Kia ora e te whānau
It's great to be back, even to this cold and wet weather!
My husband and I had an amazing time in the UK and Europe, revisiting places we had last been to 28 years ago, meeting old friends, and visiting some new places as well. In Europe we were lucky to visit the Netherlands, Germany, Austria, the Czech Republic and Denmark. We both returned home feeling very refreshed and grateful for the opportunity to have that time away. As part of the sabbatical I am also working on research to share with the Ministry of Education and other principals on how Primary Schools can better support students who are gender-diverse. I also attended the NZ Principals Conference in Auckland on our return to NZ.
I've been meeting with our Leadership team this week, catching up on the news of Term 2, and looking ahead to Term 3. The new signs on the buildings look amazing, and I can't wait to see the children playing on the new Pūkaki playground! New asphalt went down in front of the admin building today too.
You may have seen Megan Culver (one of our Year 7/8 teachers) on the news tonight. Her home was adjacent to the property in Northwood that suffered the gas explosion today. Her husband, Brad, was one of the first responders. As you can imagine, this has turned their life upside down. They are unable to return to their house at present. We may see Megan next week, or we may have a reliever. We are in close communication with her and have sent her our love, best wishes and offers of support.
Principals' Strike Action Update:
Primary principals across the country have voted to reject the government’s offer for settlement of our negotiations. The government failed to make an offer that addresses our key issues. We are concerned that little is being done to ensure that being a primary principal is seen as an attractive career option.While I’m really happy that our teachers won back parity with their secondary colleagues, the same wasn’t offered to primary principals. We think that if parity with secondary is fair for teachers, then surely it’s fair for principals.
The offer also would have seen some principals in smaller schools paid less than some teachers in larger schools. It’s important that all communities are able to attract teachers into becoming principals, and that won’t happen if they can earn more as a teacher.
As a sign of our concern, we have voted to take 'strike action' by withdrawing the goodwill we extend to the Ministry of Education work that is additional to our day to day role running schools. I will not be participating in any form of work programme, taskforce, meeting with or reporting to the Ministry between July 8 and August 16. I will continue my professional leadership of the school during this time. I will continue to engage with and invite the Ministry to meetings when the needs of our children and our school are the agenda. I will continue to be the best advocate I can be for our children, our staff, our school, and our community.
Principals continue to hope that the government will hear us and address our issues. We are committed to continuing our campaign until they do. Personally, I am grateful for the support that our parent community has shown throughout the campaign. I hope you will continue to show your support next term if it is necessary.
I am looking forward to seeing everyone again next week, and to meeting our new children and their families.
Ngā mihi nui
Sandy Hastings
Principal - Tumuaki