Hillcrest High School - Te Kura Tuarua o Tihipuke

23/09/2026

Creative Thinking for Digital Wellbeing

Year 10 students Olivia Huber, Jenna Park and Jesse Adams recently represented Hillcrest High School in the Te Māhurutanga Digital Design Competition, creating thoughtful designs focused on digital wellbeing.

Their entries were:

Olivia Huber – People Over Pixels
Jenna Park – Keep Posts Private
Jesse Adams – Limit Screen, Live Healthier

Each student was recognised with a certificate and voucher, presented by Denz from Te Kōhao Health and Kim Wilson from PGF Services.

While their designs were not selected as the overall winners, we are proud of the creativity, insight and important messages behind their work. Ka rawe, Olivia, Jenna and Jesse!

23/09/2026

📢 Our End of Term 3 Newsletter is out now!

It has been another busy and successful term at Hillcrest High School, filled with student achievement, sporting and cultural success, leadership, service and plenty of opportunities for our rangatahi to get involved.

Follow the link below to catch up on the latest news, celebrations and important information from across our kura.

Thank you to our students, staff, parents, caregivers and whānau for your continued support throughout the term.

We wish everyone a safe and enjoyable school holiday break and look forward to welcoming students back for Term 4.

🔗 Read the newsletter here:

ITM Festival Success 2026

11/09/2026

Rewind time with this Google Earth timelapse of our school, from 2008 to 2026. Hold the dots near the bottom and scroll to the right for a smooth experience.



Construction of the eastern half of E block.

Completion of the eastern half of E block.

Demolition of some R block classrooms.
Construction of the western half of I block.

Renovation of the B block roof.
Construction of G block.

Construction of M block.
Renovation of the turf.

Renovation of the C block roof.

Renovation of the canteen courtyard.

Construction of the new ILC.

Demolition of the old ILC.
New turf installed around the canteen courtyard and magnolia tree courtyard.

11/09/2026

Friday lunchtime’s craft workshop was a hit! The lily’s came out beautifully and all akonga and kaiako were very happy with the result (even though there were some miscalculations with the pipe cleaner amounts!). We are really looking forward to hosting one more event for the year next term...so keep your eyes peeled

10/09/2026

Year 9 & 10 Parent Interviews

Parents and whānau of our Year 9 and 10 students are invited to attend our upcoming Parent Interviews.

📅 Wednesday 16 September
⏰ 4.00pm–7.00pm

These interviews are a valuable opportunity to meet with your child’s teachers, discuss their progress and engagement, and identify how we can work together to support their learning and next steps.

Bookings are now available through SchoolBridge.

We look forward to seeing you there!

10/09/2026

Congratulations to our Hillcrest girls Jayda, Rose and Olivia for being named in representative selection after their performance at UNISS tournament. Well done on your hard work and dedication 🔥🏐👏🏻

07/09/2026

Congratulations to Year 12 student Kwadwo Adjei Baah, who has been elected as the Student Representative on the Hillcrest High School Board.

In this important role, Kwadwo will bring a student perspective to Board discussions and represent the voices and interests of our ākonga. We wish him every success and look forward to the contribution he will make.

We also acknowledge all the students who put themselves forward for election. It takes courage and a genuine commitment to our kura to seek a leadership position, and we thank each candidate for their willingness to serve and represent their fellow students.

Congratulations, Kwadwo!

06/09/2026

🎙️ SEASON FINALE | Chibby – A Lifetime at Hillcrest 💙

A school is more than its buildings.

It’s more than classrooms, timetables, uniforms and bells.

A school is its people.

The people who create its culture. The people who remember its stories. The people who turn up, year after year, and give their time, energy and care to generations of young people.

For nearly four decades, Brett “Chibby” Chibnall has been one of those people at Hillcrest.

Chibby first arrived here as a student teacher in 1988. He joined the staff in 1989, became a Dean in 1997, and is now seeing out his sixth cohort of students.

Think about that for a moment.

Thousands of students. Thousands of conversations. Careers, friendships, challenges, celebrations, camps, classrooms, assemblies and ordinary school days that probably didn't seem particularly significant at the time, but together have made up a lifetime at Hillcrest.

For the Season 2 finale of Beyond the Bell, we sit down with Chibby to look back.

There are plenty of stories and plenty of laughs, but underneath them is something much bigger, a story about relationships, service, belonging and the extraordinary impact a teacher can have simply by being there, year after year.

Schools inevitably change.

Buildings change. Students change. Staff change. Education changes.

But the things that matter most somehow stay the same, young people needing adults who know them, care about them, believe in them and are there when they need them.

For generations of Hillcrest students, Chibby has been one of those people. 💙

🎧 Chibby – A Lifetime at Hillcrest
https://open.spotify.com/episode/7auG9jp6Z1yqfKfYGUeZQO?si=lkPubL01QG6TgS_FapLGPg

03/09/2026

🎓 Year 12 into Year 13 Parent & Whānau Evening

As our Year 12 students prepare to move into their final year at Hillcrest High School, we invite parents and whānau to join us for an important information evening.

📅 Wednesday 9 September
⏰ 5:30pm – 6:30pm
📍 School Auditorium

The evening will provide key information to help students make a successful transition into Year 13, including NCEA requirements, career and pathway opportunities, and expectations for our senior students.

Year 13 is an important year, and we want every student returning in 2027 to have a clear sense of pathway, purpose and what they need to achieve their goals.

We strongly encourage all Year 12 parents and whānau to attend. We look forward to seeing you there! 💙💛