Primary School strikes gold - $275,000 in a day!

$275,000 has been raised by Queenstown businesses in one day thanks to a unique community fundraiser. hoamz, GJ Gardner, Placemakers and Shotover Country teamed up a year ago to work out how to help Shotover Primary School raise a significant amount of money to allow them to build their playground. The idea of building a house to sell to generate profit was conceived, with the last year spent sourcing local businesses to get involved and help create the home. The outcome of $275,000 going straight to the School far exceeds initial expectations for the project.

Shotover Primary School opened in Queenstown in February 2015 and has to date been unable to build their playground, despite having designs in place, due to outdoor areas falling outside of Central Government funding grants.

Companies and individuals donated and discounted time, products and services to allow profits on the house to be maximised. The outcome was a superbly finished four bedroom, two bathroom GJ Gardner home with a double garage and all outdoor landscaping completed.

A high profile marketing campaign attracted several hundred people to view the home, culminating in six active bidders and a sale price of $810,000 at the auction conducted by hoamz on 3rd December 2016.

Primary School Principal, Ben Witheford comments “words simply don't convey how pleased the School is with this result. I am not aware of any other state school that has raised this amount of money in one project. This benefits not only the current generation of Shotover kids but the generations to come. It will build a fantastic community asset.”

Alongside being a school facility, the board view the playground as a community asset, inviting locals to use the equipment and spaces outside school hours.

Shotover Primary School

Shotover Primary School first opened in February 2015 with 88 children. It opened with brand new teaching spaces that are referred to as learning habitats, spaces in which children are guided in truly authentic learning. The vision is to create a climate of possibility, a culture, an environment which allows children to participate in learning that speaks to their curiosity, develops their ability to think, teaches them how to collaborate, celebrates the joy of learning and is characterised by a growth mindset.

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