Gateway students kick-start their farming careers in Northland
26 November 2025
In a small rural community in North Hokianga, school students are learning practical skills and gaining valuable farming experience through the Primary ITO Gateway programme.
Gateway student, Halen drenching lambs, with Leyland in the background.
Te Kura Takiwā o Manganuiowae-Broadwood Area School is located 25km north of Hokianga Harbour in Te Tai Tokerau/Northland. With a roll of 134 students from years 1 to 13, ninety-eight percent of students identify as Māori, with strong ties to local iwi Ngāpuhi and Te Rarawa.
Farming and the primary sector are central to the local economy in North Hokianga.
Broadwood Area School offers the government-funded Gateway programme for three vocational pathways: primary industries, construction and hospitality. Students spend time in the workplace or on farm each week, alongside their other school subjects.
Gateway gives students the opportunity to try out a career path, and employers the chance to see if a student might be a good fit in their workplace.
Twenty-one students from years 11 to 13 are enrolled this year, with 53 having taken part over the past four years.
Whaea Cath and her husband Craig run an 800-cow beef farm just down the road from school. She had left teaching to help run the farm, before being lured back in 2022 with a part-time role overseeing the Gateway students on farm.
She says the students love the opportunity to learn farming skills and attendance rates are high.
Leyland and Harriet on the quad bikes feeding hay to mixed age cows.
The students complete a mix of theory in the classroom and at least two hours a week on farm. They learn and practice a variety of skills, including setting up break feeds and feeding hay, checking water, assisting with fencing and helping with docking lambs, milking and feeding calves. During calving season, the students are on farm most days.
They are provided with gumboots and rainwear to keep them warm and dry.
“The students always want to stay at the farm for longer,” Whaea Cath laughs.
“They enjoy the practical nature of the subject, getting out of the classroom and learning about job opportunities right on their doorstep.”
Teaching on the farm is a family affair, with Whaea Cath’s husband Craig, his nephew and her parents all sharing their extensive farming knowledge and experience with the students.
Monique cutting hay to feed to Charolias bulls.
Unit standards achieved through Gateway are recorded on the students’ Record of Learning with the New Zealand Qualifications Authority (NZQA) and can be applied towards future learning, including farming apprenticeships. Many of the students have completed other training including farm vehicle micro-credentials, pest control and safe use of chainsaws.
In May, a year 13 student left the school to start her first farming job in the Waikato, after two years in the Primary ITO Gateway programme. Others have gone on to employment, further study - including as a vet nurse, or are considering farm intern programmes.
Giving Gateway students a wide variety of experiences is essential. The students are regulars at the monthly Broadwood Saleyards and help at the annual bull sale on farm. They take part in a mock bull auction, where they have a brief and bid to buy their most suitable bull. Some have been part of the Whitebait connection programme, monitoring water quality in the awa/river on farm and contributing water sources.
Mock bull sale auction, with Year 11 Gateway students trying to buy their chosen bull.
Alongside farm activities, the students are responsible for organising the annual school cross-country run on Whaea Cath’s farm. They help to set up the wood chopping event prior to the North Hokianga A&P Show and have revived the popular school pet day.
Primary ITO’s Suzanne Carruth administers the primary industries Gateway programme, with 330 senior students in schools across the country now signed up. She is passionate about the programme and its potential to help students find a career they love.
Pane on the catwalk coppering cows, with Craig supervising.
Primary ITO Trades Academy tutor and Gateway marker Tracey McLean has also worked alongside the school over the past few years to ensure the success of the programme.
Whaea Cath says the programme provides options for students and helps keep them at school for longer, improving educational outcomes.
“The students have been very successful in achieving their unit standards.
“We are grateful to have so much support from the school, whānau, and the community for this programme.”
Find out more about the Primary ITO Gateway programme on our website here.