7 April 2012 Hobsonville schools to be built under public private partnership

Two new schools planned for Hobsonville will be the guinea pigs for National's hopes of extending public-private partnerships into the schooling sector. Infrastructure minister Bill English yesterday announced two new schools in Hobsonville would be built and maintained by the private sector, although the government would own the school.

It would be the first time schools in New Zealand were built under a public private partnership - a policy National flagged before the 2008 election.

Despite officials' advice that any savings would be minimal, the government is seeking expressions of interest for the two schools - a primary and secondary school at Hobsonville Point, which are due to open in 2013 and 2014 respectively.

The private operator would build the school and maintain the property for 25 years before returning it to the Crown.

For more information please see the following link:

www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=10717567 

Also see the link announcing Learning Infrastructure Partners consortium (the PIP Fund consortium) as the appointed preferred bidder to build and maintain New Zealand’s first public private partnership (PPP) schools - here.