Our School’s History
HVHS’ Archivist, Judith Gardiner, works hard preserving items of interest from our school’s history, helping alumni and the wider community with research requests and documenting areas of interest in our school’s history.
Donations of memorabilia, photographs as well as accounts of school life in times gone by are gratefully received. If you’d like to volunteer in this area to help with this work please get in touch.
To contact our Archivist, Judith Gardiner, please email archives@hvhs.school.nz
Past Pupils and Friends Association (PPFA)
The Past Pupils and Friends Association aims to:
- maintain a close relationship with the school
- contribute financially to specific projects at the school
- award annual scholarships (up to 3) to graduating Year 13 students
- contribute financially to the work of the Archivist.
The Past Pupils and Friends Association (PPFA) have a rich history of making grants to the school and individual pupils. The annual PPFA Scholarships are awarded to graduating Year 13 students (up to three) who have made a significant contribution to the school during their time.
The 2023 recipients of the PPFA Scholarships were Hardeep Kaur and Allie Knox who received the PPFA Scholarships for their valued contributions to school life.
Annual General Meeting of the PPFA
The Annual General Meeting (AGM) of the HVHS Past Pupils and Friends Association (PPFA) took place on Monday 12 August 2024. The next AGM will take place in 2025 and will be advertised on the Hutt Valley High School Alumni page on Facebook
Connecting with the PPFA
To keep updated with Alumni news we recommend pressing the ‘Like’ button on our Facebook page. If you have alumni news, stories or memories to share, please get in touch. We value these contributions from our school contribution.
- Alumni database: join the mailing list to receive the newsletter by signing up here
- Alumni newsletter: read the latest email newsletter by clicking here
- Email: alumni@hvhs.school.nz
- Address: HVHS PPFA, Private Bag 31 909, Lower Hutt 5040
- Facebook: Hutt Valley High School Alumni
HVHS Centenary Celebrations in 2026
We’re excited to invite all alumni to our Open Day on Saturday 8 August, 2026. The day will be filled with various activities, events, and opportunities to reconnect with old friends and the school community. Join us for a pōwhiri, scheduled morning teas for decade groups, presentations, drama and musical performances, sports events, school tours, and much more.
We’ve drawn on lessons from past jubilees in planning this milestone celebration. We’ve chosen to focus on creating an inclusive Open Day event that’s open to everyone, so we’re steering clear of expensive gala dinners. Our 100th celebration is about bringing people together in a way that’s accessible to all.
We also encourage alumni to organise decade gatherings or catch-ups on Friday 7 August 7 2026 or Saturday 8 August (in the evening after the Open Day).
The decade groups are:
- 1940 – 1949
- 1950 – 1959
- 1960 – 1969
- 1970 – 1979
- 1980 – 1989
- 1990 – 1999
- 2000 – 2009
- 2010 – 2019
- 2020 – 2025
If you’re planning something, please let us know! Email the details to Deena at alumni@hvhs.school.nz, and we’ll help promote your event on our Facebook Alumni page and in our Alumni newsletter.
Need help finding old classmates? Contact us at archives@hvhs.school.nz with the year and class list you’re looking for, and we’ll do our best to find the pages of your old Yearbook listing your classmates.
To stay informed about the latest alumni news, events and the upcoming 100th celebrations join our Alumni database by signing up here
You can also read the latest Alumni newsletter by clicking here
Peter Bidwell’s 100 Year History of HVHS
We are fortunate to have former journalist and published author Peter Bidwell researching and documenting our school’s history ahead of our school’s Centennial in 2026.
Peter is editing a Yearbook publication documenting our people and their stories and would appreciate help in these areas:
- HVHS students, teachers and support staff from the World War 11 era (1939-1945).
- Alumni who attended/worked at HVHS from the 1940s, 1950s, 1960s.
- Stories from our diverse communities throughout HVHS’s 98-year history.
Peter is passionate about capturing these stories, images, and materials before they are lost. If you can help Peter, please email him at pete73bidwell@gmail.com. Please include your phone details, as Peter is happy to call. You can also find Peter coaching on the sidelines of the HVHS Boys 2nd Cricket Team.
Thank you to the many alumni who have already emailed and spoken with Peter. It’s a big project Peter is undertaking, and any support is greatly appreciated.
HVHS Yearbooks
The HVHS yearbook is available in a digital (PDF) format. Transitioning away from printed copies removed the financial barrier of families needing to buy a copy of the yearbook to enjoy, and environmentally, it made sense to move away from printing 180 pages for each copy.
In 2023, we introduced an Archives publication in place of the traditional yearbook. This new format captures a comprehensive snapshot of the school year, including the school calendar, newsletter articles, property plans, school board minutes, awards lists, and photos of mentor classes, student leaders, and staff. The yearly Archive publications also document important aspects of school life, such as Moe Araara (our haka) and E Tipu (our waiata).