Schools, Police have shared interest in safety

Schools, Police have shared interest in student safety

New Zealand Police and School Boards of Trustees have a common interest in promoting the wellbeing of children and young people, according to the Police National Manager of Youth Services, Superintendent Bill Harrison.

When addressing a group of school trustees in Christchurch, Supt. Harrison will highlight that the Police's strategic goal is to reduce crash and crime and increase community safety. Boards of Trustees have an interest in keeping students safe, and helping them develop the values they need to become full members of New Zealand society.

Police Youth Services has recently signed formal agreements with the New Zealand School Trustees Association and other key education groups with a view to strengthening their working relationship.

Police and schools have a long history of working together at local level on everything from road patrol training to dealing with traumatic incidents. Police now want to strengthen the way they work with schools at a strategic national level to achieve the shared goal.

The relationship will provide a framework for developing consistent ways of responding to initiatives like the Positive Behaviour for Learning Action Plan (PB4L) as well as sharing techniques for working with individual schools that may be experiencing particular problems. The aim is to find ways to support them to create and maintain self sustaining change within their community.

“New Zealand School Trustees Association welcomes the opportunity to work more proactively with Police Youth Services” said President Lorraine Kerr. “Our students are at the heart of everything we do as Boards of Trustees” she says “And they need nurturing and guidance as well as NCEA. This is about valuing the whole child, about all the adults in their lives working together to provide a safe environment and clear boundaries for everyone concerned.”

The New Zealand School Trustees Association (NZSTA) Conference is at the Christchurch Conference Centre from 9 -11 July.

The theme is “Boards as leaders: Challenging achievement outcomes”.

ENDS

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