Human Rights Commission

Significantly different from any other secondary school in New Zealand, Hagley Community College provides learning programmes at Levels 3- 8 of the National Curriculum that are appropriate to student learning need irrespective of age.

Located in central Christchurch, the College attracts students from throughout the city and surrounding area and from many countries throughout the world. Our student population represent a diverse range of age, culture, and socio-economic backgrounds. The mixture of people and the fact that there is no uniform requirement creates an informal and friendly relationship between staff and students and a positive learning environment. This is a learning environment that is creative, innovative and at the “cutting edge” of education.

Hagley Community College provides opportunities to newly settled and existing refugee families to engage with education in the Christchurch community. Hagley Community College is the largest provider of refugee education in New Zealand. Seventy per cent of refugee families settling in Christchurch attend the College for formal and informal education sessions.

The College encourages a “whole family” approach to help ensure that refugee families can remain united as they adjust to a new and very different life. Refugees are the result of war, religious and political persecution, ethnic cleansing and military action. Many have endured physical, social or psychological trauma.

Hagley College provides formal English language courses in the ESOL department. This department caters for a range of ages and abilities. Students have to enrol at the college to access these courses.

Hagley College also offers a Multi Ethnic Study Centre where families can participate in a variety of opportunities to increase support and educational attainment amongst children, parents and relatives. Children do not have to be enrolled at Hagley College to attend the Multi Ethnic Study Centre and may come from other schools throughout Christchurch if they bring suitable class work. Opportunities also include English classes for parents and pre-literate women. There is also industrial sewing, English, Computing, Driver Theory and NZ cooking. Support for learning is provided by the Centre Manager, teachers, volunteers and community members.

Projects 2011

Capacity Building programme

The College continues its capacity building programme this year to share best practice with other education, community and social service providers. The Ministry of Education, Ministry of Social Development, Adult and Community Education Aotearoa, Partnership Health Canterbury and Christchurch City Council support projects to reach further into the communities and provide additional support for families.

Community Liaison

We also provide access to information. Hagley Community College employs three Community Liaison officers who work across schools and alongside external organisations in Christchurch to communicate with parents and their families. At present these officers work mainly but not exclusively with Somali, Eritrean, Ethiopian, Bhutanese, Kurdish and Afghan communities.

Hagley Community College is excited about the opportunities that the additional funding brings allowing us to extend the “home and school and community” partnership and provide advice and expertise to organisations that wish to find out more about and support these special families.

Refugee Women’s Day

This year Hagley will celebrate its fourth annual Refugee Women’s Day, usually held in November. This event is a way of celebrating women from refugee background communities and for the role they play in their lives, their jobs and their families. It gives opportunity for women from all over the world, to come together and talk, and share their culture. It is a way of marking how important refugee women are in New Zealand now, and the future.

Christchurch City Council and the Small Projects Fund have supported the occasion for the last four years.

Date and venue to be decided.

For more information contact Carla Moore 03 379 3090 ext 810/835.

Christchurch a Global Village: Multi Cultural Conversation Tables

Learn more about more recently settled New Zealanders, who are from Refugee background communities and who contribute to the culturally rich and diverse landscape of Christchurch today.

Since the Christchurch earthquakes, more people have been getting to know and talking to their neighbours, and people in their communities.

We’d like to support this carrying on and more people having the knowledge and confidence to talk with each other across different cultures, languages and experiences.

Location: Student Cafe, Hagley Community CollegeThursday, 3 November, 6-8pm, Fee: $20

6-6.30pm – History of Refugees in New Zealand

6.30-7.30pm - Choose a Conversation table –participants will have an opportunity to sit with a variety of people from different countries and cultures who have settled in New Zealand through the UNHCR refugee quota system, listen to their stories, sample their traditional food and participate in a sharing exchange.

7.30- 8.30pm – A second opportunity to choose another table to engage, learn and share with people from refugee background communities in Christchurch.

8.30-9.00pm - A time to reflect, discuss and share in light refreshments.

Enrolments can be made in person by visiting the Hagley Enrolment Centreor by contacting Marama on 379 3090 ext 810Monday-Thursday

This is a structured but in-formal and intimate event encouraging every day people to get to know one another and is a Christchurch Adult Learners week event.