Fernside School is 160 years old, and celebrated its 150 year milestone with a Jubilee in 2015. The early history of the school can be sourced through three Anniversary publications. (1934), (1964) and (1989). The latest extract comes from our Jubilee booklet of 2015.

The Gates 

Begun as a project to mark the first 100 years of the school, the centennial gates still stand sentinel to the school's main entry. The gates, paid for with funds left from the centennial celebrations, carry the school's crest created by Headmaster Bill Leith. The gates were begun in 1966 and officially opened in October of that year. Walls embedded with local river stones stand either side of the gates, which are now almost fifty years old.

The School Crest 

Headmaster Bill Leith drew up the school crest for the 1964 centennial. He aimed to encapsulate something of the history of Fernside and the essence of the district.

The Fern was used as a basic motif. The pouaki - a rock drawing of the Maori bird of prey - represented Maori involvement in the first settlement of Canterbury. The two rams in the chevron marked Torlesse's Fernside run and Chapman's Springbank, the first two runs in Canterbury. The sheaf of wheat flagged the role of cropping and its part in the economic recovery of the 1960s and the diversity of the farming was reflected in the green and blue colours.

Recent History

Subdivision of land has changed the face of Fernside in the last 25 years. Although farming is still at the district’s heart, the landscape is now peppered by a mosaic of lifestyle blocks alongside the traditional units. The 2010 and 2011 Christchurch earthquakes accelerated the exodus into the country and a steady stream of commuters leaves the district each week-day morning to Christchurch for work.

The earthquakes also sent businesses into the area, with two antique shops, a furniture-making factory, a hairdressers, honey business and photography studio joining the list of traditional agri-businesses of stock-feed suppliers, engineering, a tractor sales and workshop, and agricultural contractors.

Poultry farms, llamas, goats, racehorses, hazelnuts, saffron, vegetable seeds and a farm park stand shoulder to shoulder with sheep, cattle and grain.

An irrigation scheme, fed from the Waimakariri River, has brought dairy cows to the wider district.

With the influx of people has come new architecture and interests, and paper roads have been opened to provide access for new sections. One subdivision west of the school is built around an airfield.

Fernside 1989 – 2014

There has been a steady shift at Fernside School over the last 25 years. This has been measured in many ways.

The school Roll: In 1989 when the school celebrated its 125th Anniversary the school roll was 165 pupils. The school roll in 2015 was expected to be 274 pupils and in 2017 broke the 300 mark.

In 1989 there were six classrooms. Today we have thirteen classrooms and one multi-learning space.

In 1989 there were a total of twelve staff employed at the school. Today there are twenty seven.

Important initiatives over the last twenty five years.
- The school enrolment scheme introduced in 2001
- The introduction of compulsory school Uniform 2002
- Integration of Computers into classrooms 2004-today
- The introduction of two Deputy Principals (Junior and Senior school) in 2004
- Specialist Teaching in Maths and Music 2007
- The building Room 4 and the Library -2007/8
- Landscaped grounds and garden areas
- The Fernside Way -2009
- Building Room 9/10 2009/2010
- Covering changing sheds and solar roof 2011
- SOLO Taxonomy into classrooms 2012
- ERO Review endorsing schools effectiveness
- Establishment of Waimakariri Rural Cluster 2013
- Building Modern Learning Environments Rm 11/12 2014
- ENVIROSCHOOLS SILVER AWARD 2014

The Roll Of Honour

Principals/Headmasters through the years
1864 - 1866 A.E Poore
1867 - 1877 R. Meredith
1878 - L.G.Wright
1879 - 1980 J.Hook
1881 - 1885 P. Kime
1888 - 1893 W.J.Sloane
1894 - 1897 E.de V. Ivens
1898 - 1903 R.H.Fergusson
1904 - 1909 R.S.Pearson
1910 - R. Charles
1911 - 1918 N.W. Pravitt
1919 -1924 R.J.Rainey
1925 - 1927 C.H.Hinton
1928 - R.M Clague
1928 - 1929 C.J. Roseveare
1930 - I. Willborough
1930 - E.J Breach
1931 - 1937 J.A Mackenzie
1938 - 1941 J.A.Hodge
1942 - 1946 J.R.Robers (Mrs)
1947 - N.H.Whatman
1948 - 1955 J.C. Mauger
1956 - 1961 W.L.Chappell
1962 - 1976 W.C. Leith
1977 - 1981 R.A. Connolly
1982 - H. Pettigrew
1982 - 2001 J. Greig
2001 - 2021 Mr D. Taylor                                                                     

2021 - 2024 Mr D. Ward

2025 - Present Miss B. Gray - Fernside School's first female principal