Wesley College, Paerata

Story

Wesley College is a secondary school in Paerata, at the northern edge of Pukekohe, Auckland Region, New Zealand. The school provides education from year 9 to 13.The school was founded by members of the Methodist Church in 1844, making it one of the country's oldest schools. Initially located in Grafton and then the Three Kings area of Auckland, it closed in 1868 before reopening in 1876 in Three Kings again. From the beginning there was an emphasis on educating Maori boys, and also played a prominent role in educating students from countries of the South Pacific. In 1924 the school was moved to its current location of Paerata, near Pukekohe. In 1985 it was one of the first boys schools in New Zealand to admit girls at the senior level.Wesley also has a proud rugby tradition having been the most successful 1st XV in NZ with 5 national titles (1991, 1993, 1997, 2001, 2004). The 2001 1st XV featured All Blacks Sitiveni Sivivatu and Stephen Donald, Kiwi League rep Tame Tupou as well as Manu Samoan rep Sailosi Tagicakabau. This team went through the season unbeaten and scored the most points ever in a NZ 1st XV Final with a 53–32 win over Rotorua Boys' High School at Albany.Prince Albert CollegeWesley College was located in Upper Queen Street when it closed in 1868; the building and land was donated to the Methodist Church for education purposes. In 1895, a new school with Methodist links started in that building, known as Prince Albert College. The school closed on 31 December 1906 due to financial pressures. The building was later used by Auckland Girls' Grammar School.