A ceremony at lunchtime today will usher in the construction phase of the $9 million redevelopment of Thorndon School in Wellington, says Associate Education Minister Nikki Kaye.

“The designs for this project have now been finalised, and they show what a fantastic new facility this is going to be,” says Ms Kaye.

“I’m looking forward to joining the school for this ceremony. There will be a blessing, and a sod from the construction site will be removed and kept for returning to the earth once the project is complete.”

Construction is expected to begin within seven weeks and be wrapped up by the end of next year.

“The project will see new teaching blocks containing 13 teaching spaces built, along with a new administration block and refurbishment of an existing building to provide library space,” says Ms Kaye.

“The current buildings at the school, which is one of the oldest in Wellington, have weathertightness issues, so it’s great to be marking this new chapter in the school’s history.

“Because the school sits on a compact inner city site, a lot of thought has gone into the design for the project to maximise outdoor play space and access ways.

“This redevelopment is part of ongoing work across New Zealand to upgrade and expand our schools.

“In March alone, we’ve announced $16.8 million for new school infrastructure at Warkworth Primary School and Auckland’s Long Bay Primary School, we’ve marked the start of construction of $3.6 million of new teaching spaces at Spotswood College and Te Pi’ipi’inga Kakano Mai Rangiatea in New Plymouth, and the Prime Minister opened the fantastic new $12 million Lemonwood Grove School in Christchurch.

“In the Wellington area, we’ve announced around $117 million for school redevelopments since November 2015, including Thorndon School, Aotea College, Wellington East Girls’ College, Newtown School, Kelburn Normal School, Khandallah School, Ngaio School, Northland School, Churton Park School and Brooklyn School.

“On top of this, since Budget 2016 we’ve also announced around $7.2 million for 22 extra classroom to meet roll growth at schools across the Greater Wellington region.

“This is part of the greatest ever spend on school infrastructure by a New Zealand government, which so far has seen over $5 billion committed for new and upgraded schools and classrooms.”

New Thorndon School facilities

Soil turning ceremonies today will mark the start of two education construction projects in New Plymouth, at Spotswood College and the wharekura Te Pi’ipi’inga Kakano Mai Rangiatea, says Associate Education Minister Nikki Kaye.

“Spotswood College is getting a new $2 million learning support centre for students with special education needs, while at Te Pi’ipi’inga Kakano Mai Rangiatea the $1.6 million project will deliver four extra classrooms to help meet roll growth, says Ms Kaye.

Local MP Jonathan Young will turn the soil at both ceremonies today on behalf of Minister Kaye.

“The Spotswood College Learning Support Centre will be a state-of-the-art facility, which will replace an existing building with weathertightness issues,” says Ms Kaye.

“The new centre will be the equivalent of four learning spaces, compared to the existing single classroom facility. This will help cater for projected roll growth in the region.

“It’s essential that students with learning support needs receive the same educational opportunities as their peers, and the new facility will help ensure this happens. It will be located at the heart of the school, so that students feel included in the wider school community.

“At Te Pi’ipi’inga Kakano Mai Rangiatea, the new four classroom block will help the wharekura accommodate an increase in students, as more whanau in the region choose a Maori medium education for their children.

“This project will deliver an innovative learning environment, with flexible learning spaces to enable different ways of teaching and learning, the latest IT infrastructure to support digital learning, and high standards of acoustics, lighting and ventilation.

“A second stage to the redevelopment is being planned to accommodate future roll growth.

“These two projects in New Plymouth are part of ongoing work in our regions, as well as our larger centres, to upgrade and expand school infrastructure.

“We’ve committed more than $5 billion to new and upgraded schools and classrooms since 2008, significantly more than any previous government.

“We want students to learn in environments that inspire them to achieve to the best of their abilities, which is why we’re transforming schools to address legacy issues such as old, leaky buildings, and providing the extra classrooms needed to accommodate growing rolls.”

Construction on both New Plymouth projects is expected to be completed by September this year.

Education Minister Hekia Parata and Associate Education Minister Nikki Kaye have welcomed the official opening of Lemonwood Grove School in Christchurch by the Prime Minister.

Around 80 students started Term 1 at the new school in Rolleston, which includes a library; technology spaces where children can do activities such as arts and crafts, messy play and cooking; outdoor teaching spaces and an adventure play area.

“Lemonwood Grove School’s innovative teaching spaces have endless potential to support flexible and collaborative teaching and learning,” says Ms Parata.

“I would like to congratulate the foundation principal Sean Bailey along with Board Chair Tracey Riley and the Establishment Board of Trustees on their work setting up the new school.

“I would also like to acknowledge Amy Adams, who as the local MP has worked tirelessly to promote the future of education in Selwyn, and who attended the opening this morning with the Prime Minister and Associate Education Minister Nikki Kaye.”

