When principal Chris Herlihy arrived at Auckland’s Te Uho o te Nikau Primary School in 2024, six classes were crammed into the gym.

Now, 24 new classrooms and flexible teaching spaces have opened - but with the roll expected to hit 700 by year’s end, more space may soon be needed.

Across the country, dozens of high-growth schools are getting relief as new classrooms open between now and July, helped by Education Minister Erica Stanford standardising classrooms and lowering the average cost. The expansion follows widespread overcrowding.

Last year, Newstalk ZB revealed 17% of state schools - 368 in total - had more students than their official classroom capacity, with another 1,456 at full capacity.

Principals say population growth, particularly in Auckland, is a major factor.

Flat Bush, one of the country’s fastest-growing areas, has seen rapid pressure on schools.

Te Uho o te Nikau recently opened 24 teaching spaces just 18 months after planning began. Its roll is now 568, and is projected to reach about 700 by year’s end, and 950 by 2030.

“When I started here in 2024, we had six classrooms working out of our gymnasium, which wasn’t ideal,” Herlihy said.

“And then last year we had six temporary classrooms, which accommodated 12 teaching spaces and modulars while the new build was done.”

The school now has three buildings with 48 teaching spaces, eight maker spaces, 16 large breakout areas, eight teacher workrooms, and 20 smaller breakout spaces.

Herlihy said the flexible design supports varied learning and specialist teaching.

“Here at Te Ua Teniko, we have a te reo specialist, PE specialist, and a STEM teacher, who’s creating a curriculum around sort of engineering, robotics, coding, and heaps of new cool and engaging lessons,” he said.

The Ministry of Education said the expansion was approved in 2023, but redesigned a year later to achieve required cost efficiencies.

Herlihy said it positions the school for continued growth, with additional staffing expected as enrolments rise.

“From the ministry’s point of view, what they’ve provided is outstanding teaching spaces that are flexible, and able to give us the opportunity to teach what we think is important for the kids.”

The Government’s shift to standardised classrooms has cut costs, with new rooms now about $620,000 each - down from $1.2 million in 2023 - while open-plan designs have been dropped. Stanford said feedback has been “overwhelmingly positive.”

“Overall, schools are pleased with the value for money work we’ve undertaken, which ensures they receive fit-for-purpose classrooms at a reasonable price and we can deliver more,” she said.

Stanford said projects are progressing quickly, especially in high-growth areas.

“For example, of 72 projects we announced between April and July of 2025, comprising 457 classrooms, over half are set to be completed by the end of 2026. The remaining projects being delivered in 2027 generally have more classrooms.”

Labour’s education spokesperson Willow-Jean Prime said standardised classroom designs were already being introduced under the previous Government, which also gave schools more flexibility following concerns about open-plan environments.

She said Labour upgraded almost every school in the country.

In Christchurch, Pareawa Banks Avenue School has regained its library after a new four-classroom block opened this year.

“We currently have two new entrant classes operating within the space and are expecting another one to open later in the year,“ principal Alli Williams said.

“Our roll had been growing over the three years that we had been on our new site, post earthquake build, hence the Ministry of Education’s decision to build four new classes.”

In Central Otago, Dunstan High School will receive six new classrooms, with the roll projected to grow from about 580 to 640.

“Wood tech, food technology become an issue just because you can’t, for health and safety reasons, put the really big classes in there,” Principal Andrew King said.

“We’ve actually managed to work with the Ministry to create two new visual arts rooms and a photography room which then allows us to repurpose current classrooms… it’s allowed us to kind of futureproof so kids can choose the subjects they actually want.”

King said rising house prices in Queenstown and Wānaka are pushing families into nearby towns including Alexandra and Clyde.

“So I know Cromwell have experienced quite steady, consistent roll growth over time. We’re starting to feel we’re getting people moving away from Wānaka and Queenstown, and moving into the likes of Alexandra and Clyde and Oako.”

He said the new classrooms, due in April, are arriving less than a year after being announced.

“And with that there’s been a pretty comprehensive review of our overall structures, like our electrical upgrades, to make sure that we can deal with the capacity. The delivery team’s been fantastic, and it’s been a pretty painless process for me as a principal..”

Jaime Cunningham is a Christchurch-based reporter with a focus on education, social issues and general news. She joined Newstalk ZB in 2023 after working as a sports reporter at the Christchurch Star.