Two new day specialist schools to support children with high and complex needs will be built in Auckland and Palmerston North, the Government has announced.
In a statement this afternoon, Education Minister Erica Stanford revealed the specialist schools will be open from Term 2, 2027, and Term 1, 2028.
The schools were planned for Palmerston North and South Auckland, regions Stanford said had seen increasing demand for specialist education provision.
The new schools would bring the number of specialist schools operating in New Zealand to 29. They would be the first specialist schools opened since Hamilton North School was established in 1977.
“These two new schools represent a hugely significant and long-awaited milestone for specialist education in New Zealand, and for the students and their families who need them,” Stanford said.
“The provision of more day specialist schools is long overdue in New Zealand. It has been a priority for me as Minister, and we know many parents of children with high and complex needs want the option of a specialist education setting."
The new schools would be manufactured off-site using a standard design and layout and would be purpose-built to meet the range of needs students may have.
They would include accessible indoor and outdoor learning spaces as well as family and therapy areas.
The Palmerston North school, expected to open in Term 2 of 2027, would be built on Crown-owned land on the Queen Elizabeth College precinct.
The first stage of the base school would be built for 36 students from across Palmerston North, Feilding, Bulls, Woodville and Dannevirke. Currently, the closest specialist school is in Whanganui – 72km away.
The school would include four teaching spaces, facilities for family and therapy, an administration building, and outdoor learning spaces.
The Auckland school, slated to open in Term 1 of 2028, would be built on Crown land adjacent to Ngākōroa School in Drury.
The first stage would be built for 54 students from the Papakura and Drury area, with six teaching spaces, family and therapy spaces, an administration building, and outdoor learning areas.
Stanford said the Government had listened to families, communities, and specialists to determine how to provide opportunities for kids with complex needs.
"I am excited for the children who will be pupils and delighted that these options are becoming available for them.”
Finance Minister Nicola Willis said the Government was committed to ensuring Kiwi students had access to the support they needed.
“That’s why the Government provided an additional $746.9 million in last year’s Budget to ensure earlier identification of and better help for children with additional physical, learning and behavioural needs.
“I am delighted that these new schools are being established. They will benefit both kids and their parents.”
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