Southern View: October 22, 2020

SOUTHERN VIEW Latest Canterbury news at starnews.co.nz
Thursday October 22 2020 5
Call for a delay to changes
• From page 1
“I think they made the best of
it with what they have to work
with. I can understand but I don’t
think it’s good enough. They said
they were just following ministry
guidelines, but that’s a bit of a
cop-out.
“Being sorry doesn’t solve the
problem.”
Concerns raised over the
proposal saw some homes in
the western boundary missing
out due to streets being split in
half, particularly on Conway St,
Stanbury Ave, Roberta Drive and
Rose St.
Longer travel distances for
some students and an overlap
into other school zones were also
main objections.
Board of trustees chairwoman
Stephanie Muller said it was not
a requirement for the school to
do letter drops in the community
but acknowledged there was
room for improvement.
She said the school’s consultation
process included sending
letters to 15 local schools in
the area, 20 early childhood
providers, an advertisement in
a September issue of Southern
View, as well as emails and letters
to the school community from
August 17.
“The board acknowledges this
is an emotional and contentious
issue for families,” she said.
“While you can always do
more, we do feel confident
that we have done our best to
genuinely seek feedback and we
were very open to considering all
submissions that we received.
“As a board, we are just following
the process set out by the
ministry.”
Parents were wanting the
consultation process – which
closed on September 25 – to be
extended until the beginning of
next year, for no zone reductions
to the western boundary,
and further reductions to the
northern boundary extending to
Milton St.
Muller said parents understood
why the changes were not possible
because it would overcrowd
schools nearby, such as Addington
School.
The board has instead asked
the MoE to delay the proposed
changes, which takes effect next
year.
Said Muller: “The board will
recommend to the ministry that
the change does not take effect
until term 1 2022.
“The additional time will allow
the families affected to continue
to plan to attend Somerfield next
year, and we look forward to
welcoming them then.”
The ministry’s decision will
be revealed at the next board of
trustees meeting on October 30.
Passion for people
• From page 1
Gautam is looking forward to
the journey ahead and is taking
over the position after the death
of long-serving community
board member and former city
councillor Sally Buck.
“I’m excited, this is just the
beginning. I’m really proud of
the Central Ward,” she said.
“I really want to thank the
people of central Christchurch
for seeing beyond my skin colour.
I’m grateful for the opportunity
and I will not let them down.”
Her vision for the ward includes
making it a place where
everyone felt safe, valued and
had a sense of belonging.
“We also need to sort out
parking for residents, unhosted
home-share accommodation and
footpaths and roads.”
A major focus was on encouraging
more civic participation in
her ward as she identified a lack
of engagement and education on
what a community board can do
for residents.
The recent by-election saw a
23.46 per cent voter turnout, and
33.43 per cent at the local elections
last year.
“Engagement – it’s what is
lacking and it’s a frustration.
I want to make sure the community
understands the process
as people have no idea what the
structure is,” she said.
“Like if people want to move
a tree on their street, you need
to go through the community
board. Most of the time the
process isn’t clear to the public.”
She also wanted to prioritise
taking steps to ensure Linwood
Village gets a revamp and becomes
a safer place to be in.
Gautam moved from Shaktinagar
(UP) – a small Indian town
700km north-west of Kolkata
– to Christchurch nearly two
decades ago after an arranged
marriage to join her husband,
Sunil Ranjan, in the city.
In that time she has worked
as a business mentor, a justice of
the peace, a marriage celebrant,
and a business and management
lecturer at Canterbury University.
She will also be finishing her
PhD later this year in immigrant
entrepreneurship at UC.
Gautam’s experience in the
migrant and wider community
and a passion for people was
what drew her to the Central
Ward role.
“The council is doing great, but
I wanted to be at the table where
decisions are made,” she said.
“I’m not a complainer, I’m a
person who looks for solutions
and I was getting frustrated that
things weren’t getting done.”
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