Christchurch City Council supporting cultural diversity
Funding international education initiatives
The Christchurch City Council funded Canterbury Development Corporation (CDC) facilitates Education Christchurch and Canterbury, an organisation which actively promotes our region as an international education destination to people from many different cultures.
Students study at primary, secondary and tertiary levels as well as English language schools. Many of the students go on to live within the region and fill jobs in industries experiencing skill shortages.
Business management workshops are open to migrants with New Zealand Permanent Residency status and those holding a Long Term Business Visa. Criteria are available on the CDC website.
CDC plays an industry development role within the agri-business, education, ICT, specialised manufacturing, SMEs, medtech/biotech, innovation, infrastructure and Asian economic relationships sectors.
Further info: Cultural diversity
Central City Business Association
Ensuring Christchurch's central city is a dynamic successful hub
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- Christchurch has a range of successful businesses
- New businesses are attracted to our city
Christchurch retail businesses operate within a very competitive environment. The Central City Business Association has been formed to harness the knowledge and experience of passionate central city business people and stakeholders to improve the competitiveness of the central city. The business association is governed directly by members to ensure that services respond to needs.
A manager has been appointed to liaise with businesses and oversee improvements to security, cleaning and marketing. Ultimately these improvements aim to increase sales and profitability.
Marketing and promotion and attracting some additional niche businesses are areas that will be focused on. Increasing the number of events held in the central city is likely to be one method used to promote the central city and improve the vitality of the area. Events will bring people and breath life into central city spaces. Some events are likely to be centred around existing annual events such as New Zealand Cup and Show Week, along with other new events.
Champion Canterbury Awards
Celebrating business success
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- Christchurch has a range of successful businesses
- New businesses are attracted to our city
- Christchurch attracts and retains skilled people
The Champion Canterbury Awards celebrate the excellence and enterprise of business in the Canterbury Region. The awards showcase the regions business talent and capability and are a platform to pay tribute to those enterprises who are building our economy and community.
The awards present Christchurch as a vibrant, innovative and leading edge place to do business. They are presented to small and medium/large businesses under these categories: Champion Producer/Manufacturer; Champion Global Operator; Champion Host; Champion Service/Retail; AMI Insurance Charity Award; and ACC ThinkSafe Workplace Safety Award.
This celebration of success illustrates the wide range of businesses in Christchurch and is an opportunity to promote what is currently happening and through this attract other businesses to do business in Christchurch.
More info: Champion Canterbury Awards
Christchurch Supergrans
Improving Christchurch people's life skills
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- Fewer people live in poverty
Christchurch Supergrans began operation in June 1996. Their mission is to help people to help themselves, so that they can make full use of the resources available to them.
They provide a wide range of services to all members of the community. They work from their Aranui base and at other sites all over the city including in people's homes. The services provided include:
- Budget planning course (Stretching your Dollars)
- Budgeting for young beginners
- Creative sewing
- Craft courses
- Communication/reception skills
- Smart food cents
- Cooking for people with diabetes: eating for health.
In addition, at the request of other organisations, they take several of their courses out to other venues such as Burnham Military Camp; both men’s and women’s prisons; several community cottages and support houses and other organisations that would benefit from the skills they are teaching.
They also have trained volunteers (currently 31) who work on a one-to-one basis with clients in their own home and often will have two volunteers working with one client covering different areas of need:
- Financial budgeting
- Advocacy
- Basic nutritional cooking
- Specific ‘health related’ cooking skills
- Nutrition/menu planning/health and hygiene
- Setting up household routines
- Setting up and managing a kitchen garden
- Sewing skills.
All services are provided free of charge.
Further info: Supergrans
Canterbury Employers' Chamber of Commerce
Developing Christchurch business
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- Christchurch has a range of successful businesses
- New businesses are attracted to our city
- Christchurch city attracts and retains skilled people
The Canterbury Employers’ Chamber of Commerce provides a wide range of training opportunities for Christchurch businesses. It is continually responding to business needs and the external environment to ensure the training and development programme delivers results.
Areas covered include: administration; business management; essential employment law; export and import; health and safety at work; managing your people; personal development; and sales and marketing.
The training and development directory contains a comprehensive description of 71 courses, with some courses being run multiple times per year. Training benefits employers and employees. Employers are likely to benefit from staff staying longer with their firm, greater productivity, and improved staff morale and safety. For employees training is likely to result in greater job security, more work enjoyment and higher earnings. Overall business is improved and is more likely to be successful.
More info: Canterbury Employers' Chamber of Commerce
UCi3 at the University of Canterbury
Academia and industry future proofing ICT technology
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- Christchurch has a range of successful businesses
- New businesses are attracted to our city
- Christchurch city attracts and retains skilled people
UCi3 is a true collaboration between academia and some of New Zealand's major information and communication technology (ICT) companies. Based at the University of Canterbury, the institute brings together world leading researchers and companies to create a 'hothouse' of ICT research and development.
While enhancing New Zealand's high-tech capabilities through its industry-led research partnerships, UCi3 is also ensuring the country's ICT expertise continues with the next generation of highly-skilled, entrepreneurial graduates.
This exciting technological and entrepreneurial learning environment, which will be housed in a purpose-built building, is aimed at attracting more students, researchers and industry partners to the Institute and to a career in ICT.
UCi3 is dedicated to future proofing ICT in Canterbury and New Zealand through the provision of ICT graduates, and spin-off companies and intellectual property.
Further info: UCi3
