An award-winning education programme aimed at giving high-quality educational experiences to children is coming to New Zealand, and Canterbury universities are the first to provide it.

The University of Canterbury and Lincoln University, with the University of Adelaide, are establishing New Zealand’s first Children’s University.

Local stakeholders, including iwi, are also involved. Lincoln University vice-chancellor, James McWha, is a patron of the Children’s University, Australia and New Zealand.

“I think we can produce meaningful learning experiences for South Island school children, experiences that will hopefully lead to them taking up tertiary study in the future,” he said.

University of Canterbury vice-chancellor, Dr Rod Carr says the project aligned with engaging with the community.

“The aim is to bring high-quality educational experiences to children in partnership with their schools, communities and universities. All activities are experiential, and purposely outside of school time so that it is ‘other than school’,” he said.

The universities are looking to launch the programme in the first term of 2019.