if any further improvements are required in the future.

The beginning stages for developing the school paddock are also underway. Congratulations and thank you to our Board member Jane Schofield for your enthusiasm and commitment to drive this project and to consult and include the wider community. It appears there is enough spark already to further ignite and inspire action on this project to see it through to completion. This is an exciting initiative that will completely transform the usability of this space for everyone, not just the school.

Communicating and sharing information between families/whanau and school has seen a revamp of the school newsletter and a re-design of the school logo. I am especially pleased with the new school website. We have finally connected to the big wide world and we should not hold back showing off the special nature of our school and what it has to offer potential families. It is vital that this platform is regularly kept up to date, so people keep coming back to use it while also encouraging new families to the school. I would like to take this opportunity on behalf of the Board, to thank again Sam Clarkson of Clarkson Design who provided an enormous amount of his free time to design and develop the website, school logo and newsletter. He has contributed significantly to raising the school’s profile. This then inspired the revamp of the school’s sports uniform and confirmed a new school colour that more represents the school and the coastal environment we live in. The feedback I’ve received from people seeing our students out and about in their new uniforms has been very positive. The students look so smart!

The 10Yr Property Plan has been approved. The project that is the Breakout space and ILE upgrade has been an extraordinary lengthy and ongoing process, but I think the Board now feels confident that things will progress more quickly from now on.

A core focus for the Board is ensuring targets stated in the annual plan are being achieved. The board regularly receives school-wide information about outcomes for students across all aspects of their learning, including literacy and mathematics. In reviewing student achievement, the results have been very positive for all our students. It’s a real pleasure to be a part of this process; to ask questions and put in place supportive measures for those who struggle or those that require more challenges for their learning. Keeping resources fresh and exciting and providing the technology required while being mindful of keeping a healthy balance between digital and hands on, and real-life experiences is an ongoing focus. Education for sustainability is also an ongoing focus for developing processes to address key learning competencies. The Board consistently encourages and supports our teachers and support staff to complete professional development.

I would like to thank current Board members, Helen, Jane, Emily, Scott and Myles for all the work you have done. I’ve thoroughly enjoyed your company around the board table. I would also like to thank our Principal, Nic for her leadership and expertise. You’ve provided me with so much support as I learned to get my head around new terms and processes as Chairperson. You are a very compassionate and thoughtful woman and your sense of humour is infectious (you really must write some books!). I will miss working alongside you. I am also grateful to Nic for leading the whole school with grace and dignity through a very sad and difficult time during the daily life of our school. Janis’s spirit is now woven into the fabric of the school and I look forward to seeing the Magnolia tree thrive and blossom with gusto every year!

Finally, I would like to extend my congratulations and a warm welcome to new trustees who will join the board at the next meeting.

Ngā mihi nui

Liz Wootton

Board Chair

May 2019