Four schools along the East Coast have been equipped with solar panels, battery storage, and pool heating systems as part of a $3.5m school pool heating and resilience project funded by the Trust.
The project included Te Waha o Rerekohu Area School in Te Araroa, Te Kura Kaupapa Māori o te Waiu o Ngāti Porou in Ruatōria, Hatea-a-Rangi in Tokomaru Bay and Tolaga Bay Area School.
Initially aimed at extending the swimming season for tamariki, the project evolved to incorporate off-grid battery storage, improving electricity resilience. With battery storage now established, schools can remain operational during power outages for at least ten days, providing essential support for remote communities where schools often serve as emergency hubs.
Across all four sites, 928 panels generate 419 kWh of energy, while 40 batteries store 848 kWh, enabling schools to keep the lights on and their pools heated.
In Tolaga Bay, the pool has already hosted a community triathlon with over 80 participants and kaumātua swimming lessons, in addition to swimming classes offered to students as part of the curriculum.
“It’s a game changer having the heat pump powered by solar energy. We don’t have to put a time limit on when students can go swimming. The pool cover and heat pump will extend our season considerably,” says Nori Parata, Tolaga Bay Area School principal.
The Trust partnered with Our Energy, a company that enables communities to share and trade locally produced clean electricity, to help deliver a distributed energy kaupapa to the communities through this project.
“Further down the track, we know we’ll generate more than we can use. It is certainly our intention to find opportunities to share that energy. On behalf of Te Aitanga a Hauiti, Tolaga Bay Area School and Kahukuranui and the wider Ūawa community, we’re incredibly grateful to the Trust,” says Nori.
“These investments are enabling schools to become energy hubs,” says John Campbell from Our Energy.
“It’s a beacon for what the future can be for communities across Aotearoa.”
The next step is training in pool care and solar energy use, which will take place alongside the Marae Solar Project.
Read more from our 2024/25 Annual Report
This project received the Social Procurement Award at the 2025 New Zealand Energy Excellence Awards, recognising the work of Trust Tairāwhiti and Seven Rivers.
