School overcrowding has been an issue in the past - 'Urban Village' by Jenny Carlyon and Diana Morrow have descriptions of Richmond Rd school:

'By 1914 the school consisted of several high roofed barn like rooms with platform galleries where the nearly 800 children could be packed .... to control the enormous classes discipline was rigorously autocratic. '

'By 1960 there was 830 pupils crammed into the 2.25 acre site..... So much of the playground was taken up with prefabricated classes that children's games where curtailed to those not requiring too much moving about.'

Neither solution seems ideal for the future though....

Regards the Western Bay schools, the MOE has committed 10 million to upgrading Freemans Bay Primary, with the plan to replace all the single story buildings with two stories to cater for future growth.

It is also worth noting that the schools closest to the CBD attract significant numbers of students from out of zone. Public transport means Auckland Girls draws students from across Auckland - I would see at least a dozen girls on my bus route travelling from Mt Wellington (we were in zone for Penrose High). CBD uworkers also take advantage of the local primaries.

There is therefore the possibility of local growth being accomodated by enforcing zoning. This raises the question though of the future of specialist immersion units: Maori, Samoan and French at Richmond Rd; and Maori and Samoan at Newton. Newton in particular has had the goal of being the kura kaupapa for Ngati Whatua.