MP pushes for mental health training in Rangiora as part of national strategy
From Local Democracy Reporter Adam Burns:
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Waimakariri MP Matt Doocey is imploring North Cantabrians to engage with a national suicide prevention initiative so people are better equipped to talk it out.
LifeKeepers is an internationally proven, community-led programme, funded by the Ministry of Health, which melds an ‘‘evidence-based approach’’ with local knowledge, and Doocey believes the stigma of not reaching out needs to be discarded.
An all day LifeKeepers training course is scheduled to be held in Rangiora on February 1, however the country's shift into the red setting of the traffic light system means the event will go ahead with limited numbers.
Doocey serves as the National Party's mental health spokesperson and was approached by Canterbury healthcare consultancy Pegasus Health about the initiative, one of several national programmes established to tackle New Zealand's steep suicide numbers.
"Part of my work in parliament is to break down the barriers," he said.
Doocey is a member of a cross-party mental health group alongside Labour MP Louisa Wall, the Green Party's Chloe Swarbrick and ACT MP Brooke van Velden.
The group commissioned the Zero Suicide Aotearoa report, released in 2020, which argued for to "a comprehensive, multi-sectoral approach that involved central government agencies, local communities and whānau".
"What that means is suicide prevention for dairy farmers is going to be a lot different than what the approach is about suicide prevention for young people," Doocey said.
"What we need for people who are working on the ground is to equip themselves with the skills and then translate them into those local communities."
Pegasus Health suicide prevention coordinator Elle Cradwick said the training, which she described as one of the best initiatives in the country, would offer practical tools to have important conversations.
"The training is certainly designed for everyday people, weaving in everyday experiences," she said.
Doocey said he was determined to help break down "some of the stigma".
"My assumption is a lot of people may see training like this and think 'I'm not sure if I want to be involved in that'."
Another mental health initiative, Mates in Construction, which targeted mental health in the building industry, was scheduled to host an event earlier this week in Christchurch, but was postponed due to the change to red.
Doocey said the construction sector had the highest suicide rate of any industry in the country.
Canterbury police officer Don Munro said it was also not a widely discussed subject among agricultural-based districts, such as the Waimakariri.
"It's an issue with all age groups," he said.
"It's because we don't talk about it, or discuss it with the run-of-the-mill, staunch farmer because they don't want to be seen as being weak, or to be seen to have an issue.
"There is a stigma attached to traditional Kiwi-New Zealanders, you have to get in there and have those conversations and acknowledge it's OK to be not OK."
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Growing demand for Rangiora’s Christian schools
By David Hill, Local Democracy Reporter
Two North Canterbury Christian schools are seeking permission to grow their student rolls.
The Ministry of Education is seeking feedback on requests from eight Canterbury state integrated schools to increase their maximum rolls, including two in Rangiora.
St Joseph’s Catholic Primary School in Rangiora wants to increase its roll from 175 to 225 students, while Rangiora New Life School (pictured) is looking to increase its maximum roll of 470 by an additional 100 secondary students to 570.
Rangiora New Life School principal Stephen Walters said demand for Christian education in the region is strong.
‘‘I think it is exciting for all of those schools listed.
‘‘It will be phased in over a number of years and it will likely be mostly from home school families.’’
As the school took students from throughout the Waimakariri and Hurunui districts, he said he did not expect it to have a major impact on local state schools.
The school has 230 year 9 to 13 students, so an extra 100 students will represent significant growth.
Walters said about 30 extra students could be absorbed within its existing buildings and the five hectare site has plenty of room for expansion.
As it was too late to plan for next year, he anticipated gradual roll growth to begin from 2026.
‘‘We want to be a low density site, so when we reach 650 we would look for another site.’’
State integrated schools have less ‘‘bureaucratic hurdles" because they don't spend Government money on buildings, he said.
‘‘We build a classroom and then collect the fees from parents to pay for them over 20 or 30 years.’’
North Canterbury’s booming population means local state schools are all growing, with Rangiora High School reaching 1750 students this year and Kaiapoi High School fast approaching its site capacity of 1100.
‘‘Oxford Area School used to be same size as us, but it has overtaken us with its growth.’’
St Joseph’s School principal Ben Gorman said there was strong demand for a Catholic education.
‘‘We've had significant roll pressure for the last six to seven years.
‘‘Currently, we have over 50 applications for enrolment for next year, but only have 20 spaces available (with departing year 8 students).’’
Gorman said if the maximum roll increase is approved, it will be phased in between from 2026 to 2030, with two classrooms built.
St Joseph’s School board of trustees chairperson Emma Dangerfield said North Canterbury’s growing population is likely to lead to more enrolments.
‘‘We want to see students enrolled in their preferred school option so ensuring we have more spaces available for these children is a no-brainer.’’
She said the increased roll would have little or no impact on other schools due to the rapid population growth.
Christchurch schools Aidenfield Christian School, Emmanuel Christian School, Middleton Grange School, St Mark’s School and Christchurch Adventist School have requested to increase their rolls.
St Bede’s College is looking to increase its day student roll and reduce its roll for borders, while keeping its maximum roll at 786.
The Ministry of Education is seeking feedback until September 27.
State and state-integrated schools and kura have a school board that governs it and makes decisions on the school's strategic direction.
■ LDR is local body journalism co-funded by RNZ and NZ On Air.
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