Lemonwood Grove School caters for Year 1-8 students in Rolleston and has been built to allow for anticipated population growth. The school can currently take up to 400 students, but future plans include expanding it to take up to 750 students.

“This is a fantastic example of a school where the physical environment reflects the school’s vision,” says Ms Kaye.

“Lemonwood Grove School believes in providing a landscape of possibilities where students can connect and ideas flow in challenging, collaborative and creative ways.

“The school’s design makes full use of flexible learning spaces, which will support their strong teaching focus on play-based and inquiry-based learning.”

The new school is located near the brand new Rolleston College, which opened its doors earlier this year and the neighbouring West Rolleston Primary School, built for 750 students, opened in January 2016.

“This is an exciting time for education, with these new schools providing local young people with innovative and inspiring learning environments,” says Ms Kaye.

The construction of Lemonwood Grove School is part of the Government’s $1.137 billion Christchurch School Rebuild programme. In total, 115 schools will be rebuilt, repaired or remodelled by 2022.

Around 2,000 young people nationwide will benefit from new youth development partnerships with Recreate New Zealand, who provide life-changing experiences for young people with disabilities, and UNICEF New Zealand, Youth Minister Nikki Kaye announced today.

“These investments are being made under the Partnership Fund, which sees the Government co-invest with business, philanthropic, iwi and other partners to grow youth development opportunities,” says Ms Kaye.

“Around 1,600 young people will benefit from the partnership with Recreate New Zealand, which will see 300 young people supported to become leaders and mentors for around 1,300 young people with disabilities.

“The young leaders and mentors will learn valuable skills such as teamwork, decision-making and communication as they support the young people with disabilities in a variety of social, recreational and educational settings.

“The partnership with UNICEF NZ will enable more young people to become ‘U-Reporters’, whose goal is to inspire and facilitate change by identifying and reporting on issues that young people care about, such as civic participation, the environment and health and wellbeing.

“Around 400 new opportunities will be created through this partnership, with funding supporting both leadership opportunities for young people to train U-Reporters, as well as opportunities for young volunteers to become U-Reporters themselves.

“Six regional training workshops will be held, and the roles of U-Reporters will be ongoing.

“These new opportunities are about helping more young people develop their skills and grow in confidence, while at the same time contributing positively to their communities.

“It’s great that both initiatives involve young people supporting the interests of other young people, so this is a chance for participants to extend themselves and also give back to their peers.

“Since January this year, I have announced 14 new partnerships between the Government and businesses, philanthropic organisations and iwi to grow youth development opportunities in New Zealand.

“These represent a combined investment of around $2.5 million to provide more than 5,000 new opportunities, and show that the partnership model is delivering great results.”

Notes re partner contributions

Recreate NZ

Government funding $47,310 Mount Smart Stadiums $12,600 DV Bryant Trust $3,000 Rata Foundation $10,000 Kingdom Legacy Trust $6,710 Private trust $15,000

UNICEF NZ

Government funding $30,000 UNICEF NZ $30,000 NZ Children’s Foundation $40,000 Te Papa – in-kind event support

A new $150,000 partnership to help grow future Maori leaders from Northland and Auckland was announced today by Youth Minister Nikki Kaye.

“This investment will support the education organisation and social enterprise Te Whare Hukahuka to deliver their governance programme Ka Eke Poutama,” says Ms Kaye.

“Ka Eke Poutama is about growing the skills of young Maori leaders to prepare them for governance roles on the boards of organisations such as schools, councils, NGOs, iwi and community organisations and businesses.”

The investment announced today will enable 55 young Maori to receive mentoring, develop their leadership skills and learn practical skills about growing an organisation and creating pathways to connect them to governance roles.

“I want more young Maori sitting at board tables so they can help shape decisions that affect schools, businesses and communities,” says Ms Kaye.

“Too often we have older people trying to design initiatives for young people, without a good understanding of how the young people themselves will respond to a particular initiative.

“The young leaders from this programme will go on to have a powerful impact in their communities, not only in terms of what they will deliver as leaders, but as great role models for other young Maori and young people.”

As part of the Ka Eke Poutama programme, participants will receive actual experience on boards, and they’ll also have opportunities to connect with Maori community organisations so they can volunteer to share their knowledge and skills.

“This investment is being made under the Partnership Fund, which sees the Government co-invest with business, philanthropic, iwi and other partners to grow youth development opportunities,” says Ms Kaye.

“The Partnership Fund is contributing around $50,000 towards the programme, with the other funding coming from a range of partners including Te Puni Kokiri, ATEED, The Southern Initiative, Hapai te Hauora Trust, Ngati Whatua o Orakei and other iwi organisations.

