Surf Life Saving New Zealand (SLSNZ) is delighted to announce the next intake of participants for the prestigious leadership development programme, bp Leaders for Life.

Fifteen of SLSNZ’s up-and-coming leaders will join this esteemed programme. Belinda Slement, SLSNZ National Education Manager, thought the candidates for this year’s programme were all outstanding. She said, “This year we really struggled to select the participants with a record number of 50 applicants from across the country.”

bp Leaders for Life is designed to up-skill and retain people within the organisation, with the view that they can lead their clubs and the Surf Lifesaving movement into a sustainable and vibrant future.

Slement said the 10-month programme aims to develop individuals so they can make meaningful contributions to their club and community, leaving a lasting impact.

She said, “Seeing the success people achieve post-programme is really rewarding. The clubs support the participants as they apply the leadership skills they’ve learnt. They are developing themselves and skills that are going to be with them for life. They are doing it to better themselves, their club and their community.”

The programme includes weekend workshops where the volunteer Surf Lifeguards hear from top leadership speakers. The workshops also cover various topics such as effective communication, leadership skills, self-assessment of strengths and weaknesses, understanding the organisation and its strengths and challenges, gaining insights into the workings of different clubs, and learning how to make positive change.

For the first time ever, SLSNZ is excited to also announce it has selected a young leader from Surf Lifesaving Australia (SLSA), as part of this year’s intake. SLSA has always supported SLSNZ’s leadership development by offering delegate places in both of their flagship national leadership courses.

bp is one of SLSNZ’s major partners and Slement said their support is vital as their generous contribution subsidises programme costs for all participants. She said, “We couldn’t do this without bp. The Leaders for Life programme began in 2012, and bp came on board two years later. Since then, 150 people have been through bp Leaders for Life and benefited from the company’s investment in the programme.”

Paul Dalton, SLSNZ’s CEO, said bp Leaders for Life is vital to developing the organisation’s future leaders. He said, “We’ve seen people come through the programme and go on to become great leaders within Surf Lifesaving, and in their own careers. Congratulations to the group that has been selected for the 2023/2024 programme”.

The programme starts on 23rd June 2023 in the Bay of Plenty, followed by four other workshops around the country, with the final session taking place in May 2024.

SLSNZ and bp extend their congratulations to all the selected participants for this year’s bp Leaders for Life Programme.

2023/2024 Participants

2023/2024 Mentors

2023/2024 Programme Facilitators

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