Hon Erica Stanford
Minister of Education

The Government is delivering 32 more safe, warm and dry classrooms and a major school redevelopment for Kiwi kids living in the Central North Island.

“As communities continue to grow, we remain committed to future-proofing our education system so parents have certainty about where to send their child to school. We’re not only building more classrooms, but we are also building more opportunities for children to thrive.

“This package is about making sure our schools can keep up with the needs of their communities so more students have access to fit-for-purpose learning environments,” Education Minister Erica Stanford says.

It includes:

• 4 classrooms at Hamilton East School in Hamilton,
• 2 classrooms at Waipawa School in Hawke’s Bay,
• 3 classrooms at Maungatapu School in Tauranga,
• 2 classrooms at Te Kauwhata Primary School in Waikato, and
• 2 Classrooms at Kawerau South School in the Bay of Plenty.

Further to this, Taihape Area School will benefit from a major redevelopment, getting 19 new classrooms, including a hard technology classroom, and the multipurpose hall and gym space will be strengthened to improve its seismic performance. This project will meet the needs of the school, taking a standardised and value for money approach to address long-overdue seismic and weathertightness issues.

“The Taihape community has been loud and clear for almost a decade that their school property is not fit-for-purpose. Students and staff have been teaching and learning in sub-standard classrooms for too long. This investment will make sure children are set up for success in the classroom.”

“Construction on these projects will begin over the next 12 months, which means schools, families, and communities can start experiencing the benefits as soon as possible,” said Ms. Stanford.

“We are powering up efficiencies in school property delivery so more schools, communities and children benefit sooner. The use of standardised building designs, offsite manufacturing, and streamlining procurement have lowered the average cost of a classroom by 28%, allowing 30% more classrooms to be delivered last year compared to 2023. We will continue to drive this down so more Kiwi kids can thrive,” Ms Stanford says.

© Scoop Media