Student Comments
From the Head Boarder, 2018
Hatherly Home is an incredibly proud home of 170 boys at New Plymouth Boys’ High School. Not only is the Boarding House the legacy built from the current students, but the long list of Boarding Old Boy’s, who regularly visit us and tell how their days in boarding were some of the best days of their lives.
From the day you join our home, you are welcomed to our boarding family, where each and every boy is bound tightly together much closer than a friendship, but through a strong brotherhood.
All of the boys are taught good routines that are essential for life after school, this includes handling their own living area, sports practice, academics and prep, cultural activities, and social life. Boarding has seven House Masters, as well as two Matrons, who look after our welfare and mentor and tutor us. Many boys create a tight bond with the Masters over their years in boarding as they guide them through life here at school, doing their best to improve the standards every day, providing the best possible environment for success.
Every day after school you have the choice of a wide range of activities to do, including things like going to the beach, the school pool, basketball, touch, etc. We are only capable of this due to having the large campus we have, and all the facilities we are lucky enough to use. We pride ourselves on taking care of the school and its grounds. In Boarding, we like to call ourselves “the heart of the school” as we want to lead the school in all aspects, whether it be behaviour, tidy uniform, or extra curricular.
I strongly encourage any boy and caregivers interested to come along and view our school and see how New Plymouth Boys’ High School can be the best five years of your boy’s life. I definitely have had an amazing experience.
Adam Smith
From the Head Boarder, 2017
I am privileged to be able to tell my experiences as a boarder at New Plymouth Boys’ High School. The initial nervousness for the young boys who are coming into the hostel takes only a few days to subside. You learn very quickly that we are family- brothers. The friendships you create during your time here will be lifelong and tight. The experiences and opportunities here are endless be it sporting, academic, cultural or musical. We have any school facility we wish to use at our fingertips, which puts us ahead of any day student. We have a dedicated team of prefects, matrons and new hostel masters that have the boys’ best interests at heart, and are available at any time to assist. Given the opportunity to live alongside your mates is second to none. You learn to give, accept, adapt and grow from a boy to a man all while having fun in your daily hostel life!
We have high expectations of all the boys in Hatherly house as we aim to ‘be the example’s example’ and set high standards for the rest of the school to follow.
The hostel has not only taught me, but all of the hostel boys, many important life lessons such as meeting deadlines, working hard, and aiming high which leads to exceeding their own expectations. This is something that will be assured when sending your son to NPBHS hostel. Hatherly is the proud home to the present and the past; old boys frequently come to reminisce of the great times that were had. There really is no better place for any young man to get a jump start in life.
Joby Hintz
From the Head Boarder, 2016
The Hostel at New Plymouth Boys’ High School is a home, not just to the current young men, but to the many boarders, over the years who have lived there as well. The daily routines create habits in our young men that they carry on for the rest of their lives, and contribute to them being successful men. Each day starts with a simple task like making a bed and this leads to another task and another and eventually each day is finished with satisfaction, knowing they are making the most of every day.
This Hostel creates life-long friendships as the boys become more than friends, they become brothers. It is a very special camaraderie that is formed when living at this hostel. Living with friends, they learn to understand each other and understand that everyone is different and how important it is to adapt to each person. It is another tool our boys take on their life journey.
Along with the amazing food, the hostel is filled with endless opportunities in which to excel and become involved in, whatever area they desire, whether it be sporting, academic, or cultural. The support from staff gives the boys the confidence to achieve their goals and be the very best they can be. This hostel turns boys into young men as, during their time here, they learn to have respect for the hostel, other boys and staff, but most importantly, for themselves, along with many values and morals they take the world with them.
When sending your son to the hostel at New Plymouth Boys’ High School, you can be sure they are at a place that is as comfortable as they have come from. Because Hatherly becomes their home.
Liam Younger
From the Head Boarder, 2013
My name is Connor Hobbs and I was head boarder at New Plymouth Boys’ High School in 2013. I have grown up in Stratford my entire life where I attended Ngaere Primary School before attending New Plymouth Boys’ High School.
During my five years in the hostel I developed a wide range of friendships, with a range of cultures within the hostel, schoo,l and through sport at New Plymouth Boys’ High School. The hostel taught me so many valuable skills, like how to interact and have respect for others, and gave me the foundation for a successful career. The hostel offers your son so many opportunities that no other local institution can match, as well as help him achieve his personal academic, sporting, and leadership goals within the school.
The dedicated team of Hostel Masters are all ‘top blokes’ who are willing to support your son through his years in the hostel. There really is no better place to send your son to give him the best start in life. You won’t regret it.
Connor Hobbs