Meet the new king for King’s
The new head of King’s College is aiming for ‘‘the best all-round education’’.
That includes making sure the school is in involved in its community.
Simon Lamb was principal at Takapuna Grammar School for almost 13 years before he started at the Otahuhu school in May.
With a term down, the 49-yearold says he’s really enjoying it so far and feels really welcome.
‘‘The most impressive element of this school is the top quality of kids and I appreciate that quality and their eagerness to learn,’’ he says.
There’s a number of things he’d like to achieve at the school, including holding on to traditions which remind him of when he was at school.
‘‘My old school was St Bede’s College and it had a chapel and a deep sense of community and an old boys network so in that context I’m looking forward to being back in an environment like that.
‘‘That’s something I respect and value so we want to treasure that.
‘‘The phrase ‘the best all-round education’ is certainly about the academics but it’s also about other things.’’
Lamb would also like the school to be more involved in the community.
‘‘We want to be seen as a school inside of South Auckland.
‘‘We are proud of that but I think we could do a lot more work about service and being part of the community.’’
At the moment students are volunteering at Middlemore Hospital reception, donating learning equipment to a school in Tonga and lending a hand to local centres such as rest homes, Women’s Refuge and the Mangere Refugee Resettlement Centre.
One of the first activities Lamb will be undertaking is visiting intermediate schools, talking to their principals and becoming embedded in the local education community.
And he’s in the perfect position to do it because he lives right in the heart of Otahuhu.
It takes him just five minutes to walk to work because he lives on campus.
‘‘My house is just at the gate,’’ he says.
‘‘It’s unbelievable. Some students will sidle alongside me and because it’s a boarding school there’s traffic to and from the breakfast.
‘‘Then five minutes later you’re outside the office in a completely different frame.’’