Board Pānui - Term 1 2023
Property update from the Rangiora High School Board
In 2022 the Ministry of Education presented our Board with the long awaited Master Plan for building upgrades at Rangiora High School. This is exciting (and ambitious!) and has provided suggested infrastructure changes that could span the next 20 years. We have prioritised the first of these major building projects and look forward to getting some underway soon. Projects that require Ministry support and funding take more time than those that are fully funded by the Board.
One of our immediate priorities is to ensure our ageing two-court gymnasium receives much needed cosmetic attention, and significant funds will be spent on this over the next 12 months. This is not a rebuild (that would require many millions of dollars) but a renovation, re-paint and internal spruce-up which will also include an upgrade of the changing rooms. The design and infrastructure of this building are relatively sound and we have acknowledged that if we were to try and achieve ‘like for like’ with a brand new gymnasium re-build (retaining two basketball courts), we would not be able to afford any other major building projects at Rangiora High School for quite some time.
The construction of a performing arts centre, to replace the current hall, has also been identified as a priority. This is a multi-million dollar project that will require some Ministry of Education funding as well as their approval. We outgrew our existing hall quite some time ago, and it is not fit for purpose to showcase the arts in the way that our students and community deserve. A large, modern performing arts centre will not only be of benefit to our school, but the wider North Canterbury region. This is a very exciting project and highlights our long term commitment to strengthen the arts at Rangiora High School.
Our most immediate property project is the construction of a new wharenui. This will be situated closer to the heart of our school than the current ageing prefab building which is over the road from the main hub of our school. Community consultation is underway for this long overdue building and we have been working closely with our Rūnanga, Ngā Tūāhuriri, every step of the way. We have a significant number of Māori students and whanau that will benefit from this, however all of our students will have access to this purpose-built learning space in the course of their studies at Rangiora High School. The wharenui will be a teaching area first, but also a meeting space for students, whānau and the wider school community. This $1.2 million project is fully funded from Board reserves, which is why we are able to get this underway relatively quickly, and ahead of our other major building projects. We are grateful to all those who have provided feedback during the consultation phase. Feedback is now being analysed by our architects as final plans are drawn up.
We have also prioritised two infrastructure projects. One is to deal with the feedback we receive regularly about managing noise levels in the Rakahuri building. We are reviewing draft plans to implement a range of acoustic treatments and changes to access to improve the teaching and learning experience for all kaiako and akōnga. The other is to upgrade the cooling and heating systems in many of our blocks to improve the indoor environment. The first phase of this work begins in A & M Blocks during the upcoming term break.
Finally, we would like to update you on the Rangiora High School farm. You will be aware from information shared last year that we are in the process of revitalising the school farm as a centre of sustainability. We acknowledge that to fully optimise the use of this land as an educational resource for our students, we need to move away from using it solely to showcase a traditional model of farming. The Board has provided funding to ensure that our Head of Science, David Newsham-West, can take a year out of the classroom to develop a future focused plan for the farm to be used as an innovation hub and a sustainability centre. David has already had productive meetings with organisations such as Lincoln University and Comcol North Canterbury and the Board is excited about the possibilities ahead for this valuable part of the school.
As always, our Board welcomes your questions and feedback about the governance of Rangiora High School. You are welcome to attend our public Board meetings (these are held twice a term) or feel free to make contact with me at the email address below.
Simon Green
Presiding Member