Alfriston College

Alfreston College takes a holistic approach to smokefree. This whole-of-person approach incorporates the school's smoke-free policy.

Alfriston College in Manurewa is one of the newest schools in the country, having opened only seven years ago. The school is impressive. Two rows of two - storey blocks face one another across an open space that features gardens and walkways. One of the first things you notice when you enter the school is the marae, which is nestled between two blocks and can be seen from anywhere in the school. Deputy Principal Andrea Tapu explains that when they were planning the school, they didn't want the marae tucked away out of sight. So the whare takes pride of place and provides a visual focus for the complex.

HOLISTIC APPROACH

Alfriston College approaches education holistically. Students are placed in one of five whanau where they become part of an extended family of staff and learners during their years at school. Each whanau is located in a purpose built two story networked building.This whole-of-person approach incorporates the school's smoke-free policy as well. Students learn about the hazards of smoking as part of a health curriculum."We have had a smoke-free policy since we opened," Andrea Tapu says. "At that time we only had a couple of teachers who smoked. After that it was easy because it was legislated. We did a survey in 2007 and we found that numbers of students smoking were relatively small."

When it comes to the students Andrea believes that the smokefree message has definitely made an impact.

"Awareness amongst students is high. Maori girls still think it's cool and they're our biggest group of recidivists. We're not sure what to do there."

Andrea does notice some gender differences when it comes to teenagers and smoking at school - boys are more likely to get caught! "Girls know they're not supposed to smoke but they're better at hiding it. Our punishments are restorative, so we design exercises that get the students to reflect on the impact smoking has on health."

In 2008 Mana Whenua i Tamaki Makaurau presented Alfriston College with nine pou printed onto screens. Mana Whenua is a collective of ten hapu whose tribal boundaries incorporate all of the Counties Manukau District Health Board catchment area; and these pou represent their health values. The pou were presented at a special assembly and Nganeko Minhinnick from Mana Whenua talked to the students about the health values.

"This was a great opportunity to build a relationship with the school and influence the way students think about health," Nganeko says.

The marae whare is a work in progress and Andrea Tapu says that the pou could be incorporated into the building. Overall Andrea is pleased with the way that a combination of public education and the school's smoke-free policy is impacting on the health of students. "I could count the number of students we have had to inform parents of smoking this year on one hand."

Key learnings

* Incorporate benefits of being smokefree into the curriculum

* Link smoking to health

* When it comes to punishment be restorative

* Create partnerships between schools and health providers