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The first steps of planning a new school in Snells Beach will take place this month, when the KingsWay Trust hosts a meeting to get feedback from the community on the proposal.
The meeting will be held at the Mahurangi Community Centre in Snells Beach on Tuesday September 20, 7pm.
The trust bought an 11-hectare site adjacent to Horizon School (formerly Mahurangi Christian School) and plans to build a new Christian college in the area.
KingsWay Trust chief executive Warren Peat says it is at the first stage of looking at the size and timing of the development.
“This is the conversation to start the conversation,” Mr Peat says. “We want to keep it as general as we can, without too many preconceived ideas. This is a discussion that will take years, rather than months or weeks.
“But we are saying one day, when the population supports it, we would like to provide an alternative for students and we are keen to hear from the community on whether there is a need and when that demand might take place.”
He says the size and timing of the school will be determined by the feedback from the public and the growth in demand.
The next step will be for the trust to prepare a submissions to the Ministry of Education, who will consult on the proposal and research the predicted growth in the region and demand. The Ministry would then determine whether there is enough demand to support a school and grant a maximum role number for it.
A report commissioned by the Ministry last year found a quarter of secondary school students in Mahurangi travel out of the area to go to school and Mahurangi College is currently at capacity.
Population growth in the region is also expected to be rapid. Auckland Council predicts the population on the Mahurangi Peninsula will double to 10,000 in the next six years, while Warkworth’s population is expected to grow to 20,000 by 2040.
TV presenter Petra Bagust will be the guest speaker for the evening, on the topic of ‘How to parent in the digital age.’
The meeting will also include presentations from Mr Peat, Horizon School principal Helen Pearson, and other local education experts.
Petra will then facilitate live questions from attendees to the panel.
The event will be filmed and streamed live via Facebook.
