Our Community in the Club – from Waihi College
We are incredibly grateful to Waihi Beach Lifeguard Services for allowing us use of the Surf Club as a classroom for our Secondary School Police Pathways Programme.
Now into its second year, the course consists of 27 Year 12 and 13 students from Katikati, Paeroa and Waihi Colleges who are serious about pursuing a career with the NZ Police. Successful completion of the course equates to the pre-police college distance learning course: this is a prerequisite before starting at the Royal NZ Police College (RNZPC).
The Waihi/Katikati/Paeroa College programme is coordinated by Waihi College, and supported by several committed local police officers, including Senior Constables Harley North and Dave Grant. The course runs every Tuesday (school terms only) and is a fun, interactive programme involving learning via activities, role plays and team challenges.
The programme is physically and academically challenging; students must be committed to pursuing a career in the police or the armed forces. Students must be committed to improving their fitness and prepared to participate in physical activity every week - there is a lot of running!
The Surf Club is a fantastic venue for us. The open spaces are perfect for workouts, scenarios and small workshops, and the fantastic location means that we have been able to make use of the beach and local trails for intensive PT training. We also recently hosted Hauraki Plains College Police Studies students at the Surf Club for a Challenge Day, during which the teams raced each other to successfully complete policing tasks.
David Litton (Club President) has presented to students on his own career in the Police, and also ran a workshop with students on the important partnership that Waihi Beach Surf Club has with the Police during search and rescue situations and incidents.
Using the Surf Club as venue has also meant that students have been able to learn about lifeguarding opportunities. Police Studies students are encouraged to consider becoming lifeguards, as an application to the NZ Police is considerably strengthened with some volunteer service commitment and qualifications.
In return, the students are expected to “pay it forward” in terms of service to the Surf Club. At the start of last season, the lifeguard kitchen and fridges were given a serious deep clean, and they were recently tasked with removing the sandbags filled and used to protect the Club in the storms of Autumn 2021 – a great way to utilise their newfound fitness and strength!
