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Supplied: Margaret Bond and Lennox Skipper (5)
Top of the south iwi Ngati Apa ki te Ra To is sending all its new entrants off to school with branded backpacks containing all the materials their school requires them to have.
Trustee Margaret Bond says it’s am way to show the tamariki their iwi is with them from the start of their education journey.
She says finding money for stationery and other resources is a challenge for some families.
The iwi is working with a major retail chain that keeps a database of the requirements at all the area’s schools.
She says the iwi hopes to eventually extend the initiative to intermediate and secondary school students.
The iwi also spends about $20,000 a year on tertiary education fee grants.
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