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Major milestone in our school upgrade programme

This week, we’ve marked a major milestone in our school upgrade programme.

We've supported 4,500 projects across the country for schools to upgrade classrooms, sports facilities, playgrounds and more, so Kiwi kids have the best possible environments to learn in.

Upgrading schools and building more classrooms

Our Government is working hard to build an education system that gives every student in New Zealand the best chance to succeed.

We believe that all Kiwi kids deserve classrooms that are fit-for-purpose, vibrant spaces to learn and play in, and decent sports facilities.

To make this a reality, in 2019, our Government announced the biggest capital injection for school maintenance funding in over two decades – and thanks to this, almost every single state school in New Zealand has been able to make much-needed property improvements.

To celebrate the fact that we’ve now supported around 4,500 school upgrade projects around New Zealand, Education Minister Chris Hipkins has been out and about to see how these projects are benefitting students across the country.

Here’s a few highlights:

Silverstream School

Upgraded learnig spaces at Silverstream School

Silverstream School in Upper Hutt used some of its funding to replace an old building and upgraded learning spaces, as well as refit the school hall.

Te Kura o Tihiōtonga - Otonga Primary School

Te Kura o Tihiōtonga – Otonga Primary School

Te Kura o Tihiōtonga - Otonga Primary School in Rotorua used the funding for a new staffroom, admin space, and more.

Macleans College

New sports turfs at Macleans College, Auckland

Macleans College in Auckland put their put the investment towards new sports turfs.

Making sure all Kiwi kids have the best chance to succeed

On top of all of these upgrades, our Government is building hundreds of new classrooms around the country.

We’re also making school funding fairer by scrapping the outdated decile system, and we’re boosting investment to give schools the teachers and equipment they need.

To better support students, we’ve delivered more school-based health services and expanded our Mana Ake programme to provide more in-school wellbeing support across the country.

All of this builds on the work we’ve done since taking office 2017, to better support teachers, and to make schooling more affordable for families including by rolling out free, healthy lunches, and removing school donations and NCEA fees.

There’s still more to do, but we’re committed to making New Zealand the best place in the world to be a young person and building a stronger education system is a vital part of that.


Find out more on what we’ve done to make sure every child can get a great education and more Kiwis can access training and study, here.

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