School Property Funding Boost: Why Students Deserve Better Classrooms Now

For years, many New Zealand schools have been quietly battling leaky roofs, cold classrooms and ageing buildings held together with sheer determination and the goodwill of principals and boards. Finally, a long-awaited shift is on the horizon. The Government’s school property funding boost is being heralded as the most significant lift since 2010 and frankly, it is about time.

Education Minister Erica Stanford has made it clear that maintaining school buildings is not a luxury, it is a responsibility. Safe, warm and dry classrooms are fundamental to student wellbeing and learning. Yet schools have gone more than a decade without a meaningful increase to the maintenance budget. Many would argue that children were expected to thrive in environments that would never be acceptable in any other public facility. Why has it taken this long for a proper rethink?

The new measures show promise. From July 2026, Five Year Agreement (5YA) funding, a lifeline for upgrading and modernising school property, will rise by 50 percent. That means an increase from $30 per square metre to $45. In addition, the smallest schools, which often feel forgotten, will see their minimum allocation double from $45,000 to $90,000. To call this overdue would be an understatement. When the funding rate has been frozen since 2010, this is not mere generosity, it is catch-up.

The Government argues that improved efficiencies and smarter delivery have allowed investment to reach more classrooms faster. A pragmatic approach, yes but let us be honest: children should not have to wait 14 years for political priorities to catch up with reality. The first tranche of 450 schools will see the uplift from 1 July 2026, with 24 of the smallest schools literally doubling their funding instantly. For them, this is transformational. Imagine finally being able to do more than patch up windows or slap quick paint over damp spots.

This new capital funding builds on a recent $58 million directly injected into schools for small repairs over 2,400 state and state-integrated schools have already used these one-off grants to fix the everyday problems families never see: rotten timber, stubborn doors, tree hazards… the list is endless. Principals have reportedly offered overwhelming gratitude, although many may still wonder why "doing the basics" ever required a special allocation.

The central question lingers: should the quality of a student’s education be defined by their postcode and whether their school’s buildings have been politically prioritised? The answer is obvious.

Every Kiwi child deserves to walk into a classroom that feels like a place of safety, pride and possibility. Not a drafty room where mould creeps into the corners. Not a space where repairs are delayed because budgets simply cannot stretch any further.

This funding boost does mark a genuine turning point. It signals recognition finally that school property is not a nice-to-have. It is essential to children’s health, dignity and success.

The Government says its priority is “getting spades in the ground as soon as possible.” That is the promise every family will be holding them to. Investment is welcome. Action is vital. And outcomes: warm, safe, modern classrooms for EVERY student must be the only measure that matters.