Mission House Opening

At 6.00am on Saturday 20 July 2024, we gathered to celebrate the opening of our new Mission House and blessing of the Kaitiaki gifted by Mana Whenua. This moment marked not just the completion of a project, but a continuation of a cherished legacy and the beginning of a new chapter in our community’s story.

A special thanks to Mana Whenua Te Āti Awa ki te Ūpoko o te Ika and Wiremu Moeahu for the generous gift of the kaitiaki "Te Iho o te Manawa" (The Beating Heart), it is such a beautiful and treasured taonga. The kaitiaki at our front entrance has enabled us to transform this to a project that reflects the land it rests on and the young wahine of Te Ati Awa whom The Sisters of our Lady of the Missions came to serve. The morning began with a blessing of the kaitiaki, then Archbishop Paul blessed the entire building.  We all followed the Archbishop and prayed in each space. The morning concluded with kai then members of the community came for tours throughout the morning.

The new Mission House was built on the site of the original Mission House. Mission House was the Sisters' convent and in 1972 due to rapid growth became dual-purposed as home to the sisters and contained the administration block and six classrooms. In 1996, a fourth floor was added to provide an additional three classrooms.  In 2017 this building was deemed unsafe in the case of an earthquake and the costs for strengthening were so prohibitive the difficult decision was made by the then Mission Colleges Lower Hutt Trust Board to take it down and rebuild.

IR Group and Maycroft Builders with Robinson Architects have created a beautiful 'New Mission House'. This is home to the administration team, the Business Manager, Senior Leadership, a library, a staffroom, and four classrooms as well as numerous other offices and staff workrooms. We are so proud of what has been created for us and we are especially proud that one of the architects Hannah Kelly is a Sacred Heart Alumni.

Sacred Heart College is very grateful to the Mission Colleges Lower Hutt Trust Board for their bravery, vision and dedication to this build. A special thanks was given to Bill Davies who was a driving force behind the funding of this build.

This is the first stage completion of the new refurbishment of Sacred Heart. Stage Two is refurbishing the old library into two new modern Art rooms.

Katrina Kerr-Bell
Principal