Under the Bridge | A Year Inside Papakura High School

At the edge of the city and the margins of society, a school and its students are fighting back. Under The Bridge is the story of a year inside their world.

Papakura East is one of the poorest suburbs in the country, with Auckland’s highest rate of welfare dependency, and where the average household income hovers just above $46,000. It also has a reputation for drugs and crime and the police are never far away. 

“It feels surreal. I didn’t think I was going to make it - in my family we weren’t expected to go as far in school, and that goes to say for a lot of families in Papakura as well. You’re expected to mature faster so all you’re taught is being a mum or going to get a job. It isn’t an expectation of us to go all the way.” - Wendy Savieti, Head Girl, Papakura High School 

Read the full story here: http://features.nzherald.co.nz/under-the-bridge/