The buildings were officially opened by Gerrard Albert and John Maihi with a dawn service at 5am, followed by Bishop Charles Drennan's blessing at 9.30am.

The new block contains a learning hub, commerce room, toilet block, computer room, school and offices for the school nurse and counsellors.

The building was already in development when Cullinane principal Justin Harper arrived in May.

"It's been a little bit of a burden on our students, but well worth that time.

"The students have been working in various spaces, our cafeteria has been used as a classroom," he said.

Harper said he was very excited with how the facilities had come together.

"Cullinane College will boast some of the very best ICT and Commerce facilities within the region," he said in the school's recent newsletter.

"The new toilet block will, I'm sure, be greatly appreciated by the students," he said.

The completion of this building marks the end of the second stage of a $2 million redevelopment that was given the green light in 2016.

In February this year, the college unveiled a new Wharenui and Performing Arts Centre.

When the decision to redevelop was made, the principal at the time, Kevin Shore, said the old buildings were from the 1960s and met only 20 percent of the earthquake standards, which was "not ideal."

Source

• nzherald.co.nz
• cullinanecollege.school
• Image: hnzherald.co.nz