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A Wellington kura is getting a major $35 million upgrade after years of making do with dilapidated and inadequate classrooms.

Education Minister Erica Stanford announced the renovations of Te Kura Kaupapa Māori o Ngā Mokopuna in Seatoun to students on Tuesday morning.

The new build will include a library; indoor sports space and new classrooms. It’s expected to be completed within two years.

Stanford said for many years kura kaupapa had been “an afterthought” by Governments.

“We see the excellent results in our kura kaupapa schools and they do that despite the buildings they are in.

“They do that despite the lack of resources, and they do that because they have kaiako [teachers] and principals who are passionate, who create their own resources and do their very best, but they shouldn’t have to do that.”

Education Minister Erica Stanford. Photo / Alyse Wright

Reporting by RNZ shows students at kaupapa Māori schools attempt more NCEA credits and are more likely to get merit and excellence endorsements than those at comparable mainstream schools.

The year 1-8 students of Ngā Mokopuna cheered and clapped when a render of their new school was shown on a big screen.

School tumuaki Rawiri Wright said whānau and children were “delighted” but the moment was “bittersweet” as Wright thought about the many other kura that were not getting funding and renovations.

He said 40 of 69 kura kaupapa Māori nationwide had unsafe and inadequate teaching spaces.

“The general public has no idea of the extent of resource inequity kura kaupapa Māori has had to endure over the past 40 years.

“This is a bittersweet moment for us. We’re delighted at the confirmation of funding to us. But we’re mindful also of many other whānau who continue to wait and who have to continue to endure substandard buildings and facilities.”

Wright said the new build would include a library and indoor sports facility so students can train year-round and the school can host other kura.

Budget 2025 included a $36m Māori education package. This was part of a wider $2.5b boost in education in Budget 2025.

The Māori education package included establishing a $10m virtual learning network so kura teachers could “beam” into classrooms in other parts of the country where there were shortages.

It also includes $4.5m to develop curriculum resources in te reo Māori - such as Shakespeare, like Romeo and Juliet in te reo, and New Zealand literature, like Keri Hulme’s The Bone People.

Funding for the $36m Māori education packages comes at the cost of other Māori education, including the Wharekura Expert Teachers’ initiative, which has been disestablished.

Julia Gabel is a Wellington-based political reporter. She joined the Herald in 2020 and has most recently focused on data journalism.