Positive Pathways

WE’RE HIRING – CASUAL HOLIDAY PROGRAMME FACILITATORS

Positive Pathways is looking for enthusiastic, reliable and neuro-affirming people to join our team as Casual Holiday Programme Facilitators.

Our holiday programmes support autistic and neurodivergent children and young people to have a fun, safe and positive school holiday experience — while building confidence, connection, independence and life skills.

📅 When: School holidays
⏰ Hours: Varied hours between 8:30am–4:30pm, depending on programme needs and your availability
📍 Location: Wellington (Upper Hutt) and Christchurch (Middleton)

We’re looking for people who are:

✨ Neurodiversity-affirming and genuinely accepting of different ways of communicating, thinking and being
✨ Calm, patient and able to support children through moments of dysregulation
✨ Playful, creative and able to join in with children’s interests
✨ Confident building trusting relationships with children and young people
✨ Flexible and able to adapt when plans change
✨ Comfortable supporting children with different sensory, communication and regulation needs
✨ Good at noticing what a child might be communicating through their behaviour
✨ Able to encourage independence without taking over
✨ Reliable, responsible and able to work as part of a team

Experience that would be valuable:

* Experience working with autistic or neurodivergent children
* Experience in disability support, youth work, education, ECE, mentoring, respite or similar
* Understanding of PDA and demand-avoidant profiles
* First aid training
* Relevant qualifications are welcomed, but the right attitude and approach are just as important as formal qualifications.

If you’re passionate about supporting neurodivergent children and want to be part of a supportive, values-led team, we’d love to hear from you. 💚

📩 To apply: Send your CV and a short introduction about yourself and why you’d like to work with Positive Pathways to [email protected]

HOLIDAY PROGRAMME REGISTRATIONS ARE OPEN!

Looking for a holiday programme where your child can be themselves, feel safe, have fun and build confidence?

Our Positive Pathways Holiday Programme is designed with neurodivergent children in mind — with a focus on connection, regulation, autonomy and having a genuinely good time.

✨ Small groups
🎨 Creative activities & games
🌳 Community outings & adventures
🧩 Opportunities to build independence and life skills
💛 Neurodiversity-affirming support
🌈 A space where children don’t have to mask or “fit in”

We know school holidays can be a tricky time for many families, so our goal is to create a supportive environment where kids can enjoy their holidays at their own pace, in a way that works for them.

📍 Wellington & Christchurch
📅 28 September to 9 October
👥 Places are limited to keep groups small and supportive.

Registrations are now open!

👉 Book your child’s place via the link here: https://form.jotform.com/262478502613861

If you have any questions about whether the programme would be a good fit for your child, send us a message — we’re happy to chat. 💛

School Holiday Programme Registration Form Please click the link to complete this form.

💙 Real change. Real connection. Real outcomes. 💙

One of the most rewarding parts of our Alternate Education Day is seeing the positive impact carry over into the classroom.

Recently, a parent shared that their child’s teacher had noticed significant positive changes after attending our Wednesday programme. The teacher was so encouraged that they asked to connect with our team to better understand the strategies and approaches being used, with the hope of bringing some of those ideas into the school environment.

This is exactly what we’re passionate about.

Our neurodiversity-affirming approach focuses on understanding the child, supporting their nervous system, building connection, and creating the conditions where learning and wellbeing can flourish. When children feel safe and understood, positive change doesn’t just happen in our sessions—it can extend into home and school too.

✨ Term 3 Wednesday Alternate Education Day enrolments are open now in both Wellington and Christchurch.

If your child is finding the traditional school environment challenging, we’d love to chat about whether this programme could be the right fit.

📩 Get in touch to learn more or secure your place.

💙 Parent Feedback 💙

“I’d like to share some feedback on the holiday programme and thank you for creating such a wonderful space for my daughter to enjoy alongside her sister.

I haven’t been able to see the space myself, but I’ve felt so reassured by how happy and settled she has been after attending. Being non-verbal, she shows me how much she’s enjoyed it by how calm, regulated, and content she is afterwards.

