2345 days ago

Hamilton Christian School Integration

Jamie Neighbourly Lead from Chartwell

I'm excited to let you know that state integration has been confirmed for Hamilton Christian School. This has been a long journey for the school, and will provide opportunity for lower fees, increased roll growth, and stronger support from the Ministry of Education.

The following message is from Principal Shaun Brooker:

Kia ora whānau. It is with great excitement that I let you know I received a phone call from our Labour MP Jamie Strange, to let me know the Minister of Education has now signed our integration deed.

This signals the realisation of Hamilton Christian School becoming an Integrated school from the beginning of 2020. This is the most important step in the school becoming integrated. There are now some finer details that we will work through with the Ministry of Education.

One of those details is the Attendance Dues that we will need to charge for the coming year. While we are very excited that the school will become much more affordable for families we are still required to fund two aspects of the school. One is the buildings as we can now begin some significant building projects for more classrooms and a gymnasium. The second aspect of the school which is not funded by the MoE is our special character. For each of these we need to collect funds from parents, however, in return for the MoE not paying for these the MoE allows us to support our special character as we chose.

To fund the above Hamilton Christian School will charge parents Attendance Dues and Special Character Donation. While we do not have the final amount for these the overall total for these is expected to be approximately one-third of the current costs. For your planning we expect this to be between $1800 and $2400.

Please understand that the benefits of integration go well beyond just the money side of things. We will now have access to more Ministry resources for our students including ESOL support, learning support and behaviour support. We will also be able to access a number of Ministry funded initiatives for our NCEA students particularly in areas of the trades and alternative education.

This is a fantastic day for Hamilton Christian School. Thank you for your prayers and patience through this process.

To God be the Glory.

Shaun

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More messages from your neighbours
15 hours ago

Don't overthink this riddle...

The Neighboury Riddler

I have a silver sole
but no feet,
I make my living by bringing the heat.
What am I?

Do you think you know the answer? Simply 'Like' this post if you know the answer and the big reveal will be posted in the comments at 2pm on the day!

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8 days ago

Poll: Does a savoury scone require cheese on top, or folded inside?

The Team from Neighbourly.co.nz

Help settle the great kiwi debate ... cheese on top, or folded inside?

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Does a savoury scone require cheese on top, or folded inside?
  • 76.5% Inside!
    76.5% Complete
  • 23.5% On top!
    23.5% Complete
1223 votes
6 hours ago

A reminder this hunting season

The Team from New Zealand Police

As thousands of hunters are making their plans for autumn – the Roar – recreational firearms groups are urging hunters to always be 100% sure of their targets.

Te Tari Pureke - Firearms Safety Authority NZ, which chairs the Recreational Firearms Users Group, has begun a public information campaign reminding hunters everywhere of Rule #4 of the Firearms Safety Code: to identify their target beyond all doubt.

Director Communities and Corporate, Mike McIlraith, says there is an estimated 50,000-60,000 New Zealanders involved in big game animal hunting each year, and the Roar is the key event for many hunters each year.
“The Roar is a fantastic time of year for hunters to get out into the hills after a trophy animal but hunting safely and making sure everyone gets home in one piece, still must be the most important goal of every trip,” says Mike McIlraith.
“The consequences of not fully identifying your target beyond all doubt can be catastrophic. Our message to hunters is a really simple one: If you are not sure, then don’t shoot.”

Mike McIlraith says while hunting fatalities are thankfully rare, research has shown that misidentification of the target is the largest firearms related risk to New Zealand deer hunters, and 80% of the time this involves members of the same hunting group.

The Authority says hunters should not feel pressured to take a shot: “Instead, hunters should take the time to analyse their target, wait and see if it is a hind or stag, how old is the animal, how many points does its antlers have? Identifying your target means never firing at sound, shape, colour or movement alone.”

Mike McIlraith says good hunters will slow down, and run through some simple mental checks:
- Can I see the whole animal, or could this be another hunter?
- Where are my hunting companions – could this be them or someone else?
- How much of the animal can you see, if it is a hind or stag, how old is the animal, how - many points does its antlers have?

“Taking a little extra time to identify your target and check the firing zone is the key to safer hunting. No meat or no trophy is better than no mate,” he says.

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