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From reporter Amber Allott:
A North Canterbury council will oppose a subdivision that could transform a rural village into a town, but developers say the development will provide new homes and an economic boost to the district.
Earlier this month, the Waimakariri District Council put a private … View moreFrom reporter Amber Allott:
A North Canterbury council will oppose a subdivision that could transform a rural village into a town, but developers say the development will provide new homes and an economic boost to the district.
Earlier this month, the Waimakariri District Council put a private plan change request for an 850-house development at Ohoka out for public submissions.
Rolleston Industrial Developments – owned by the Carter Group’s Philip and Tim Carter – wants to rezone 155.9 hectares of farmland between Whites, Bradleys, and Mill roads to residential land.
The subdivision would be called Ohoka Estate, built in stages with most sections between 500 and 1000 square metres. It would also feature shops, a public square, and a school or retirement village.
Waimakariri District mayor Dan Gordon confirmed the council would be making a submission opposing the private plan change, and “urbanising part of Ohoka”.
Since the council had decided to make a submission, the application would now be handled by independent commissioners.
The council had hired an independent lawyer and specialists to help prepare the submission, he said, and the draft would be considered at their August 2 meeting. It would be publicly available on the council website closer to that date.
Due to public interest in the private plan change, the council also had someone on hand to help explain the process and give advice on how to lodge a submission.
Several of Ohoka’s 600 residents had voiced concerns a big development would destroy the little village’s quaint, rural nature, and said the sudden influx of new residents would put a strain on existing infrastructure.
Ohoka is currently home to mostly larger homes on lifestyle blocks, plus some smaller properties, a domain, community hall, primary school, petrol station and small church. House prices range from about $1.2 million to $3.5m.
Analysis by the Christchurch, Selwyn and Waimakariri district councils, released last August, also found greater Christchurch would need 77,000 more homes in the next 30 years.
The Carter Group’s Philip Carter said they believed it was important there were housing opportunities in Waimakariri for both new and current residents.
“Our proposed subdivision will not only provide supply for new houses, it will also give the district an economic boost.”
They would talk to local iwi and the community to get their input as the development progressed, he said.
“We are very conscious of the high-quality village atmosphere of Ohoka, with its extensive large-scale trees and streams, and our proposed development will keep existing trees and use rural style roads and fencing.”
Carter said they were proposing a good mix of section sizes, including larger sections of 0.5 to one hectare close to smaller sections, “all of which will have rural outlooks”.
“We want to ensure Ohoka Estate is well-connected to the existing Ohoka Village and that we maintain Ohoka's special rural character.”
The Residential Tenancies Amendment Act changed the way that landlords can end both fixed-term and periodic tenancies.
Landlords must now give a reason to end a tenancy, and the reason must be one of the specified reasons stated in the Residential Tenancies Act.
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From local democracy reporter David Hill:
Melanie Taite-Pitama knows the pressures school principals face.
The Tuahiwi School principal and Katote Kahui Ako (Kaiapoi learning cluster) lead principal has seen four colleagues across the nine schools in her cluster move on in the last 12 months.
… View moreFrom local democracy reporter David Hill:
Melanie Taite-Pitama knows the pressures school principals face.
The Tuahiwi School principal and Katote Kahui Ako (Kaiapoi learning cluster) lead principal has seen four colleagues across the nine schools in her cluster move on in the last 12 months.
In the last year, at least seven principals across North Canterbury have either moved to other schools, or taken early retirement, with some citing ‘‘exhaustion’’.
‘‘The workload is massive and the expectations from the Ministry of Education and whanau continues to increase,’’ Taite-Pitama said.
‘‘I think some are definitely retiring early and the more that are doing that, the more principals will see that as an option.
‘‘Communities want to retain good principals and I think teaching staff want to retain good principals, as the principal can set the whole culture and tone for a school.’’
She said being a principal required working long hours, dealing with a multitude of challenges and keeping it confidential.
It was like being a chief executive of a business.
‘‘We are expecting a lot of a principal. If you think of Bruce Kearney, who has moved to Rangiora High School, he has 170 staff and how many chief executives have 170 staff?
‘‘Principals have got to be good at everything. You are a lawyer, a builder, an accountant, a parent, a teacher, a counsellor, a social worker and you are expected to solve everybody’s problems.’’
Being the principal of a community school means you are instantly recognisable.
Taite-Pitama said she avoided going to the supermarket and buyed most things online.
‘‘People do forget boundaries and there’s an expectation that I’m ‘Mel the principal’ 24/7.’’
Despite the challenges, Taite-Pitama said being a school principal was a privilege, as you had the opportunity ‘‘to touch the lives of young people’’ and to make a difference.
