Auction hammer is music to therapy trust’s ear

Rod Stewart donated a signed soccer ball.

An auction last night of music memorabilia - including Brian Wilson's surfboard and George Thorogood's guitar - was hoping to raise hundreds of thousands of dollars for the Raukatauri Music Therapy Trust.

The trust runs New Zealand's only dedicated music therapy centre, based in Auckland and catering for special needs children of school age and younger.

Items going under the hammer at the Auckland Town Hall included autographed set lists, lyric sheets, concert tickets and personal items such as a soccer ball autographed by Rod Stewart.

All Black Dan Carter, rugby league star Stacey Jones and golfing hero Michael Campbell also donated autographed items from their respective sports.

Last year's auction raised more than $120,000.

"We are so grateful for the wonderful support we received at last year's event," said trust co-founder Hinewehi Mohi.

"The money really helped us grow to meet the huge demand there is for music therapy services here in New Zealand."

The night included live performances by Breaks Co-Op, goodshirt, Anika Moa and Shayne Carter. * Special education staff are poised for pay rises of up to 18 per cent after settling a three-year contract with the Ministry of Education.

The 700 school and early childhood staff who are members of the New Zealand Educational Institute (NZEI) Te Riu Roa union voted to accept the ministry's offer.

The staff include psychologists, physiotherapists, special education advisers, speech language therapists, occupational therapists, early intervention teachers, advisers on deaf students, and kaitakawaenga, who work with Maori students.

NZEI national president Colin Tarr said the special-education sector competed with the health sector for several types of staff but had been lagging in terms of pay.

Under the deal, psychologists will earn a maximum of $74,500 and other staff up to $67,800.