I really hope this service continues, as I’ve found it incredibly difficult to find something suitable for her during the school holidays. This programme has been the perfect holiday break for her, and it’s been so lovely knowing she’s somewhere she feels comfortable, safe, and included.

Please let me know if you ever offer after-school sessions, as we would love to be involved. We look forward to continuing to use this wonderful service.”

Thank you to this family for sharing their kind words. 💚 Hearing that children feel safe, included, and leave feeling calm and regulated is exactly why we do what we do.

Stepping into Adulthood – A New Day Programme for Neurodivergent Young Adults (16–25)

Christchurch - Fridays 9am - 3pm
Wellington - TBC

Leaving school can feel overwhelming. For many autistic and neurodivergent young people, there isn’t always a clear next step.

That’s why we’ve created Stepping into Adulthood – a supportive, neuroaffirming day programme designed to help young people build confidence, independence and the practical skills needed for adult life.

💛 This isn’t a classroom.

It’s a place to explore interests, build friendships, develop life skills, connect with the community, and work towards personal goals at a pace that feels right.

Participants will have opportunities to:

✨ Learn cooking, budgeting and everyday living skills
✨ Build confidence using public transport and accessing the community
✨ Explore work experience, volunteering and future pathways
✨ Develop emotional regulation and self-advocacy skills
✨ Discover hobbies, interests and strengths
✨ Make genuine friendships in a safe, accepting environment
✨ Work towards personalised goals with the support of experienced mentors

Whether the goal is getting ready for employment, becoming more independent at home, or simply rebuilding confidence after burnout or school challenges, we’re here to walk alongside each young person.

🌿 Who is it for?
• Autistic and neurodivergent young people aged 16–25
• Those who have left school or are transitioning out of education
• Young people experiencing burnout, anxiety, school disengagement or needing extra support to navigate adulthood

📍 Small groups
🤝 Neuroaffirming, relationship-based support
🎯 Individualised goals and practical, real-world learning

If you’d like to learn more or register your interest, we’d love to hear from you. Send us a message or get in touch to discuss whether Stepping into Adulthood is the right fit for you or your young person.

Because adulthood isn’t about doing everything alone—it’s about having the right support to build a life that works for you. 💚

https://form.jotform.com/261958069569073

🌟 Term 3 Mentoring & Respite – Now Taking Bookings! 🌟

Looking for neurodiversity-affirming support for your child or young person this term?

At Positive Pathways, our mentoring and respite sessions are designed to build confidence, reduce anxiety, support emotional regulation, and create meaningful connections in a way that works with each child’s unique strengths and needs.

✨ Now available:
• 1:1 Mentoring
• Respite Support
• Community-based sessions
• After-school and daytime availability
• NEW Sunday sessions with Daniel – perfect for families needing weekend support!

Our team specialises in supporting autistic children and young people, including those with PDA, ADHD and other neurodivergent profiles. We focus on building trusting relationships, supporting nervous system regulation, and helping young people thrive at home, school and in the community.

📍 Wellington & Christchurch
📩 Limited spaces are available for Term 3, so get in touch to discuss how we can support your family.

Message us on Facebook or visit www.positivepathways.nz to find out more.

Christchurch! We have something special coming your way!!

Dungeons and Dragons

Creating a low-demand environment to explore creativity and connection with others. Using fun and role-play to learn social skills and regulation techniques.

With a less rigid approach to the gameplay and more focus on player choices and creativity, we aim to play Dungeons & Dragons in a way that doesn’t require strict understanding of the rules. If you can imagine it, you can roll for it.

With all required equipment provided, all you need to bring is yourself.

Sessions will be 2 hours long, on Sunday afternoons.

We have 6 spots available for the first campaign that will run for 6 weeks. $240 for the full campaign.

Your available funding can be used for the whole campaign.

The first campaign will be in a fantasy setting, overthrowing a corrupt King and freeing a kingdom.

Future campaigns can be in whatever setting players are looking for.

It could be set in a Minecraft world, the modern world, the future, the Pokemon world. Whatever players want!

Please email [email protected] to express interest.