Waimea Weekly
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Wednesday 1 February 2017
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Chasing Olympic dream
Hidden rocks all the rage Page 7
Tasman schools still growing
Page 15 - 19
Page 23
Simon Bloomberg Waimea Intermediate is “bursting” with a capacity of 640 students enrolled to start the year while Waimea and Garin colleges again have record rolls, reflecting the continuing growth of schools around the Tasman district. The district’s biggest primary school, Henley, is also full with a starting roll of 500, up from 476 last year. Richmond Primary will be starting with 438 students and will reach 500 for the third consecutive year. Waimea Intermediate principal Justine McDonald says their roll exceeds the Ministry of Education guideline of 625 for the school and all their classes are full. The school has been unable to accept out-of-zone students, including those who have had siblings at the school. “We are managing but we are having to maximise all our resources,” Justine says. Waimea College principal Scott Haines says they started the year on Tuesday with a record roll of 1577 students, up from 1503 last year. The number of international students has also increased from 50 last year to a record high of 60 this year. “We are absolutely at capacity now,” Scott says. “I fell really sorry for the 48 out-of-zone students we had to turn away.
SEE PAGE 2
Mother and daughter, Lisa Siebert and Rebecca Hoppe, enjoy a drink at the tenth Sarau Festival on Sunday afternoon. Photo: Jessie Johnston.
Sarau fest celebrates tenth anniversary Jessie Johnston Another year, another Sarau Festival with 2017 marking 10 years since the first event. Throughout its decade, the Sarau Festival has continued to celebrate the blackcurrant harvest and continues to be a great example of community spirit, not to mention a generous supporter of local community groups, initiatives
and facilities. As usual, thousands of people turned out to soak up the sunshine, the entertainment and the variety of stalls. “It’s fantastic, I never miss it but [my friend] has recently moved into the area and this was on her must-do list because she’d heard how wonderful it was,” says Louise Wileman. “You see so many people in the community, the variety is fantastic and it’s all
on your doorstep.” “It’s really awesome,” says Emily Tibbs. “It’s nice and relaxed, we were particularly looking forward to the live music.” “This is our first time [at the Sarau Festival],” says Kathy Mason. “We were just looking forward to the live music and the whole vibe of the event, it does feel very peaceful.” Organiser Jenny Leith says
around 4500 people attended Sarau Festival’s tenth edition and that it was, once again, a very successful day. “It went really well, the day had a happy atmosphere, perfect weather, it was a great party in the Moutere,” says Jenny. “We also had a fantastic team of volunteers and it was great to see a number of young people in the community also come along and volunteer.”
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