ENTRIES CALLED FOR ADVENTURE SCHOOL

Press, Volume XCIX, Issue 29378, 3 December 1960, Page 12

ENTRIES CALLED FOR ADVENTURE SCHOOL

Mr Hamish Thomas, a leading Christchurch barrister and solictor and also a well known yachtsman, will be varden of the “New Zealand Adventure School” to be held on Motutapu Island in the Hauraki gulf in February. This will be an experimental project to see whether the British "Outward Bound” school idea will work in this country.

New Zealand sponsors, of this scheme, who have had experience of Outward Bound, believe the Dominion has great scope for this disciplined adventure in open country, on the mountains, and on the water. Mr E. Dawson, an executive director of Outward Bound, is coming to New Zealand next y"ir and, if support Is proved, it is expected that he will help set up an Outward Bound Trust. It is believed that Mr Dawson will have discussions with ‘•he Governor-General (Lord Cobham) who is very interested in the idea. Applications for entry to this adventure school are now being received by the secretary of the organising committee, Mr C A Satterthwaite, at the Canterbury University School of Engineering. Christchurch. Already about a dozen have been received. It is expected that two or three dozen boys between the ages of 16 and 19 years will be accepted. They will enter the school on February 10 for 15 days and the all-in fee (apart from travel to Auckland) will be £lO Mr G. A Shouksmith. lecturer in psychology at the University of Canterbury, who' is interim chairman of the committee, said there was no hard and fast method of selection. l The aim was to develop initiative, leadership, and teamwork so app’ications would be accepted from interested individuals and also from firms, societies, and clubs who might wish to sponsor candidates. The latter was a common British method of application, the spon-

sors meeting the fees of young people whom they believed would quickly develop in character and personality if given controlled challenge. In so doing sponsors often found that they were bringing out their future leaders.

Three instructors had already been appointed, said Mr Sh>uk. smith A naval officer would teach seamanship and navigation a leading mountaineer would give expedition training, and another general instructor would supervise recreation and rock climbing. There would also be an athletics coach. The chaplain would be the Rev. Paul Goddard. chaplain at the University of Canterbury and a former fighter pilot who was qualified also to teach navigation and mapreading.