Coming Full Circle: Rangitoto College’s SADD Workshop to Expo Journey
Earlier this year, over 70 students at Rangitoto College came together for a SADD workshop that sparked a powerful journey — one that’s come full circle with the successful delivery of a student-led SADD Expo.
The workshop, designed to inspire action and deepen awareness around road safety, was filled with energy, participation, and a genuine sense of purpose. Students were fully engaged from start to finish, showing real interest in the topics and challenges discussed.
We were fortunate to be joined by Tania Wansink from NZ Police, who brought her experience and insight to the conversation. Her presence helped make real-life road safety issues feel closer to home and more urgent. The team from Neighbourhood Support also attended, talking to students about how road safer plates fit into wider community wellbeing and security.
The energy from that workshop didn’t just stop at the door — it snowballed into something incredible: the RangiSADD Expo.
Organised entirely by the Rangitoto College SADD team, the Expo was a powerful showcase of collaboration, creativity, and community engagement. The event featured:
🚒 FENZ (Fire and Emergency NZ), who brought along a fire truck and gave live, demonstrative talks on the specialist tools they use during road traffic rescues — showing students the real, physical effort behind emergency response.
🚓 NZ Police, with Tania returning alongside her patrol car, answered student questions and gave a hands-on look at the inside of a police vehicle — something many had never experienced before.
🚗 Auckland Transport (AT), who brought along booze goggles and activities like cup stacking and cornhole to let students experience how alcohol, drugs, and fatigue impair reaction times and motor skills.
🛡️ Neighbourhood Support, who not only continued their kōrero around safer communities but also promoted their upcoming Safer Plates event happening September 20th in collaboration with RangiSADD.
From inspiration to action, this journey has shown how students can lead meaningful conversations around road safety and take the driver’s seat in creating change.
Here’s a reflection from one of the RangiSADD student leaders, Rui-Han:
Hi, my name is Rui-Han and this year, I've had a great time being a part of the Rangitoto College SADD Leadership Team. As Yuna, the previous leader, has moved onto uni, I've tried my best to carry the torch on with our events.
Notably, the SADD Workshop was a blast with a turnout of 70+ people. We learnt about the importance of safe driving and the danger of distractions when driving, reducing our reaction speed.
I've also tried to reach out to more community organisations and capitalise on these connections. This is shown in our recent SADD Expo, where we invited Auckland Transport, North Shore Neighbourhood Support, NZ Police and also FENZ (who brought a fire truck!!).
Lastly, I wanted to say thank you to everyone - the SADD Leadership Team, Mrs Al-Safi and Mr Chao (Teachers in charge), Kerry and all the other awesome people we've collaborated with.
It wouldn't be possible without you guys.
Let's make SADD bigger and better next year!