Ellesmere College - Te Kāreti o Waihora

15/09/2026

A great opportunity for parents to see what their children have been up to at school - and for anyone in the community to come along and take a look inside our new campus!

14/09/2026

Nominations for our Board of Trustees Student Representative are NOW CLOSED.
If we have received more than one nomination, we will move to an election - with voting opening on Sunday September 20th at 10.30am.

13/09/2026

Reminder:

12/09/2026

Congratulations to one of our past students Zac Harkess for winning the NZ stablehand of the year award tonight 🎉
So awesome to see all his hard work over the last 3 1/2 years acknowledged!

11/09/2026

10/09/2026

*Celebrating our ākonga*

A huge congratulations to our Southbridge Senior B team! 🏆

We are incredibly proud of our students for coming 1st in their grade! What a fantastic achievement and a great result for the team. 👏🏼💙

Well done to everyone involved - you should all be very proud of yourselves! 🎉

10/09/2026

Nominations for our new BOT Student Rep are OPEN, but close on September 14th and midday.
NO LATE NOMINATIONS can be accepted.

10/09/2026

⭐️⭐️Ellesmere College Senior A Netball Team Shines at SISS Tournament⭐️⭐️

Our Senior A Netball Team recently returned from the South Island Secondary Schools (SISS) Netball Tournament, and we couldn't be prouder of the way they represented Ellesmere College.

The tournament began with five highly competitive and incredibly close matches. While the results didn't quite fall our way in those early games, the team showed outstanding resilience, determination, and teamwork throughout. Their perseverance paid off, with the girls finishing the tournament strongly by winning their final three matches and ending the week on a real high.

Beyond the results, it was wonderful to witness our RISE values of Respect, Integrity, Success and Empathy in action throughout the week. Whether competing on court, supporting teammates from the sidelines, or interacting with officials and opposition teams, the players consistently demonstrated these values with pride. Match officials made a special point of complimenting our team on their outstanding behaviour, composure, and sportsmanship, particularly when faced with challenging situations during games. These comments were a wonderful reflection of the character of this group and the way they represented our school community.

Off the court, the team looked fantastic in their new warm-up tops and rugby jerseys, proudly representing Ellesmere College wherever they went.

🖤💛A Heartfelt Thank You🖤💛
Opportunities such as competing at a South Island tournament simply would not be possible without the incredible support of our community.

As a small community school, we know there are many worthy causes seeking support, which makes us especially grateful for the generosity shown to our team this season. Whether you sponsored uniforms, purchased player sponsorships through the Selwyn Times, donated food for our fundraising events, contributed raffle prizes, attended functions, or simply cheered us on from afar, your support played an important role in making this experience possible for our players.

We would like to extend our sincere thanks to our wonderful sponsors:

🖤💛Gold Sponsors🖤💛
Tuffnell Drainage, Think Water Canterbury, Superior Property Management, McMillan Drilling, Canterbury Waterproofing, Crozier Farm, Harkers Bus and Coach Service, Rawstron Consulting, and One Scoop or Two Ice Creams and Fresh from Rollos.

🖤💛Silver Sponsors🖤💛
Leeston Physiotherapy, Leeston Pharmacy, Leeston Medical Centre, Greg Lemon Builders, Nairn Electrical, Nikolaison Family, Ellesmere Motor Bodies, Hunting & Fishing, Three60 Consult, Lays, Bailey Suzy McPherson, Rathagen Fencing, Ellesmere Butchery, and Farm Source Leeston.

🖤💛Special Thanks🖤💛
Leeston Hammer Hardware, Rolleston PAK'nSAVE, Ellesmere RSA, Ellesmere Lions, and Leeston Bowls Club.

To all our sponsors, supporters, families, coaches, managers and wider community, thank you for helping our young athletes experience the privilege of competing on the South Island stage. Your investment in youth sport makes a lasting difference, and we are incredibly appreciative of your support.

Well done, Senior A. We are proud of the way you competed, conducted yourselves, and represented Ellesmere College throughout the tournament!!

10/09/2026

🐎Celebrating our ākonga🐎

Xanthe Morton and her horse, Sizzle N Hot Hustler, affectionately known as Mac, kicked off their SISS adventure at McLeans Island, joining almost 300 other school-aged riders for a busy few days of competition.

While most competitors were riding as part of school teams, Xanthe took on the challenge as an individual, entering both dressage and the Competitive Trail Ride (CTR).

Monday got off to a slightly nerve-wracking start with Mac’s vet check before the CTR. He was given the full once-over, including a visual check for injuries, a resting heart-rate check and a trot-up to make sure he was sound. Thankfully, Mac passed with flying colours, proving that this old campaigner was more than ready for another day of action.

With the vet check out of the way, Xanthe swapped nerves for riding gear and headed off for her first dressage test. It went well, with the pair finishing around the middle of their group. Xanthe was particularly pleased with the result, given that dressage isn’t exactly Mac’s favourite pastime!

Then came the CTR, an event Xanthe had never ridden before. Riders set off at their allocated times with the aim of completing a 10km course in the optimum time of one hour. The catch? Every minute under the optimum time attracts two penalty points, while every minute over earns one penalty.

And there was another challenge waiting at the finish line. Mac’s heart rate was checked as they crossed the line and then again within half an hour. He came in at 60 beats per minute, before recovering beautifully to just 38 beats per minute at his final check - a fantastic recovery for an older horse.

The weather decided to add a little extra excitement, too. Xanthe and Mac were caught out on the course in a hailstorm, but despite the rather wild conditions, they crossed the finish line with Xanthe sporting a huge smile.

Tuesday brought much kinder weather, and Xanthe and Mac were back in the dressage arena for their second test. This time they really clicked, producing a much stronger performance and a significantly better score than the day before. In fact, it was one of the best tests they have done together, leaving Xanthe absolutely thrilled with her horse.

With 38 riders in the class and competition at a very high level, finishing in the middle of the field is a fantastic achievement.

While many of the school teams camp on site for the week, enjoying evening entertainment and educational activities, the real highlight of SISS is perhaps the simplest one: spending a few days surrounded by great human and equine friends, competing, learning, having a few adventures - and making memories along the way.

Well done Xanthe!!