Catholic primary school in Tītahi Bay to close
Monday, 24 November 2025
St Pius X School at Porirua’s Tītahi Bay will close at the end of next year.
Parents were told of the news last week in a newsletter, after Education Minister Erica Stanford confirmed the Catholic Archdiocese of Wellington’s request to cancel the school’s integration into the state system that was proposed earlier in May.
The school’s principal Dr John Young and school board presiding member Alan Fleming told parents the news brought a sense of loss but they remained “committed” to their students and hoped they would stay for the final year.
Opened in May 1954 by the Brigidine Sisters and with a roll of 46 students, St Pius X is the latest Catholic primary school in the Wellington region to shut its doors. St Bernard’s School and Cardinal McKeefry School in Wellington City are closing after this school year, after the Archdiocese cancelled their state-integration agreements, blaming finances and a stagnating population.
Porirua city councillor Geoff Hayward, a former presiding member of the school board, said the biggest issue was the future of the school building that was on land owned by the Our Lady of Hope parish in Tawa.
“Tītahi Bay cannot afford an empty and decaying school in the heart of the community,” he said. “The buildings sit in a vibrant area with new housing being built across the road. I want to see this whenua remain as a community asset, not fall into disrepair.”
But the future of St Pius X students was “more complicated” than if other Tītahi Bay primary schools had room to accept them, Hayward said, as their parents might choose other schools in Porirua or the wider region. “It’s really important for the Archdiocese and the ministry [of education] to work a plan for each student on where they would go.”
Mayor Anita Baker said while she understood the reasoning, the news was sad for the students and their families.
Mana MP Barbara Edmonds said her thoughts were with the school’s staff and families.
“I know it was not an easy decision for the school to make to seek closure,” she said. “I’m sure we will all come together next year to acknowledge the contribution of St Pius X school to our local Tītahi Bay and wider Porirua community.”