“More than $2.3 million of partnerships for a range of youth development opportunities have been announced so far in 2017, so the partnership model is delivering great results.”

At least $13 million will be invested to redevelop the senior campus at Warkworth Primary School in Rodney, Associate Education Minister Nikki Kaye announced today.

“This project demonstrates the Government’s continuing momentum to address roll growth and modernise school infrastructure,” says Ms Kaye.

“Ten existing classrooms on the senior campus for years four to six will be demolished and replaced with 14 new classrooms, along with renewed administration, library and resource spaces.

“The school and Ministry of Education are currently working together on the final designs for the redevelopment.

“Today’s announcement follows the $7.6 million redevelopment of the school’s junior campus, which saw a new 16-classroom block, administration area and hall for years one to three open last year.

“Warkworth Primary School is a high-performing school which is playing an increasingly important role as Auckland’s population spreads northwards. The redevelopments mean the school will offer fantastic facilities which set it up for the future.”

Ms Kaye made the announcement at Warkworth Primary School this morning, having earlier visited Whangarei Girls’ High School in Northland, where she turned the sod to mark the start of construction of a new, $6.8 million classroom block.

“At Whangarei Girls’ High School it was great to see work begin to replace three ageing classrooms, and also provide an additional seven classrooms to help accommodate a growing roll,” says Ms Kaye.

“The Government is committed to investing in the potential of Northland’s young people.

“School infrastructure across New Zealand is steadily being transformed as we address legacy issues such as old, leaky buildings, and we provide the extra classroom capacity needed to accommodate growing rolls.

“In the Auckland and Northland areas, around $614 million has been approved since 2013 for new schools, major school expansions and school redevelopments, as well as around 50 extra classrooms approved since 2016.

“This is part of the greatest spend ever on school infrastructure by a New Zealand Government, which so far has seen over $5 billion committed for new and upgraded schools and classrooms.”

Warkworth Primary School is part of the Mahurangi Community of Learning/Kahui Ako (CoL), while Whangarei Girls’ High School has expressed interest in being part of a CoL.

Communities of Learning are about increasing student achievement, through early education services, schools and tertiary providers working together to share expertise and lift the quality of teaching and learning.

Notes

Breakdown of recent investment by region

Northland

Since 2013, around $55 million has been approved for projects including:

Northland College redevelopment ($14m approx) Oturu School upgrade ($6m approx) Te Kura Kaupapa Maori o Te Tonga o Hokianga relocation and rebuild ($12m approx) Te Kura Kaupapa Maori o Taumarere redevelopment ($6.9m approx) Hora Hora School expansion, to increase capacity ($6m approx) additional classrooms at various schools, including Whangarei Girls’ High School, Paparore School, Parua Bay School and Bay of Islands International Academy ($10m approx)

Auckland

Since 2013, around $559 million has been approved for projects including:

18 major redevelopments, including Western Springs College ($74m approx), MacLeans College ($38m approx), Takapuna Grammar School ($26m approx), Southern Cross Campus ($23m approx), Balmoral School ($24m approx), Te Huruhi School, Waiheke Island ($23m approx) and Koru School ($20m approx) 6 new schools, including Kauri Flats School ($20m approx), Ormiston Junior College ($25m approx), Scott Point School ($25m approx), Kumeu School ($25m approx), Flat Bush East Primary School ($25m approx) and Hingaia South School ($19m approx) 2 school expansions, Hingaia Peninsula School ($5m approx) and Ormiston Primary School ($7m approx) additional classrooms at various schools ($18 million approx)

TeenAg, an agriculture sector youth programme run by New Zealand Young Farmers, will receive $146,000 of support under a new partnership announced today by Youth Minister Nikki Kaye.

“This is about supporting more young people to develop skills such as leadership and learn about potential career opportunities in the primary sector, which is such a vital part of our economy,” says Ms Kaye.

“TeenAg aims to promote a positive picture of agriculture and raise awareness of agricultural careers from an early age.

“The funding announced today will support around 500 more young people to participate in the programme.”

TeenAg consists of two core elements:

TeenAg Clubs, which provide a context to learn about agriculture and develop leadership and broader life skills TeenAg Competitions, which extend and challenge competitors outside of their comfort zones to build character and leadership skills.

“It’s great to be able to support TeenAg to extend its reach, including into urban centres, and provide additional youth development opportunities for more young New Zealanders in such a pivotal sector as agriculture,” says Ms Kaye.

“This investment is being made under the Partnership Fund, which sees the Government co-invest with business, philanthropic, iwi and other partners to grow youth development opportunities.

“The Government is contributing $50,000 towards the programme, alongside $96,000 cash and in-kind support from partners including Red Meat Profit Partnership, DairyNZ, Lincoln University and Southfuels & Northfuels.

