What began as a casual 2023 bus-ride chat between PAPO member (& school bus driver) Raymond Nicholson and the Deputy Principal of St Joseph’s School has grown into a funded programme. In 2025 more than 600 students from Years 4-13 across Mid Canterbury will be introduced to orienteering.

Raymond’s passion for orienteering, combined with his strong links to local schools through his bus driving role, quickly generated interest. As word spread, more schools requested sessions, making 2025 his busiest year yet.

One early challenge was the lack of local maps. Mid Canterbury had only one usable orienteering map: the 2012 Ashburton Domain map. With travel proving a barrier for schools, it made sense to map school grounds instead. Thanks to support and advice from Carsten Jørgensen and Alister Metherell, Raymond produced the first new school maps himself.

Programme growth:
• 2023: Around 130 students from St Joseph’s and Tinwald Schools were introduced to orienteering
• 2024: Three more school maps were created and about 300 students took part

Most sessions run during school hours, last about an hour, and use traditional point-to-point orienteering, with students completing three courses usually in pairs. Some classes tried score events, adding maths, planning, and teamwork into the challenge.

For Raymond, the reward is simple: seeing students having fun and enjoying the challenge of orienteering. They also give the best feedback!

Student feedback from 2024
“This sport is super active and simple. I had no clue how to play but within 5 minutes I was up and running. Kids are on their phones playing games when they could be outside. I do not like a lot of sports, but I love this so much” 

“We had an amazing orienteering day on November 19th 2024. It was fun to experience and try out new things. My group and I enjoyed doing it and running around, and I think the best part was running around in the rain.”

“My group and I had a blast. I think orienteering is one of my new favourite sports. I can’t wait for the next opportunity to do it.”

“I enjoyed learning to use a map. I struggled a little, but I got it in the end. I think orienteering is a great sport and I think it would be good to share with other schools.”

Funding and support
As the programme grew, Raymond began working with Sport Canterbury’s Alice Breading and Anna Holland, who suggested he encourage PAPO to apply for Tū Manawa Active Aotearoa funding. Thanks to strong student feedback demonstrating both need and demand, the application was successful, securing $8,600 for 2025.

The grant has enabled PAPO to purchase and store equipment in Ashburton – controls, clippers, flags, and compasses – saving countless trips to Christchurch. The region now also has 10+ school and park maps, thanks to Ryan Moore and Jakob Knoef, with more to come including upcoming mapping for Darfield Schools.

A recent highlight was the Healthy Expo at the EA Network Centre, where Raymond created an indoor map and Graeme Read set up Sportident timing. Hundreds of students enjoyed seeing their times on the screens, and the only disappointed ones were those still queuing when it was time to board their buses!
A facebook video from the Active Healthy Tamariki Expo (Ashburton) which unfortunately the indoor orienteering did not feature in. You can spot the indoor maps about 3 seconds in, and see the PAPO flags in the background right at the end. See the facebook video here

Looking ahead
With maps now in place and demand rising, 2026 is shaping up to be just as busy for Raymond in Mid Canterbury.

A key challenge for PAPO is converting school-based intro sessions into increased participation at club events – a process described as a “slow burn.”

To help bridge the gap, PAPO has formed a Schools Action Group to bring together existing initiatives and plan how to expand opportunities for students and their families across Canterbury.

Next year, PAPO will host the National Schools Orienteering Champs from 16-19 July and the Canterbury Schools Champs in September. We’re looking for a strong turnout from schools nationwide and across the region – so watch this space!