The design is progressing for both our new Belfast Primary campus which will be built in the “Belfast Village” subdivision on the corner of Main North Road and Johns Road, and the redevelopment of our existing site.

The new primary school campus will accommodate the Years 5-8 pupils of Belfast School while the current Belfast Primary campus on Main North Road will be for pupils in the New Entrants to Year 4 age groups and will be upgraded as part of the overall project.

While we are seeing a small dip in our roll numbers currently, the Ministry of Education projections on student numbers look many years ahead. There are several new subdivisions planned or where construction is underway that will see significant population growth in the area in the future.

We are excited to be co-locating with Pītau-Allenvale School, who will have their own purpose-built facility to replace their current school in Bryndwr. Pītau-Allenvale School provides education in a specialist setting for students with complex physical, social and emotional needs.

What has happened so far? We have worked with the Ministry of Education to share our vision for delivering education and have helped to translate what it might mean for learning spaces at the school. We created a project brief with the support of the Ministry which has guided the development of the school property master plan and will inform the design of the new facilities as we move forward. Pītau-Allenvale School has done the same and we have worked together to make sure the way our buildings are located are complementary.

The picture shows our master plan for the new campus. It is a comprehensive long-term plan intended to guide the future development of the school site. 

Our mana whenua facilitator Dianne Robinson has also been on board with the project from the start. She is working with the team, providing advice on how the local cultural narrative for our school can be woven into the design of our school, shape the naming of key buildings and spaces, and also be reflected in the landscaping of the site.

What happens next? There are three stages of design. The first is preliminary design where we come up with the internal layouts and high-level landscaping design. This is nearing completion and we are looking forward to sharing this with you soon.

Then we move into developed design which looks at the design of the infrastructure needed for the build, followed by detailed design where we start looking at the fit-out of the spaces and finalise the design prior to the commencement of construction. The design process has been a little slowed by the Covid-19 lockdown, but we expect construction to commence in the second half of 2022. However, this timeline may change because as many of you will be aware, New Zealand is currently facing construction material and supply chain challenges because of the ongoing pandemic, global freight issues, and high global demand for construction materials and products (particularly structural steel and timber products).

If you wish to discuss any of the above, please do not hesitate to get in touch.

Sue Elley

Tumuaki-Principal