Te Hāpara School wishes to thank New Zealand Community Trust for a grant of $12,483 towards the coast of a new pool cover. This will not only effectively extend the length of the entire swimming season, but also enable completion of the upgrade of the swimming pool area.
Board member and school librarian Anna Chatfield commented, “We are a small school located on the East Coast, with about 500 students. Many of them are already avid water enthusiasts, but they still require tuition in general water safety. As a low-decile school whose whanau do not have the funds for private swimming lessons, the longer we can extend our swimming season, the more our children will gain confidence and the necessary skills to be able to swim safely.
“Te Hapara School is a place of learning and soaring for excellence where our tamariki are taught to care about others and their environment. We are committed to improving outcomes for all tamariki and encouraging them to find their own excellence. So it is with thanks that Te Hapara School acknowledges NZCT funding to purchase a pool cover.
“The ability to swim and to provide our tamariki with the skills to be safe around water safely is one of the expectations of our school. Our pool can now be open for longer to extend the season for tamariki and whanau, whilst taking advantage of the beautiful Gisborne climate."
Te Hāpara is a suburb of Gisborne, located northwest of the city. It contains only one primary school, located on Mill Road. The Ministry for Culture and Heritage gives a translation for Te Hāpara as ‘the dawn’.