“More than $2 million of partnerships for a range of youth development opportunities have been announced so far in 2017, which shows the partnership model is delivering great results.”

A funding boost to the Small Communities Youth Grant Fund means more young people living in offshore communities will benefit from youth development opportunities, including leadership programmes, mentoring and volunteering, Youth Minister Nikki Kaye announced today.

“This fund is for young people living in places such as Matakana, Great Barrier, Waiheke, Stewart and the Chatham Islands,” says Ms Kaye.

“The total funding available under the fund will increase to $150,000 over three years, up from $90,000 currently.

“Young people living in our offshore communities generally have a much more limited range of opportunities than their peers living on the mainland.

“For example, there simply may not be the same breadth of facilities, such as sports fields, or access to clubs and people like coaches and mentors.

“I’m determined to ensure that we create opportunities for young people living in these communities, so they can grow their skills and qualities such as self-confidence, leadership and decision-making, whilst contributing positively to their communities at the same time.

“We’ve previously supported young people from Stewart Island, the Chatham Islands and Great Barrier Island to take part in initiatives such as sporting opportunities and educational trips to the mainland.

“Today I’m pleased to announce the successful initiatives under the first round of funding for 2017.”

The recipients are:

Te Awanui Hauora, Matakana Island ($5,000 to support 20 young people to participate in leadership opportunities aimed at co-designing community services and activities on the island) Aotea Family Support Group Charitable Trust, Great Barrier Island ($5,000 to support 48 young people to participate in leadership and mentoring opportunities based on an intergenerational event involving island and mainland communities) Waiheke Youth Voice, Waiheke Island ($5000 to support ten young people to provide leadership and mentoring, drawing on the arts and creativity, for a further 20 young people) Kaitoki School, Great Barrier Island and Halfmoon Bay School, Stewart Island ($5000 to support 20 young people to help plan and deliver activities as part of a rural network event involving both mainland and offshore schools).

“With the right opportunities, tomorrow’s leaders and achievers are just as likely to come from our offshore communities as our bigger towns and cities,” says Ms Kaye.

“This funding will support almost 100 young people to take part in opportunities that will help put them on a path to a successful future.”

Around 200 more Christchurch secondary school and university students will have the opportunity to be part of local volunteer initiatives, with the Government investing alongside other funders to support the University of Canterbury Student Volunteer Army, Youth Minister Nikki Kaye announced today.

“This is about developing future leaders and supporting them to inspire their peers to make service part of the student lifestyle,” says Ms Kaye.

“The volunteering opportunities created through this partnership will enable more local young people to grow their skills and confidence, and contribute to the community at the same time.

“Since it began in 2010 in response to the Canterbury earthquakes, the UC Student Volunteer Army has remained active as a mobiliser of volunteers, and now has 2,000 members. They take on major projects as well as smaller weekend projects during the university terms.

“It’s great to be able to support this fantastic initiative to continue its good work, and help develop the skills and potential of local young people.”

The Government will invest $20,000 alongside the University of Canterbury, as part of their wider package of support, and other community funders.

“This investment is being made under the Partnership Fund, which sees the Government co-invest with business, philanthropic, iwi and other partners to grow youth development opportunities,” says Ms Kaye.

“Today’s announcement follows around $2 million of partnerships for a range of youth development opportunities announced already in 2017, which shows the partnership model is delivering great results.”

Around $3.8 million will be invested to build a new two-storey classroom block at Auckland’s Long Bay Primary School, says Associate Education Minister Nikki Kaye.

The Prime Minister, the Right Hon Bill English, visited the school this morning to share the good news with the school and local community.

“Long Bay Primary School is situated in an area experiencing rapid population growth, and a large housing development is underway near the school,” says Ms Kaye.

“This investment will provide the school with six new learning spaces, to enable it to cater for projected roll growth.

“The position of the new two-storey block will ensure that the school’s outdoor recreational areas, such as courts, fields and an adventure playground, will be preserved.

“Today’s investment is in addition to $153 million announced in June 2016 for new schools and classrooms across Auckland, as well as $5 million announced in October last year for further new classrooms in Auckland schools.

“On top of this, we announced over $268 million of school redevelopments in Auckland during the latter half of last year.

“Auckland is our fastest-growing city, and home to more than a third of the country’s population. The Government is committed to ensuring the city offers innovative learning environments and the capacity to accommodate more students.

“As a result of initiatives such as the Auckland roll growth programme, new schools and school redevelopments, more than 17,000 new student places will be created in Auckland by 2019.”

Long Bay Primary School has been in discussions about joining the Oneroa Community of Learning/Kahui Ako (CoL).

Communities of Learning are about increasing student achievement, through early education services, schools and tertiary providers working together to share expertise and lift the quality of teaching and learning.