Fendalton Open Air School
Tūora Fendalton School (formerly Fendalton Open Air School) is a primary school in Christchurch, New Zealand, known for its open-air classrooms. Fendalton Primary School was established in 1875, continuing to provide education for primary school children in Fendalton for over 140 years. In 2002 and 2003, it was runner up in the Goodman Fielder School of the Year Awards.
Fendalton Open Air School
- Name
- Tūora Fendalton School
VALÉORINE Encyclopedia
VALÉORINE documentary reading
Documentary summary
Tūora Fendalton School (formerly Fendalton Open Air School) is a primary school in Christchurch, New Zealand, known for its open-air classrooms. Fendalton Primary School was established in 1875, continuing to provide education for primary school children in Fendalton for over 140 years. In 2002 and 2003, it was runner up in the Goodman Fielder School of the Year Awards.
Admitted source layer · organised and presented by VALÉORINE
Note VALÉORINE
No house-authored Note is published until its assertions and sources pass the VALÉORINE evidence contract. The documentary article remains available in full while that enrichment is being consolidated.
Documentary enrichment in progress · no unsupported statement published
Reference Check
Propose documentary evidence for Fendalton Open Air School. A contribution is never written directly as fact: identity, source, rights and evidence gates still decide.
Sign in to contribute
World of VALÉORINE
Documentary connections
Only confirmed graph relationships appear here. Images are shown only when their identity and reuse rights both pass the documentary gate.
Documentary evidence
Evidence Panel
not yet certified
- Identity
- unresolved
- Independent source families
- 0
- Admitted assertions
- 0
- Open conflicts
- 0
In this article
Overview
Overview
In 2025 the school is celebrating its 150th Jubilee. The school has had a rebuild which included restoring the heritage classrooms named after Jane Deans and Ray Blank.
Key facts
Key facts
• Name — Tūora Fendalton School • Type — State, Co-educational, Contributing • Established — 1875 • Address — 168 Clyde Road, Christchurch, New Zealand • Principal — Raewyn Saunders • Enrollment — • Decile — 10Z • Moe — 3338 • Website — fendalton.school.nz
History
History
The Fendalton School opened in 1875 at a time when half of the school-aged children in New Zealand were not attending school. The school started open air classes in July 1924. It was based on pilot programmes in England where it was found that plenty of fresh air and open spaced classrooms allowed children to recover more quickly from disease. The school was closed during the Spanish flu epidemic of 1919, by the principal Ray Blank, Christchurch medical officer R B Phillips and Professor James Shelley, Education Professor of the Canterbury College. Blank and Phillips paid for half of the cost of building the new sun facing class rooms with long verandahs and large windows themselves. The previous rooms were so cold that one cup of hot cocoa was sold to the students at a cost of one penny a week. The School was officially renamed as Fendalton Open Air School in 1963 (In the same year, the newly opened Cobham Intermediate School took over Years 7 and 8, and Fendalton Open Air School became a Year 1 to 6 school.). In 2024 the School adopted the name Tūora Fendalton School. The new name was gifted by Mana Whenua to reflect the schools history.
Former students
Notable students who have attended Fendalton Open Air School include: • Corey Anderson, New Zealand cricketer • Sir Richard Hadlee, New Zealand cricketer, regarded as one of the greatest bowlers of all time and the first bowler to take 400 test match wickets • Will Jordan, rugby union player • Hayley Westenra, Classical vocalist • Glenn Wilson, Psychologist • Frank Worsley, Shackleton's captain on the ill-fated 1914–17 Imperial Trans-Antarctic Expedition
Knowledge graph
People and holdings
Those recorded as working within this institution, and the records it holds or is connected with.
Studied at
1- Hayley WestenraPerson
Established from a fact already recorded on a verified source.
The Encyclopedia exists whether or not anything is for sale. Corrections are recorded rather than overwritten, and every version of this record is kept. Published 27 September 2026.
Elsewhere in General
22,760 published records in this field, each with its sources named.
- FelsőszölnökPlace
- FeltonPlace
- FeltrePlace
- FeluyPlace
- Fenghuang CountyPlace
- Fengtai DistrictPlace
- Fengyang CountyPlace
- Feni DistrictPlace
Best supported in this field
For owners
Own an object connected with Fendalton Open Air School?
A specialist will read what you send and tell you what the house can establish, what it cannot, and whether the object is suited to sale. There is no charge and no obligation. The object stays with you throughout; nothing is shipped to us unless it is arranged in writing beforehand.