North Canterbury News: February 13, 2020

BOARDING SCHOOL
St Bede’s College Boarding School
St Bede’s is aCatholic
Collegefor boys founded
by theSociety of Mary in
1911 anditis also theonly
Catholic boardingschool
forboysinthe SouthIsland.
Catholic, Marist and
Bedean principles and
values form thebasis of a
holistic educationatthe
College. We aimnot to
make theCollege greatbut
to ensure everyboy has the
opportunity to be great, and
we endeavourtodevelop
youngmen of Catholic hearts andminds
throughthe experiences theboyshavein
their time here at theCollege.
St Bede’s is aCollegefor all…a place
wheregospelvalues arepractisedto
helpformprincipledmen; alearning
environment whereeveryoneachieves;
aplace that teachers want to come
to becauseofthe strengthofthe
community;aplace also,where boys can
embrace spiritual,sporting, culturaland
community activities, whichall combined
shape boysintomen. That’sthe priority
andthatisinour DNA.
BoardingatStBede’sCollegeisa
tradition that goes back to the1920s.
Ourrichhistory andtraditionprovides
an excellentfoundationtoembrace the
challengesofthe modern era andprepare
ourboystobeCatholic leaderswherever
lifetakes them.
Likemanyother organisationsin
Christchurch,our campus has been
brokenand tested. The demolitionofthe
Chapel seriouslychallengedus. It was
As theonlyindependentco-educational
boardingschoolinthe SouthIsland,
St Andrew’sCollegehas aunique pointof
difference.“Providing theopportunity to
meet theneedsof‘sons anddaughters’is
aprivilege andgives an authenticfamily
feel”saysDirectorofBoarding, MattParr.
“Co-educational boardingallowsour
students to grow together in anaturaland
supportive environment, wheretheycan
share their boarding journey.”
The family atmosphereisanother
thesinglemostimportant buildingatSt
Bede’s College, andhad symbolised the
heartand soul of theCollege ever since
thethirdRector, Father Gilbert, converted
it from thegymnasiumin1929.
In thelasttwo years, theCollege has
completed a$16m buildingproject; stage
twoofthe Gymnasium, anew Food
Technologyand ArtBlock,arenovated
PerformingArtsCentreand significantly,
thenew Chapel of St Bede,which have
greatlyenhancedthe campus facilities.
BoardersatStBede’sCollegebenefit
from theseand otherfacilities on site,
andaself-development programme
involvinganumberofdifferent activities
whereboysare givenopportunities to
learnavarietyofskills, areofferedinthe
evenings as well as study.
Preference andnon-preference
applications areavailableand personalised
toursofthe Boarding School andthe
Collegecan takeplace on request. We
look forwardtointroducingyou to theSt
Bede’s Collegeboardinghostel.
The St Andrew’s College
Boarders’Advantage
specialaspectofthe culture in
St Andrew’sthree boardinghouses–one
forgirls, onefor seniorboysand one
forjunior boys. As boys andgirls live
alongside each otheratStAndrew’s, their
varied needsare met, andeachhouse is
managedaccordingly.
Matt’s philosophy on supporting
studentwell-beingand achievement
revolves around making decisions based
on “whatagreatparentmight do”. “I
believe great parentsset theculture and
tone of their familyand
foster asense of belonging,
protectionand direction.
We setthe same intentions
in ourboardingfamilyatSt
Andrew’s.”
“BoardingatStAndrew’s
Collegeisunique in
culture,fullofopportunity
andcaringinnature. We
welcome anyenquiryand
encourage an overnight stay
to experience ourculture
andmeetthe team”says
Matt.