Redcliffs School nears long-awaited opening
Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern and Kiwi musician Dave Dobbyn will help celebrate Redcliffs School’s rebirth this month when it moves into its new $16 million campus.
The Christchurch school was forced to leave its Main Rd site following the February 2011 earthquake.
It has been sharing the site at the Van Asch Deaf Education Centre in nearby Sumner since.
Redcliffs School was almost shut down in 2016, but thenEducation Minister Hekia Parata reversed her decision following a campaign by the school’s community.
On June 22, Redcliffs students will see their new classrooms for the first time at the new Redcliffs Park site, and on June 25 Ardern and Dobbyn will attend the school’s grand opening.
Dobbyn will sing his popular hit Welcome Home and has asked the children to sing some of his songs with him.
Redcliffs School students visited Parliament in 2018 and presented their story to Ardern at a caucus meeting. She was invited to the opening and said yes.
‘‘We’re really honoured that Jacinda would like to come,’’ principal Rose McInerney said.
‘‘I think she recognises it’s a pretty special story and that returning our school home to its community after nine years is very significant after the battles we’ve been through and lots of hurdles overcome.’’
Redcliffs School had planned to open at its new site on May 1, but the return was delayed because of the Covid-19 pandemic. McInerney said the builders had worked diligently through the post-lockdown working conditions and there were only ‘‘a few tiny things’’ to complete.
The rebuilt Redcliffs School has 13 classrooms across five learning environments.
Timber, artworks, and other memorabilia from the old building was salvaged for the new site and the children were consulted on what they wanted at their new school. The old school bell, which was more than 100 years old, had also been brought over.
The June 22 opening and June 25 grand opening would be full of emotion for students, staff members, and the Redcliffs community, McInerney said.
‘‘The loyalty and the grit of this community has shone through. We’ve absolutely made the best of nine years at Van Asch.’’
McInerney, who was deputy principal when the 2011 earthquake hit and has been principal since 2016, said she never lost hope about the school’s survival.
The community’s resilience had been instrumental in getting them through, she said.
‘‘The school had looked after this community and the community had looked after the school through such trying times after the earthquake.’’
‘‘The loyalty and the grit of this community has shone through.’’
Rose McInerney
Redcliffs School principal