She also enjoyed working alongside her fellow North Canterbury principals.
‘‘All principals want their schools to be as amazing as they can be and I salute all principals across North Canterbury because I know how complex it is.’’
Simon Green has been principal at North Loburn and Amberley Schools and recently took on a new role with Evaluation Associates, supporting new principals in Canterbury, Otago and the Chatham Islands.
He said North Canterbury principals were looking forward to the school holidays after a stressful first half of the year, managing Covid restrictions and staff and student wellbeing.
‘‘They’ve been so busy looking after the wellbeing of staff and now they need to take some time to look after themselves.
‘‘There’s a lot of young principals in Canterbury coming through and deputy principals stepping up as there’s been a lot retiring, more than there usually would be.’’
Green said good school principals ‘‘live the craft’’ of teaching and connecting with their communities, as well as being multi-skilled.
‘‘If you love connecting with people, bringing out the best in your community and making a difference.
‘‘Being a principal requires a unique skill-set, but it’s also very rewarding.’’
■ July 4 to 8 was Tu Meke Tumuaki Week, which was organised by the New Zealand Educational Institute to recognise the contributions of school principals.
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From local democracy reporter David Hill:
Policing, local government, education and immigration have been the focus of visits from the nation’s leaders to Rangiora, Kaikōura and Kaiapoi over the last two weeks.
The most notable visit was by new Police Minister Chris Hipkins, who visited police… View moreFrom local democracy reporter David Hill:
Policing, local government, education and immigration have been the focus of visits from the nation’s leaders to Rangiora, Kaikōura and Kaiapoi over the last two weeks.
The most notable visit was by new Police Minister Chris Hipkins, who visited police in Rangiora and Kaikōura as part of his nationwide tour.
‘‘We’ve talked about everything from gang crime to stock rustling to mental health,’’ Hipkins said.
‘‘Our police do a tough job, and we’re fortunate to have such a grounded and committed group working to keep us all safe.’’
New Associate Local Government Minister Kieran McAnulty made Waimakariri his first stop last week, in a series of visits around the country.
Mayor Dan Gordon said topics discussed included last year’s floods, advocacy for lifestylers, transport projects such as the Woodend Bypass, Skew Bridge and Southbrook, racing and Three Waters reform.
‘‘We found him to be very interested in the work we are doing here in the Waimakariri district and he listened as we outlined our concerns, particularly around Three Waters and transport.’’
Gordon hoped to host McAnulty again on a visit to learn more about the council’s Civil Defence Cadet programme - a first in New Zealand.
Kaiapoi North School has been the focus of two MP visits, as its structured literacy programme captures national attention.
Opposition Education and Immigration Spokesperson Erica Stanford was in Kaiapoi on July 1, and met with Kaiapoi North School principal Jason Miles.
Her visit was followed by Associate Education Minister Jan Tinetti, who came to observe the structured literacy programme first-hand last week.
Stanford said the Government had been ‘‘very late to the party’’ and she wanted structured literacy rolled out to schools throughout the country.
‘‘It goes right back to early childhood education and even learning at home, so we are looking at what we can do to change these outcomes.’’
She was also concerned with school attendance rates, which dropped back to 60% last year in the wake of Covid-19.
The Government recently announced a new strategy, aiming to improve attendance to 75% of children attending school regularly by 2026.
But Stanford said the Government needed to do better.
‘‘We can see schools in similar deciles and ethnic make-ups getting very different results, so how we learn from those that are succeeding?’’
Stanford also met with local businesses, discussing their challenges with recruiting staff and attracting migrants.
While airfares were expensive and even getting flights could be a challenge, Stanford said there were ways of simplifying the process of assisting businesses to attract migrant workers.
One option was issuing short-term residency Visas for new migrants on arrival in particular areas of skills shortages such as nurses or farm workers.
TimeBank Waimakariri are holding their AGM followed by a talk by Brent Cairns about 'Setting up and Managing a Community Food Forest and their Productivity". His vision is for multiple Food Forest throughout the district.
When: 7pm Wednesday 27th July
Where: Woodend Community Centre
… View moreTimeBank Waimakariri are holding their AGM followed by a talk by Brent Cairns about 'Setting up and Managing a Community Food Forest and their Productivity". His vision is for multiple Food Forest throughout the district.
When: 7pm Wednesday 27th July
Where: Woodend Community Centre
Supper provided.
All Welcome!
From local democracy reporter David Hill:
Skill shortages continue to bite in the wake of Covid-19, with North Canterbury’s three councils facing higher than normal staff turnovers.
The Kaikōura District Council has been the hardest hit, with the position of building control officer vacant for… View moreFrom local democracy reporter David Hill:
Skill shortages continue to bite in the wake of Covid-19, with North Canterbury’s three councils facing higher than normal staff turnovers.
