Set in spacious grounds and nestled under the splendour of Mt Taranaki, our campus offers a calm and peaceful physical environment for girls to study, recreate and rest, in the knowledge that connecting our girls to the natural world is an essential element of their wellbeing.
We boast an outside swimming pool, a newly constructed gymnasium (full netball court size) and fields for sporting activities. Our “gully area” is a mini wilderness with a creek, a variety of plants and one of our special environmental project areas.
Shaded tree areas, rhododendrons, the St Mary’s Rose bed, and spring bulbs planted in autumn by our Big and Little Sisters, ensure that our campus experiences four distinct seasons, including hosting the mid-winter “Tough Girl Challenge”.
Our specialised learning environments include science laboratories, purpose built rooms for both fabric and food technology, dedicated art rooms, and an inquiry studio. Furthermore, our campus is fully networked to support our contemporary e-learning experiences.
The chapel services form an integral part of our school culture, providing opportunities to nurture faith and meaning and to bring our school motto to life: Fiat Voluntas Tua (Thy Will Be Done).
Dining
A particular feature of our campus is that all girls, both day and boarding, have the opportunity to have lunch together to support our family campus atmosphere. Our full-sized dining room and commercial kitchen provides nutritious and appetising meals that our girls love, prepared onsite by Chef Johann.
Boarding
We have designed our boarding facilities to match the needs of teenage girls. Twin rooms with en-suite showers and separate toilet between four students ensures privacy. Our underfloor heating creates a cosy, welcoming environment in winter months. The boarding houses are adjacent to the school—we find this allows our girls to fully utilise our in-school facilities outside of school hours.
The Chapel of St. Mary
Our chapel and adjoining hall are at the heart of the school. The chapel was built in 1956, with the foundations constructed by the girls at the time.
The chapel services form an integral part of our school culture, providing opportunities to nurture faith and meaning and to bring our school motto to life: Fiat Voluntas Tua (Thy Will Be Done).
The chapel is used for whole school services and weekly assemblies, as well as our annual Founders’ Day Service held in October each year. Baptisms, confirmations and weddings can be arranged in conjunction with the chaplain. The hall is used for dance and drama classes as well as school productions and the sports and arts assemblies. The Year 10 student Market Day and the annual St Mary’s Got Talent concert are also key events hosted in the hall.
