The Buddy Zone has been in Christchurch for over 20 years. Over that time we have helped many families by providing programmes for behavioural, social and academic needs. We also provide a disability respite support service to our families.

We aim to improve the lives of children with disabilities including neurodiverse students, to reach their individual goals and aspirations for a good life.

The Buddy Zone offers a wide range of programmes and respite care to suit each individual.

The Buddy Zone Individual Lessons

The Buddy Zone offers personalised programmes designed for each individual tamariki (child). We work with families to ensure the best programme is designed and is implemented by a team of therapists.

The Buddy Zone offers programmes for the following;
ASD, Challenging Behaviour, Anger Management, Anxiety, ADD, ADHD, Dyslexia, Dysnomia, PDA and Twice Exceptional. We also have programmes for children who display developmental delays in one or more of the following areas; cognitive performance, speech/language development, social skills, self-help skills or other behavioural disorders.

The Buddy Zone ‘Crew’ Lessons

The Buddy Zone Group Lessons are a safe, fun learning environment for students with social deficits and social anxiety. It enables students them to feel comfortable and be socially accepted without feeling misunderstood.

The students take part in a one hour structured small group session per week. The sessions include social games, interactive group activities and simple daily life skills. The sessions encourage and nurture the students emotional and social development in a stress free and understanding environment. 

The Buddy Zone Crew (5-10 Years)
Tuesdays and Thursdays 4:15pm - 5:15 pm

The Tween Zone Crew (10-13 Years)
Thursdays 5:30pm - 6:30pm

The Teen Zone Crew (13-18 Years)
Tuesday 5:30pm - 6:30pm

The Mini Zone

The Mini Zone program is one hour toddler sensory session for neuro divergent & neuro typical toddlers. Designed to stimulate and engage your child's senses, such as touch, sight, hearing, taste, and smell. These sessions aim to promote the development of neural pathways in your child's brain. By exposing toddlers to various sensory experiences, such as exploring different textures, colours, sounds, and scents, these sessions encourage the brain to create and strengthen connections between neurons.

This process is scientifically proven to improve your child's overall cognitive development, as it helps improve their sensory perception, motor skills, and cognitive abilities. In essence, toddler sensory sessions play a crucial role in opening neurological pathways in the brain, fostering learning and development in early childhood.

The lessons are specifically designed to encourage and nurture your toddlers emotional and social development in a stress-free calming environment, supporting teaching the toddlers and parents’ techniques of how to regulate their emotions. 

The Mini Zone (2-4 Years)
Fridays 10.30am - 11.30am

Support Services

The Buddy Zone also provides respite support services to disabled children and their families. Please contact us to find out more information on how we can help.

Educational Services

The Buddy Zone also provides educational services and support to parents, families and educational providers enrolled in our programmes. Please contact us to find out more information on how we can help.