The Kaikōura District Council has been the hardest hit, with the position of building control officer vacant for the past nine months.
‘‘It’s in the building control space where there is a nationwide shortage of building control officers,’’ chief executive Will Doughty says.
Recently on jobs vacant website Seek there were 28 councils advertising for 60 roles, he says.
The council has a close working relationship with neighbouring councils, including the Hurunui District Council in sharing staffing resources.
It has also begun talks with the Selwyn District Council, which has initiated a wider conversation around sharing resources with neighbouring councils.
‘‘We need to look at things differently, so we’re not competing against other,’’ Doughty said.
‘‘We need to think about how we bring cadets through, and how we can give them training in areas we don’t necessarily have but other councils might have, so it’s about upskilling the industry as a whole.
‘‘The default position should not be poaching amongst ourselves.’’
In the last 18 months the council had experienced about 15 to 17% staff turnover, which was higher than normal, Doughty said.
Hurunui District Council chief executive Hamish Dobbie shared Doughty’s sentiments, but said his council had been in the fortunate position of being able to fill its vacancies.
‘‘Generally we are relatively well off compared to other councils, but it’s just when we do have a vacancy it’s hard to find staff because we’re not getting as many applicants as we would normally expect.
‘‘But it’s also a good time for people within the organisation because when opportunities do come up, we can look internally and find a person who, with a bit of effort, could step up to that role.’’
Dobbie would like to see a more co-ordinated approach between councils for staff training and to ensure councils were not competing against each other.
Staff turnover was normally 15%, but was nudging over 20% at present, Dobbie said.
Waimakariri District Council human resources manager Lara McConville said staff turnover has been hovering at more than 17% in recent months, compared to pre-Covid levels of less than 10%.
‘‘We have had a number of former staff return to the council in the past couple of months which is really encouraging to us.
‘‘We have had a number of the same challenges as other organisations and industries around the impacts of Covid-19.’’
She said the council had a flexible working policy, which was under review to ensure it continued to enable a work-life balance for employees, as ‘‘we know this is of growing importance to people since the emergence of Covid-19’’.
More than 60% of Waimakariri District Council staff are women.
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NZ Gardener together with Ryman Healthcare is once again looking for greenfingered good sorts – individuals or groups who use their gardening skills to help others. Tell us about the great gardeners doing right by your community, and they could be one of five finalists who will… View moreDear neighbours,
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From local democracy reporter David Hill:
Kaiapoi North School’s innovative approach to teaching literacy has caught the attention of the Government.
Associate Education Minister Jan Tinetti visited Kaiapoi last Thursday to observe the school’s approach to structured literacy first hand.
A … View moreFrom local democracy reporter David Hill:
Kaiapoi North School’s innovative approach to teaching literacy has caught the attention of the Government.
Associate Education Minister Jan Tinetti visited Kaiapoi last Thursday to observe the school’s approach to structured literacy first hand.
A former school principal, Tinetti said she was impressed with what she saw.
“Jason (Kaiapoi North’s Principal) has been an amazing advocate for structured literacy, and he’s kept at me to come and visit, so it’s been something I’ve been wanting to do for a while.
“Other schools are using structured literacy, but this school has put its own flavour to it, and we want to see schools and teachers show themselves.’’
Tinetti said she was particularly impressed with the consistency of how the school’s approach to structured literacy was applied by teachers at each year level.
She said it will help to inform the implementation of the Government’s literacy and numeracy strategy, which was launched earlier this year and is aimed at improving literacy and numeracy standards.
A recent survey by the Education Hub found that 35 percent of 15-year-olds were not at the required levels for reading and maths.
Kaiapoi North School first trialled structured literacy in 2018, with North Canterbury-based literacy resource teacher Marina Mounsey working with junior team leader Mel Poynter.
“It’s been a massive shift for some teachers in how they do their teaching, and it has required some professional development,” Poynter said.
The school’s approach revolved around phonetics, or sounding out letters and words, which ultimately led to improved spelling and writing, as well as reading.
The trial was a success, so it was rolled out across all year levels the following year, deputy principal Felicity Fahey said.
“It’s not a silver bullet. It won’t fix everything, but we believe it’s the best way to teach all the children,” she said.
Tinetti said the research had been available for 30 years, but successive governments had failed to pick it up until now.
The Government has introduced the Better Start Structured Literacy funding for teaching new entrants children, which several North Canterbury schools have engaged in.
Courses are now being offered at the University of Canterbury and the Ministry of Education aimed to have 4500 teachers throughout the country teaching structured literacy by the end of next year.
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