Cutting the cake at the Summerset Village opening
The first clue was familiar, so familiar that recognition was instant.
I remember you. Old school mates Russell Wiseman and Pauline Chamberlain were reunited at the official opening of the new village centre at Summerset Cambridge last week. What made it so unusual? Photo: Mary Anne Gill
When Pauline Chamberlain (née Roberts), 86, moved into Summerset Cambridge last week – soon to be joined by husband Ken – she spotted a face she hadn’t seen in more than 70 years.
The cake to celebrate Summerset Cambridge’s village centre opening.
Russell Wiseman, 85, who moved to Summerset with his late wife Margaret nearly three years ago, was that familiar face.
Russell and Pauline were once schoolmates at Goodwood Primary School, the country school at Fencourt north of Cambridge.
After decades apart, they recognised each other straight away.
Their story unfolded the same week Summerset officially opened the new village centre at Summerset Cambridge – an event the operator says marks a milestone for the growing Waikato community and its long-term investment in the region.
At the heart of the village, the new three-level, 10,000-square-metre building brings care, lifestyle and community spaces together under one roof, including 60 serviced apartments, 36 care suites and 20 memory care suites.
Summerset chief executive Scott Scoullar, left, and Cambridge village manager Lucy Lloyd-Barker.
Harry Wilson, speaking on behalf of Ngāti Koroki Kahukura who had lived on the land for generations.
It’s also built for everyday connection. Residents now have shared spaces including a café, bar, lounges, library, pool, spa, gym, movie theatre, conservatory and an outdoor kitchen with pizza oven.
For Lucy Lloyd-Barker, the village manager, the opening is as much about moments like coffee catchups as it is about bricks and mortar.
“Our residents have been extremely excited to see their new building take shape,” she said.
“They’re really looking forward to using their new pool, library and having coffee dates at the café.”
A large crowd were on hand to hear chief executive Scott Scoullar open the new village centre.
Master of ceremonies – a very nervous Nikki Mathews – greets guests and residents to the opening.
The village’s first resident, Ann Claridge, cut a cake to celebrate and chief executive Scott Scoullar and Lloyd-Barker unveiled the plaque.
A familiar face to many is Daphne Caddie who as a volunteer helped visitors to Waikato Hospital for years and now lives in Summerset Cambridge.
Summerset describes the centre as a significant $85 million investment in community, care and local employment, and says construction supported hundreds of contractors and trades while the village grows a local workforce across care, hospitality and village services.
Scoullar said a village centre is more than just a building.
“It’s the social and community heart of the village. At Cambridge, it represents years of planning, construction and collaboration, and our ongoing commitment to investing in communities where people can truly feel at home,” he said.
In an interview with The News, Scoullar spoke about the way village life can change the rhythm of retirement, especially for people who have been “rattling around” in large family homes.
As residents find activities and neighbours close by, many tell him they “should have come… five to 10 years earlier.”
Playing the village’s grand piano, Hamilton pianist Pieter Bos.
Move in sooner rather than later is the advice for the “young at heart” Wilma and Stuart Smith formerly of Hamilton who live at Summerset Cambridge.
The Cambridge centre also reflects newer building approaches. Summerset used cross-laminated timber and lightweight systems designed for long-term performance and efficiency.
Scoullar described the structure in plain terms: remove the outer layer and “pretty much everything… is wood with hardly any steel in this building.”
Summerset Cambridge opened in 2023 and is planned to have 260 independent homes alongside serviced apartments and a range of care options as the village completes its staged build.
And for residents like Pauline and Russell, the newest spaces – library corners, café tables and lounge chairs aren’t just facilities.
They’re where decades can collapse into a single hello, and shared memories of their headmistress, Mrs Duckering, and teacher Claire Wallis, who lived on Hamilton Road.
Village manager Lucy Lloyd-Barker during the opening of the village centre.
Cutting the cake were from left Summerset chief executive Scott Scoullar, Cambridge village manager Lucy Lloyd-Barker and the first resident in 2023, Ann Claridge.
