Update on School House Hostel Redevelopment

By Alice Scott | Posted: Thursday August 14, 2025

A message from John Blaikie, Chairman – OBHS Foundation

Over the past few weeks, members of the OBHS Foundation and Rector Richard Hall have hosted a presentation at a couple of country taverns in rural Otago, sharing an update on the School House hostel redevelopment.

We know how busy rural people are, often juggling many roles in their communities, so it meant a great deal to see such strong turnouts. The level of interest and engagement at each presentation was heartening and reinforced the depth of connection our hostel has with our wider OBHS community. 

Our aim was simple – to keep people informed of progress on a project that has been a long-held goal for our school. To finally have realistic plans drawn up and real traction is extremely satisfying. So far, we’ve raised $1.1 million. Stage One of the redevelopment is expected to begin in October this year. We will soon launch a campaign to raise a further $900,000 for Stage Two, which we hope to begin next year (pending funding).

A sincere thank you to those who have given their time, energy, and resources to get us this far. The School House redevelopment has attracted support not only from hostel families, but from the broader OBHS community. Our country boys bring a heart and soul to this school that no other public school in Dunedin is fortunate to have.

To learn more about the redevelopment, click the link here or contact us directly at [email protected] if you’d like to know more about getting behind this campaign.

A Hostel Parent’s Perspective

Ryan Dowling, who has two boys currently at the hostel and another on the way, shared this after attending the Wedderburn presentation:

“The presentation the Foundation members and Richard put on was excellent. The plans look great. That big question of ‘why not just knock it down and start again?’ was answered really well – and actually, there’s something special about keeping what’s already there and building on the heart and character of the existing buildings.
My boys are extremely happy at OBs. The schoolwork, the staff, the hostel, their sport – it’s all been excellent.
It was also great to meet the leadership behind this project – Lockie Chisholm, who is clearly instrumental in the project, doesn’t even have a son in the hostel and yet is giving his time voluntarily, with no direct benefit to himself. That speaks volumes to me. I feel confident to get behind this project and do what I can to help make it a reality.”