Matthew 22:37-39

You shall love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind... and you shall love your neighbour as yourself.

Bethlehem College has a unique and wrap around care system where manaakitanga – the development of a culture of care - is intentional. A major part of the delivery of manaakitanga is through a house system.

There are six houses, each with a Pastoral Dean to view a list of the Pastoral Deans please refer to our staff page

Love from the centre of who you are; don’t fake it. Run for dear life from evil; hold on for dear life to good. Be good friends who love deeply; practice playing second fiddle.” Romans 12: vs 9-10

Pastoral Care is a key value within the community of Bethlehem College. One of the descriptions used of Jesus was that of the “Good Shepherd”. Within the college we seek to create a community based on active shepherding love, encouragement and support of students as they grow and develop. Our aim is to build a safe environment where students feel they belong to the school community and they are connected as individuals to significant adults and to other students.

Manaakitanga: a community of care

This is the phrase we use to describe the experience we hope all members of our college community will have, whether they are students, parents/caregivers or staff. Jesus said that as his disciples we would be known for the quality of our love for one another.

Manaakitanga is expressed in the quality of our relationships. Students to students. Staff to students. Staff to parents. Students to staff. Parents to staff. Parents to other people’s children. Staff to staff. Parents to one another. This results in an inclusive, safe and supportive community where each individual is valued as a gift from God and someone made in the image of God. Our role is to help each student grow and develop an understanding of the unique gifts that God has given them to serve within this community and out into the world.

Partnership with parents

Partnership with parents is another key value within Bethlehem College. We aim to work with parents as we seek to grow and develop the young people in our care. Communication between home and school is important as we share together our knowledge and understanding of any student. Partnership also involves a commitment between us as parents and as a college around the goal of growing our young people into mature adults.

Restoration

Our third key value is one of restoration. Underpinning our discipline systems within the school is a commitment to work restoratively with our young people. As they grow, our students are going to make mistakes. These are opportunities for us to teach our young people, help them understand the hurt and damage they have caused and to encourage them to find ways of restoring the brokenness in their relationships.

How do we support your children?

To assist this communication and partnership we have a number of Pastoral Care structures within the school. When a student starts at Bethlehem College they will be allocated into one of six houses: Aylward, Brown, Carmichael, Hudson-Taylor, Scott and Tarore. Brothers and sisters will join the same house. In Years 1 - 6, students will be involved in a small number of house activities, learn a little about their house and develop relationships that are house based.

Each house in the Year 7 - 13 College has a Pastoral Dean, staff, senior and junior Student Leaders who give leadership and provide pastoral care for students within their house.

The Houses provide a platform for a number of competitive activities, which help students feel they belong and are connected into the college community. The activities range across the four pillars of college life – Intellectual, Cultural, Physical and Moral.

Home rooms

Year 1 - 9: Each student is part of a K-Group or home room. Students are taught by the one teacher and that teacher develops a relationship with their students and the parents. Any concerns can be taken directly to the K-Group teacher. Each year group has a team leader who leads the academic and pastoral work at that level.

Year 10 - 13: K-Groups are organised into vertical forms. This means there are students from Year 10-13 in the same group for pastoral and administrative purposes. Each K-Group belongs to one of six houses and that house is overseen by a Pastoral Dean. The students stay with both their house and their K-Group for the last four years of their education. Each house develops its own individual culture and supports the overall culture of manaakitanga. Over this period the K-Group teacher and Pastoral Dean get to know the students and their families and provide pastoral support where needed.

To find out more, contact:
Andrew Allen, Director of Pastoral Care & Counselling
Phone: 07 579 1762
Email: Andrew Allen

Biblical Foundations

The Bible is the record of God’s interaction with all of creation. Far from being an out of date and dead document, we consider it to be the source of our knowledge about God and his plan for restoration and relationship with humanity. The Bible is our source of truth and it informs how we live in and see this world. All of our teaching and participation in the Bethlehem College community of learning aims to be biblically grounded and culturally engaged so our students are equipped to participate in a wide variety of roles wherever they may be.

Have questions?
Contact Wayne Fraser
Head of Biblical Foundations