Creche de wheels at Basin Reserve

Tuesday, February 18th, 2014

The former Home of Compassion Creche is going to get a new lease of life and a new location in the Buckle Street Memorial Park, complete with a picket fence and garden reminiscent of the original.

The category-1 heritage listed building at 18 Buckle St will be rolled to the back of its site and then lifted to a new position on a higher level.

The creche, on the northern corner of the Basin Reserve, is the last remnant of the Catholic precinct that used to be in the area and included St Anthony’s Soup Kitchen, St Joseph’s Home for Incurables, St Joseph’s Church and St Patrick’s College.

The building is presently all boarded up and is being strengthened in preparation for the move which will take place from May to June

Memorial Park Alliance community relations manager Brian Aspin said the creche was a significant building in the area.”It’s a physical reminder of the life and beliefs of the nun Mother Suzanne Aubert,” he said.

“Her pioneering social work in the late 19th and early 20th centuries made her an important figure in New Zealand history.”

The building was the first of its kind in New Zealand, because it was built specifically to care for children while their low-income mothers were at work.

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