Resourceful Craft Workshop Tutors (Contractors)

The Resourceful Craft programme of workshops is run by Rekindle Charitable Trust, with support from Creative New Zealand. We deliver an annual programme of craft workshops teaching resourceful skills for the wellbeing of people and planet, based in community venues in Ōtautahi Christchurch and Rīkona Lincoln, with additional opportunities around Aotearoa.

Our workshops foster an understanding of place through the careful selection of materials - whether natural or diverted from waste streams - and provide space to connect to ourselves and each other through the work of our hands. We learn from the past to offer a framework for the present and hope for the future, with an ongoing commitment to honouring Te Tiriti o Waitangi in how we work with people, place, and practice.

We are seeking expressions of interest from craftspeople interested in joining our teaching team as independent contractors.

At Resourceful Craft, we create opportunities for resourcefulness by sharing the skills and knowledge involved in making what we need from what we have. At its heart, resourcefulness connects us through the exchange of skills, materials, and knowledge within our communities.

As a tutor, you are central to this. Your role is not only to teach practical skills, but to help reweave connections between people, materials, and ways of living.

Our workshops focus on crafting functional objects for everyday use. We prioritise materials that are natural and locally abundant, or diverted from becoming waste. Where reclaimed or industrial materials are used, we consider their origins and impacts carefully - our intention is to do no harm.

We favour low-tech approaches, using few powered tools and instead embracing slower, quieter, hand-powered processes that deepen connection between maker and material. Many of these skills sit within traditions we aim to honour and preserve.

We are seeking craftspeople with an established craft practice grounded in resourceful skills, who are interested in offering workshops to a broad community of participants.

Previous teaching experience is desirable but not essential. We provide support and guidance with workshop planning and delivery, and are committed to helping new tutors build confidence in teaching.

Ideally, tutors will be based in Ōtautahi Christchurch, or able to travel to deliver workshops at venues across the city. While we do support travel and accommodation costs for workshops delivered in other regions as part of our national programme, this is not typically available for workshops held within Ōtautahi.

About you

We work with people who are passionate about the Resourceful Craft ethos of resourcefulness for the wellbeing of people and the planet.

Our tutors:

• Are capable and experienced in their area of craft practice, and committed to continuing to develop their skills

• Are thoughtful about the impacts of their practice, including the provenance of their materials and techniques

• Bring an awareness of the traditions and lineages that inform their work

You align with our teaching and learning values of being self-aware, reflective, compassionate, kind, encouraging, patient, respectful, inclusive, and non-judgemental. You are able to relate to people from a range of backgrounds and experiences.

You will be:

• Organised and articulate

• Either experienced in teaching groups or confident and motivated to begin teaching, with support

• Open to feedback and ongoing development

What we offer

We create the conditions for you to focus on your craft and teaching, while we support the wider structure around your workshops.

This includes:

• Promotion and sale of your workshops (public and private)

• Administration of bookings and customer communication

• Organisation of suitable venues

• Support with workshop preparation, including overarching health and safety planning

• Guidance on structuring and teaching workshops (if requested)

• Sales insights for your workshops

• Participant feedback, gathered and shared throughout the year

We offer competitive contractor rates for teaching, preparation, and administration time.

Alongside delivering workshops, we actively support the promotion of your work - helping to raise your profile as a craftsperson through our website, social media, and newsletter.

Other opportunities we look to provide our Crafts tutors:

• Opportunities for connection with other craftspeople

• Opportunities to give talks to our communities

• Opportunities to be involved in developing future shared projects (e.g. a potential exhibition)