THE PRINCE OF WALES AND THE DUCHESS OF CORNWALL VISIT NEW ZEALAND
Bay of Islands
Wednesday 20th November
ENGAGEMENT 18
The Prince of Wales and The Duchess of Cornwall will receive a formal Māori welcome at Waitangi Treaty Grounds
Their Royal Highnesses will arrive at Waitangi Treaty Grounds and be greeted by the Chair of Waitangi National Trust Board and Chief Executive of the Waitangi Treaty Grounds. Their Royal Highnesses will then pay their respects at the Hobson Memorial, before the Pōwhiri (formal welcome) begins, including a short speech by The Prince of Wales. After the ceremony His Royal Highness will plant a tree commemorating the visit.
The Waitangi Treaty Grounds is one of the most significant sites in the history of New Zealand. The Treaty is regarded as New Zealand’s founding document, and enshrines the relationship between Māori and the Crown. The Prince of Wales was the last Royal visitor to the Grounds in 1994.
ENGAGEMENT 19
The Prince of Wales and The Duchess of Cornwall attend a reception at Waitangi Treaty Grounds
Their Royal Highnesses will attend a reception with guests from the Māori community and pause for an official photograph. The Prince and The Duchess will then have the opportunity to view a tree which was planted by Her Majesty The Queen during her 1953 visit to New Zealand.
ENGAGEMENT 20
The Prince of Wales and The Duchess of Cornwall visit tour the Treaty Grounds and visit Waitangi Museum
Their Royal Highnesses will briefly tour the Treaty Grounds and view a demonstration of traditional Māori games, before touring the museum. His Royal Highness will view artefacts and Her Royal Highness will visit the Digital Learning Lab.
The museum was opened in February 2016 and is formally named Te Kōngahu, a Ngāpuhi (word for an unborn child). The name is said to represent the promise or potential of the new nation born here at Waitangi through the signing of the Treaty.
Among the museum displays are christening gifts that were given to Hare and Hariata Pomare by Queen Victoria. The couple were part of a group of Māori taken to England in 1863 and presented to The Queen. On noticing that Hariata was pregnant, Her Majesty advised that she wished to be the child’s godmother, and that it be named either Victoria or Albert. A boy was born in London, and named Albert Victor Pomare. The Queen gave the child the christening set, consisting of an engraved goblet and cutlery, and christening gown, that are kept in the museum.
The Digital Learning Lab is one of three in the country delivering the state-of-the-art digital programme Raranga Matihiko – Weaving Digital Futures. The programme delivers innovative digital technologies to local students who have limited access to new learning opportunities.
The programme is fully funded by the Ministry of Education including teacher release days, transport to and from Waitangi, and use of all the technology available. In the programme students solve real-world problems while enriching their knowledge of their communities and regions. Through accessing national and local museum collections, learners can co-create and curate their own learning using digital technologies. No two programmes are identical, each class having one designed for them, providing support to each child as they develop digital fluency skills. This includes building students’ understanding of computational thinking, digital citizenship and literacy.
ENGAGEMENT 21
The Prince of Wales attends an event for The Prince’s Trust New Zealand
His Royal Highness will visit Queenstown Resort College Tai Tokerau, and meet with young people who are developing environmentally sustainable start-ups through the Prince’s Trust New Zealand Enterprise programme. The Prince will join a group discussion about the hopes and aspirations of these young New Zealanders before meeting with supporters and donors to The Prince’s Trust New Zealand.
The Prince’s Trust New Zealand (PTNZ) Enterprise programme helps young people aged 18 to 30, outside of the main centres, to start their own business by building their practical skills through training, mentoring and financial support. Enterprise begins with a course that allows young entrepreneurs to check the viability of their business idea. Once they have clarified their business plan, they are matched with a mentor who offers one-to-one support for up to two years to develop and grow their company. This engagement coincides with the second pilot delivery of Enterprise, empowering young people with business ideas in tourism, culture and sustainability.
Queenstown Resort College (QRC) is a leading New Zealand Tourism and Hospitality Management College. QRC’s Tai Tokerau campus, established in 2015, has a particular focus on working with rangatahi (youth) Māori students, and has a partnership with Air New Zealand to provide scholarships for young people from around the country to engage with their courses. QRC have a connection with The Prince’s Trust in the UK through one of their tutors, and as a result, a connection was made with Prince’s Trust New Zealand to enable the second delivery of the Enterprise programme to take place at QRC.
ENGAGEMENT 22
The Duchess of Cornwall visits Kerikeri Primary School
During the visit, Her Royal Highness will meet children in the school’s garden participating in the Garden to Table programme, which encourages children to grow their own vegetables in the garden and then learn to make recipes in the kitchen from the food they have grown. The Duchess will be invited to plant a tree in the school’s “Duchess Garden” to commemorate the visist. Her Royal Highness will then meet the school’s therapy dog, Meg, and join children reading to the dog. Finally, The Duchess will join children in the school hall who are preparing food from the garden with a parent volunteer.
Kerikeri Primary School is involved in Enviroschools, an environmental action-based programme where young people design and lead sustainability projects in their schools, neighbourhoods and country. Enviroschools commit to long-term sustainability, where students connect with and explore the environment, then plan, design and take action in collaboration with their communities. Earlier this year, the school attained the Enviroschool Bronze reflection for activities including having a garden, pig buckets, and a recycling programme. The school is also kaitiaki (guardians) of the neighbouring Wairoa stream. The children have planted more than 200 plants on the banks of the stream, and have monitored the water quality.
The school participates in Garden to Table, where children grow vegetables and fruit and then learn how to cook them. This includes the social aspect of preparing food for others and sharing meals together. The school also partners with St John and the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (SPCA) in their Outreach Therapy Pets programme. A specially-trained dog, Meg, works with children, particularly those with additional needs, in the library.
ENGAGEMENT 23
The Prince of Wales meets members of the Paihia Volunteer Fire Brigade
The Prince will visit the local fire station in Paihia and meet with the Chief Fire Officer, firefighters and first responders, all of whom are volunteers. Before departing, His Royal Highness will have the opportunity to meet members of the local community gathered outside the station.
The Fire and Emergency New Zealand Act 2017 combined urban and rural fire services into a single, integrated fire and emergency services organisation, Fire and Emergency NZ (FENZ), with a mandate to provide a wide range of services for communities.
FENZ’ main functions are to promote fire safety; deliver fire prevention, response and suppression services; protect the safety of persons and property endangered by incidents involving hazardous substances; rescue people trapped as a result of transport accidents or other incidents; and undertake urban search and rescue.
FENZ relies on 11,000 volunteers to help keep communities safe. Volunteers make up 85% of the personnel and provide essential services across the country, particularly outside the major cities. They factor in the strengths, risks and needs of their communities into the way they work, and help create safe, resilient communities.
The Paihia Volunteer Fire Brigade is a team of 34 volunteer fire fighters. It was established in 1965.
CATCH UP on the full New Zealand visit at the links below or for more of The Prince of Wales and The Duchess of Cornwall’s most recent engagements, get a copy of the latest issue of Royal Life.
Day 1 | Day 2 | Day 3 | Day 5 | Day 6
