MENPS News

Kia ora koutou

Zones Cricket

Plenty of excitement this week, with further zones success to celebrate for our Cricket teams (3rd Place for the boys and 1st Place for the girls overall!). Great attitudes and healthy competitive spirit from all concerned, with thanks to Karen, Mr Reed and our parent helpers for setting the players up for success.

Parent Conferences

Thanks again to all who were able to attend the Parent Conferences last week. We hope you found them useful in sharing and learning about your child's progress so far this term. These conferences are an essential step in setting the foundations and expectations for the rest of the year, so we appreciate the time you made for them.

As always, please remember that you don't need to wait for conference times if you have questions or concerns about your child's learning at any stage, and we will always get in touch if there are any learning-related matters you may need to be aware.

Attendance Concern Notifications

As mentioned earlier in the term, new attendance protocols are now in place nationally, following a stepped response based on absence thresholds. This means there will be new notifications of concern going forward, based on set thresholds per term and following Ministry of Education communication templates, as outlined in our Attendance Management Plan.

It's important to keep us informed of any absence each day, with sufficient detail so that absences can be correctly recorded. If your child is unwell, for example, simply noting "sick" or "family event" does not provide enough information and may result in an absence being marked incorrectly as unjustified.

Similarly, holidays taken during term time (in anything other than exceptional circumstances) will usually be marked as unjustified, in line with Ministry requirements and our Attendance Policy.

Colour Run Tomorrow!

Tomorrow, of course, we end the week with the much-anticipated Colour Run, which promises to be a memorable experience — with a little controlled chaos thrown in!

Parents are more than welcome to come along and spectate if they're able to, including those participating in the Whānau Run. Just to re-emphasise: expect a messy end to the day, and be sure to pack a towel for the trip home!

Ka kite anõ i a koutou

Alan Jackson, Principal

Friday 20th March:

PTA Colour Run - 1:30pm - 3:30pm

Monday 23rd March:

Year 5 Camp Parent Helper Meeting - 6:00pm - 6:30pm

Wednesday 25th March:

Term 2 New Entrant Cohort Visit 1 - 9:00am - 10:30am

Wednesday 25th - Friday 27th March:

Year 5 Camp - Motu Moana

Can we make our goal of 20k for our new playground ? We have raised just over 15k so far, can make it with one last push ! ❤️

The MENPS PTA Colour Run is happening on Friday 20 March, and we can’t wait to see our tamariki running, laughing, and getting covered head-to-toe in colour. All kids are welcome to run, just come in mufti and clothes that can get messy! 🎨

🕐 1:30–3:00pm – Student Colour Run

🏃 2:30pm – Whānau Run

👕 What to wear:

A light-coloured t-shirt, fun costume, or anything that can get a bit dirty — the brighter the better for maximum colour impact!

Why still sign up?

This isn’t just a fun run — it’s one of our biggest PTA fundraisers of the year. Every donation helps support learning resources, school events, and special extras for our kids.

💛 Tip: Even a small $5–$10 donation from friends and family makes a big difference and helps your child work towards prizes.

🎁 Incentives

* Raise $150 → your whole family can join the Whānau Run (donations cannot be combined)

* Plus lots of spot prizes on the day, including chances to win a Whānau Run & Pizza Parties! Each year level can win their own party!! 🥳

🩺 Health & Safety

If your child has health concerns (for example asthma), please let us know at menpspta@gmail.com so we can support them to participate safely.

We can provide masks 😷, and ensure colour is not directed at the face. A full Health & Safety plan will be available on the day.

🚀 Create your fundraising page here:

https://menpscolourrun.raiseit.co.nz

Let’s make this our biggest and brightest Colour Run yet!

Want to volunteer on the day? 👉 Sign up to volunteer here:

https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSfjpu51S-WCeTYGbf0dXC5Jj1LJE3uvOtLwq1lFdBNc6yJc_g/viewform?usp=publish-editor

Bring your energy, your biggest smiles, and let’s get colourful together! 🎨

— MENPS PTA

The Central East Auckland Weet‑Bix TRYathlon is back on Sunday 22 March 2026, and MENPS will have a school tent on site for families to meet, relax, and cheer on our tamariki. All MENPS kids are welcome to stop by the tent — even if they registered separately or under a different team. If your child would like to join the MENPS team, you can register here:

https://raceroster.com/registration/4fc6077c-9fb7-4b68-95c4-f59430adba9c/entry?team=859892

A Race Roster login (email + password) is required, and children will be automatically linked to the MENPS group.

Please note:

Parents must remain onsite and supervise their children throughout the event.

This is not a school fundraiser — any optional donations go directly to Weet‑Bix charities.

We’re excited to announce that MENPS is proudly hosting this year’s Kapa Kahui Festival in our school hall on Thursday, 2nd April 2026 – and it’s shaping up to be an incredible celebration of culture, performance, and community!

🍴 PTA Food Court – Volunteers Needed!

Our amazing PTA will be running the catering food court for our visiting schools and guests. We’d love your help to make it a success! If you’re keen to lend a hand (even for a short time), please get in touch:

📧 Menpspta@gmail.com

🎭 Kapa Haka Support Crew

Our MENPS Kapa Haka rōpū will also need support on the day to help with getting ready, organising, and keeping everything running smoothly. More details on how to get involved will be shared soon!

Let’s come together to support our tamariki and showcase the strength of our school community. This is truly not to be missed!

Annual Menps Cultural Festival& Matariki Celebration

Our annual festival has become a community staple, whether you’d like to perform, dance, sing, share a craft or food from your country, let us know and we will weave it in to the fabric of the

festival.

When: Sunday 21st June 2026

Where: Mount Eden Normal Primary School

Time: TBC

Interested in volunteering your time in any capacity or showcase your culture? Please email the

team on menpspta@gmail.com