Everything you need to know about Conference 2024

Conference is back for another year! This year we are holding 3 events- in Dunedin, Wellington and Auckland in the April school holidays. Anyone who has been to one of our conferences will know how lifechanging these events are and we want you to join us for all the fun! Read on to hear more about this year’s events and find out how you can take part.

What is conference?

One way to describe Kaitiaki o Ara/SADD conference is that it is a leadership camp! We get a big bunch of awesome, passionate, fun-loving young people together in one place for a couple of nights and let the magic happen! We have a huge focus on building up student’s skills, knowledge, confidence, networks, and so much more. At conference we run awesome interactive sessions to help you to be effective and confident leaders and there is also a strong emphasis on the amazing talents and skills you each bring to the table to help make SADD and road safety education what it is. It’s loads of fun, super insightful and an incredible thing to pop on your CV or applications for future opportunities.

When and where are this year’s events?

Dunedin - John McGlashan College. 13th to 15th April
Wellington- St Patrick’s College Silverstream. 17th to 19th April
Auckland - Kings College. 22nd to 24th April.

We have used all 3 of these venues multiple times before and they are fantastic - great food, awesome experience.

Who goes to conference?

These events are for our secondary aged SADD students or students who are interested in getting involved. We welcome registrations from year 9 to 13 and you don’t have to be the leader of your group or even be running SADD in your school yet! The content is suitable for anyone from complete newbies right through to our experienced students. Conference is the perfect opportunity for aspiring leaders who are ready to connect, engage and drive their own future. We do ask that any students who register have some intention of engaging with the SADD programme beyond conference and have an interest in improving road safety outcomes for their peers. Conference involves lots of student-led activities and so is best suited for young people who want to learn and engage.
As well as our awesome students who come along, our Kaitiaki o Ara team are there to facilitate and support students and we often have some amazing road safety partners come along to support our team and students too. Teachers and parents are not required to attend alongside their students.

Where will we stay?

The cool thing about conference is that we all stay together on site so you don’t need to arrange any accommodation. We are being hosted by boarding schools, so they are well set up to accommodate everyone and feed us too. Registration is inclusive of everything – accommodation, catering, activities, and resources. All you need to do is get yourself to the venue and from there we take care of it all.  Our SADD team stay on site too, so there are plenty of experienced adults around to support you during the whole event.

How do I get there?

It depends where you are coming from! We have some info on our website with some travel options and our team are more than happy to help you out too. We usually have students coming from all over the country for our events and many will take buses, trains, get a ride or even fly!

What will I actually do there?

Quite a lot really! You will learn more about road safety in New Zealand and about how you can be a part of leading positive change. You will hear about the opportunities that SADD offers to learn, develop and grow your leadership capabilities, both in the road safety space and for your own personal and future professional gain. You will collaborate with others on some awesome creative challenges and use your unique youth perspective to develop the SADD programme for current and future generations. You will take part in team building games and activities, make new friends and learn new skills. You will also eat, sleep, socialise and will leave feeling inspired, empowered and like you can change the world (which you can!)

What does it cost?

We do our best to cover as much of the costs as possible but we are a charity so there is still a registration fee to attend - this is $185 pp which includes everything from the moment you arrive (accommodation, food, activities, resources, a t-shirt plus more). The good news is that we have a couple of funding opportunities to support students with this cost so it doesn’t need to be a barrier for you attending. If you are keen to come along and not sure if you or your school could pay - check out our info on funding here, there’s a very good chance we can find you funding.

What if I don’t know anyone?

Don’t worry – right from the beginning conference is designed to connect you with new people so you won’t be on your own. Many students come knowing nobody but leave with lots of new friends. Don’t worry if you don’t think you will know anyone – we will look out for you and make sure you get to know people in no time.

How do I register?

Check out our conference page here. You can apply for funding, register for your closest event and view some info on travel and other FAQs. Please reach out to our team if you have any other questions as we will certainly be able to help you out!

See you there!!!!