New era of learning as Warkworth School building opens

New entrants Bianca, Aiden, Tamara and Milan settling in to their new community classrooms.

Younger pupils at Warkworth Primary School have started the year in a brave new world, with the opening of a futuristic, open plan, junior site.

A long, airy building containing three large ‘learning communities’ separated by sliding glass walls has replaced old individual classrooms. Each new community is designed to accommodate around 100 pupils and at least four or five staff.

Students and staff work collaboratively and in smaller groups, and there is a wide range of furniture and learning areas to suit different tasks and preferences.

School principal Cynthia Holden says the new environment is very open and fluid, which encourages children to be innovative, agile thinkers and creative in their approach to problem solving.

“You can see the logic with areas – whether it’s reading, or science, puzzles or maths, everyone can see the purpose of each area and how it’s been set up,” she says. “Everyone is settling in very well, enjoying the new environment and working with each other very well. The teachers are happy and the children are very appreciative.”

The new learning communities are the first stage of a $7.6 million redevelopment of the Warkworth junior school, which is continuing apace – much of the area remains fenced off as a building site. The next stage is a new hall, administration block, staff room and resource area, which should be finished in March.

“Hawkins Construction have been absolutely brilliant,” Mrs Holden says. “They’ve worked diligently through the whole process to streamline the build and make sure they meet deadlines.”

The new building received its Certificate of Public Use just days before the summer holidays ended.

“It was quite tight for teachers preparing and they had to work very, very hard indeed to have rooms set out as functional and attractive for when students started and it’s to their absolute credit that they achieved that,” she says.
Next on the agenda is a remodel of the senior school, with the Ministry of Education due to select a consortium to manage the project as Mahurangi Matters went to press. Mrs Holden says the consortium will get a confirmed brief from the Ministry and work with the school to do a remodel of the area and come up with a concept for the facility.

“I think it will take the rest of the year for the design and next year for the build phase. Realistically that’s the time frame we need to be looking at,” she says.