Wellesley College (New Zealand)
| Wellesley College | |
|---|---|
| Address | |
| 611 Marine Drive, Days Bay, Lower Hutt 5013, New Zealand |
|
| Coordinates | 41°16′41″S 174°54′23″E / 41.2781°S 174.9065°ECoordinates: 41°16′41″S 174°54′23″E / 41.2781°S 174.9065°E |
| Information | |
| Type | Independent, Boys, full primary (Years 1-8) |
| Motto | Amat Victoria Curam |
| Established |
Croydon’s first term at Day’s Bay began Wed. |
| Ministry of Education Institution no. | 4149 |
| Principal | Brendan Pitman |
| School roll | 350 |
| Socio-economic decile | 10 |
| Website | wellesley.school.nz |
Croydon’s first term at Day’s Bay began Wed.
Wellesley College is a boys-only independent primary school in Days Bay, Eastbourne, New Zealand.
Wellesley provides classes for boys from Year 0 to Year 8. The school's roll is currently managed to a level of around 340 boys providing an average class size of 23. While core Christian values are maintained representatives of other beliefs have always been a part of Croydon and Wellesley.
Team and athletic sports are provided for and there is a full complement of the necessary facilities. The sheltered waters of Day's Bay and its bush-clad backdrop give opportunities for less structured activities. The curriculum includes the performing arts and visual arts.
Now only a day school until 1970 its core was a boarding school drawing boys from remote-dwelling farming families all over the central North Island, Rangitikei, Hawkes Bay and Wairarapa plus a fair share of city boys. On school-days more boys, then as now, came by ferry or bussed from Wellington and the many parts of the Hutt. The school's acquisition of the fine grounds and the first accommodation came about through a commercial failure.
Day's Bay House was built in 1903 for ship-owner, J H Williams, turned ferry service and eastern-harbour property developer. His Wellington Steam Ferry Company Limited made the heart of Day's Bay a destination resort and sports complex. The hotel operation met with only moderate success and in 1913 with its immediate surrounds, 4 acres, it was sold to Miss Gladys Sommerville so she might expand her successful Croydon School then still based at 81 Hill Street Thorndon.
The remaining property was then bought by the Wellington City Council and is named Williams Park.
With little or no change Day's Bay House became Croydon Preparatory School for Boys. The old croquet-lawn became the sports field and in the 1920s the hotel's bowling-green became the boys' tennis courts. The rugby field remained at the southern side of the driveway but was not part of school grounds. The Pavilion and its amusements like the ferries and their wharf became part of (out-of-bounds) school life.
Upstairs on the northern side two pairs of bedrooms became dorms 1 and 2 and the upstairs guest sitting-room became dorm 3. Ultimately the (lightly) enclosed upstairs central verandah became a dormitory for the bigger boys. A comparatively well built first-floor room was added on high posts at the north-east corner to form a sick-bay. The main sitting-room was used by the principal but otherwise all accommodation and facilities were used as for the hotel. Boys were not permitted to use the main staircase.
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Wikipedia