Govt claims school property back on track

5th March 2025 By Staff Reporter | news@propertyticker.co.nz | @propertyticker

The government says it has taken action to address the inequitable state of school property and to ensure better outcomes for students. 

“It is crucial that the school property portfolio is managed effectively so students can continue to benefit from safe, warm, and dry learning environments,” Education Minister Erica Stanford said.

“After a ministerial inquiry found the ministry’s school property function unfit for purpose, the government is delivering improved efficiency and performance by prioritising warm, safe, and dry learning environments, maintaining existing school assets, and accelerating cost-effective new builds using standard designs and offsite manufacturing.”

Stanford said that since the release of the inquiry, there has been:

• A 35% increase in the number of standard or repeatable designed buildings delivered.
• A 28% reduction in the average cost of each classroom, from $1.2m to $0.87m.
• A 34% increase in funding for school maintenance.

The ministry also increased the number of new classrooms it delivered in 2024 by 140 when compared to 2023.