Need remains in the community for North Canterbury youth

Nicole Mathewson Reporter from Northern Outlook

By DAVID HILL, Local Democracy Reporter

A North Canterbury education leader is calling on government funders to focus on ‘‘needs, not rules’’.

Comcol (formerly Community College) North Canterbury is going ahead with its new ‘‘Grow’’ programme next month, while funding is still being finalised.

But general manager Kate O’Connor said the Tertiary Education Commission’s Youth Guarantee funding criteria made it difficult for organisations like hers to meet the needs in the community.

Comcol has been operating in North Canterbury for more than 30 years offering an alternative education options ‘‘for those whose needs are not being met by the mainstream school system’’.

It suspended its Youth Guarantee funded education programmes at the end of 2021 due to rising compliance costs.

‘‘We have continued to see a need in the community for somewhere for young people to go to and build their self-confidence and self-esteem to take that next step,’’ O’Connor said.

Comcol North Canterbury ran an eight-week pilot of the new Grow programme in term four last year.

The new 12-week course will start on February 7 at the Comcol Rangiora site and will be offered in each of the four terms this year.

The Grow programme will teach resilience, wellbeing, food security and sustainability.

Skills included cooking, budgeting, preparing a CV, barista training and driver’s licence courses.

It will centre on growing food and preparing it in the kitchen and there will be flexibility to support student goals, including supporting them into work experience.

It has been made possible thanks to community-based funding and O’Connor was optimistic more funding will be secured in the coming weeks.

She would like to see ‘‘Grow’’ rolled out to other Comcol sites around the South Island, if funding can be secured.

O’Connor said the course could work in with the Mayor’s Taskforce for Jobs (MTFJ) programme, being introduced in Waimakariri this year.
‘‘Some of our graduates may be able link with MTFJ, as this course will prepare them for the workforce.’’

While Comcol has retained its category one provider status registration with the New Zealand Qualifications Authority, it would not be able to offer NCEA credits until it had sufficient resourcing.

But Comcol North Canterbury was working with Rangiora High School to offer equine studies this year, as international students returned.

Other options were also being explored with Comcol’s partners and a Koha Shed, in collaboration with Rangiora High School, was providing surplus produce to families in need.

The free mentoring Youth Service was also continuing to be offered across all of Comcol’s South Island sites.

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