Builders are hiring – are you ready?
If you are not doing well at school, unhappy in your current job or sitting at home jobless, here’s a tip – the building industry is hiring. The booming housing sector and the ongoing Christchurch rebuild are fueling demand for builders and carpenters, with employers across New Zealand desperate for fresh talent.
Be among those who are taking the carpentry pathway to turn their life around. In fact, it is a measure of the government’s seriousness to dealing with the shortage of builders and carpenters that the carpentry course is FREE for those 16 years and older.
The programme will equip you with the right set of skills sought by the building and construction industry. You will learn about hand tools, power tools, fencing, decking, and health and safety. Training includes a period of valuable work experience and many of these placements become offers of work. Upon completion of the course, students achieve an NZQA accredited National Certificate in Building Construction and Allied Trade Skills — Level 2 and NCEA Level 1 and 2.
Skills Update Papakura branch has other courses like:
Welding, Security Level 2 and 3, Fitness and Exercise, Recreation and Sport, Barista and Hospitality, Warehouse Distribution and Fork Lift Operations and Forces Pre Entry. These courses are all aimed at NCEA Level 2, giving people the practical skills and the opportunity for a life-long career.
Skills Update, 15/17 Walters Road, Papakura. Phone 0800 00 0055 or visit our website.
Some Choice News!
DOC is rolling out a new tool to help figure out what to tackle first when it comes to protecting our threatened species and the things putting them at risk.
Why does this matter? As Nikki Macdonald from The Post points out, we’re a country with around 4,400 threatened species. With limited time and funding, conservation has always meant making tough calls about what gets attention first.
For the first time, DOC has put real numbers around what it would take to do everything needed to properly safeguard our unique natural environment. The new BioInvest tool shows the scale of the challenge: 310,177 actions across 28,007 sites.
Now that we can see the full picture, it brings the big question into focus: how much do we, as Kiwis, truly value protecting nature — and what are we prepared to invest to make it happen?
We hope this brings a smile!
Have you got New Zealand's best shed? Show us and win!
Once again, Resene and NZ Gardener are on the hunt for New Zealand’s best shed! Send in the photos and the stories behind your man caves, she sheds, clever upcycled spaces, potty potting sheds and colourful chicken coops. The Resene Shed of the Year 2026 winner receives $1000 Resene ColorShop voucher, a $908 large Vegepod Starter Pack and a one-year subscription to NZ Gardener. To enter, tell us in writing (no more than 500 words) why your garden shed is New Zealand’s best, and send up to five high-quality photos by email to mailbox@nzgardener.co.nz. Entries close February 23, 2026.
Share your favourite main crop potato recipe and win a copy of our mag!
Love potatoes? We will give away free copies of the May 2026 issue to readers whose potato recipes are used in our magazine. To be in the running, make sure you email your family's favourite way to enjoy potatoes: mailbox@nzgardener.co.nz, by March 1, 2026.
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