The proposed site for the now abandoned school project.
Data – not politics or broken promises – was behind the decision to pause plans for a new primary school in Cambridge West, Waipā mayor Mike Pettit says.
The site where a school was to have been established by now sits abandoned with construction going ahead in the neighbouring Bridleways Estate. Photo: Mary Anne Gill
The former principal of Cambridge Primary School says current enrolment numbers show there is no immediate need for another school, even though population growth in the town continues and land has long been set aside for the project.
Mike Pettit
Pettit was responding to confirmation from the Ministry of Education that it will not proceed with the planned Cambridge West Primary School “right now”, leaving the designated site empty, despite infrastructure already being in place.
“Right now, there is capacity in some schools within the town belt. There is capacity on both sides of the bridge,” Pettit said.
“Five or six years ago there was a desperate need across this town. Schools were beyond full – our school was a good example of that. But the demographic has changed. There are fewer primary-aged children and there is capacity in some of our schools now.”
Waikato director of education Marcus Freke expects a school will be needed in the future, based on development allowed under the District Plan, and has retained the site while monitoring subdivision consents and school rolls.
Marcus Freke
Pettit said he supported that position.
“By the end of this decade we’re going to need another school, there’s no doubt about that. Once these subdivisions really get going, it’s a no-brainer.”
The Cambridge West school site has resource consent, which expires in 2031. Pettit said the ministry would not want to lose that approval, particularly given the investment already made.
“They’ve invested well north of $10 million in that site,” he said.
One concern Pettit raised in his role as mayor was the current state of the land, which sits in the middle of an active subdivision.
Cambridge News 26 March 2026
“At the moment it’s a big clunk of dirt, and it is becoming an eyesore,” he said. “You’ve got houses being built around it and a $3.5 million playground nearby. You don’t want that sort of thing sitting there untidy.”
Pettit also acknowledged the disappointment for developers and families who had expected a school and preschool to open as part of the Bridleways development.
“I totally feel for them,” he said. “The timing couldn’t have been worse when you combine that announcement with the downturn in the market.”
The ministry said when the time does come, schools can now be delivered more quickly than in the past.
“Recent changes in how schools are delivered mean that new primary schools can generally be built in around 18-24 months from budget approval to opening,” said Freke.
Bus stops, footpaths and parking bays are all ready but no school. Photo: Mary Anne Gill
Bus stops, footpaths and parking bays are all ready but no school. Photo: Mary Anne Gill
Looking across the vacant school land towards the Bridleways Estate. Photo: Mary Anne Gill
