History

The school has a proud history of 28 years with the school being established in 1979. The vision for the establishment of a Christian school lay with a few families associated at the time with the Rangiora New Life Fellowship (now Gateway Life Centre) and the Burwood New LIfe Fellowship (now Travis Junction Life Centre). After much prayer and wise advice the school was started and registered within its first year of operation as a private school situated at Leigh Camp in Loburn, a small settlement out of Rangiora. Mr. Trevor Bartle was appointed teaching principal and the commencing roll was made up of sixteen primary aged pupils.

Within a year the school moved to its present site in Southbrook of over 4 hectares (10 aces). Southbrook is on the southern outskirts of Rangiora, a township on the North Canterbury plains, only 30 minutes from central Christchurch.

Although small and seemingly insignificant amidst the larger schools of the town verses from the scriptures were a source of encouragement.

“Not by might, nor by power, but by my Spirit, says the Lord Almighty
You will succeed because of my Spirit,
Though you are few and weak.”

Zechariah 4:6

The school population gradually grew with families of other local Christian congregations sending their children. During the late eighties, under the principalship of Mr. Alan Harrison (present principal of Hillview Christian School in Christchurch) the school expanded to take in a handful of secondary level students, with the whole school crammed into three classrooms.

Shortly after Mr. Brian Seatter's arrival as principal in 1991, the Board of Governors, after wide consultation with the school's community, made the monumental decision to apply to become a state integrated school. This change of status was confirmed by the ministry of Education in March of 1992. At the time of integration the school's roll numbered 80 pupils. As an integrated area school Years 0 - 13), it started receiving government funding for staffing and operations and as a result the attendance dues were able to be lowered substantially.

A specialist High School block, containing a Science laboratory, Technology, Art, Home Economic rooms and offices was completed in 1995. In 1998 a library, music, computing and classroom block was built, allowing the roll to grow to 200 students. A third new classroom block was built in 1999, a Technology and Visual Arts block was brought on site in 2000.

As the school continued to expand under the new principalship of Mr. Greg Tucker (2001 - 2003) two new classrooms in 2001. By the end of of 2003 the school roll reached 300.

In October of 2003, our current principal, Gregg Weaver was appointed, and under his leadership there have been many substantial changes in the areas of curriculum, student achievement and provision of a safe environment. Renovations also to many of the facilites have continued over the last three years, most notably, the remodelling of two of the secondary blocks in order to create a new class space and substantially develop the workshop technology spaces.