Skip Content
TWoA Tauranga campus Tauranga City Accessibility Awards

The Tauranga campus of Te Wānanga o Aotearoa has picked up another award.

The campus - which opened in 2016 - has previously been recognised for its design in the 2016 Waikato/Bay of Plenty Architectural Awards and late last year it was judged the winner of the Accessible and Inclusive Building category at the inaugural Tauranga City Accessibility Awards.

The awards were launched in 2017 by the city’s Disability Advisory Group, which works with the Tauranga City Council on the implementation of its Disability Strategy. They aim to celebrate business owners who have made accessibility a feature of their new building, organisers say.

Judges were impressed with the design, layout and accessibility of the campus and felt it embraced Universal Design principles and was an outstanding example of a building which was accommodating to students, who live with a disability.

Regional operations manager Murray Rillstone says the campus architects – Wingate Architects - factored accessibility into the initial design and the benefits were clear.

“It gives all our tauira equal opportunity to have a learning experience with Te Wānanga o Aotearoa,” he says.

“Since it’s brand new, we had the opportunity to add these accessibility concepts to the design. It was the first time we’ve been able to build something from the ground up. Our other sites have been pre-existing or modified.”

Judges made only two recommendations to further improve accessibility: signage for disability bathrooms and a small ramp down from the classrooms to the outdoor concourse.

Murray says it was good to get the feedback from the judges and “those are things we can work on”.

 Back to news & events

Published On:

Article By:



Other Articles

  • 05 September 2025

    Cooking up confidence in te reo Māori

    Āku Hapa! is a reo Māori cooking show created by Te Wānanga o Aotearoa tauira, blending kai, kōrero, and comedy. Streaming on Māori+, this series celebrates learning te reo through laughter, mistakes, and whānau connection - one delicious dish at a time.

  • 29 August 2025

    New baby brings new purpose

    Ropata Haddon’s journey through te reo Māori study at Te Wānanga o Aotearoa was reignited by the birth of his child. Discover how fatherhood, kapa haka, and whānau support are helping him embed te reo and tikanga Māori into everyday life for future generations.

  • 20 August 2025

    Gain cultural confidence in the corporate world through Piharoa workshops

    Te Wānanga o Aotearoa’s Piharoa workshops empower corporate leaders with cultural confidence through mātauranga Māori and Te Tiriti o Waitangi. Discover how this executive development programme fosters authentic engagement with Māori communities and transforms workplace culture.

  • 20 August 2025

    He aha tēnei mea te Tāne Māori? Tu's Rangahau journey

    Tutakangahau (Tu) Williams, recipient of the Dr Morehu McDonald Residency, shares his Rangahau journey exploring Māori masculinity and identity. Learn how his passion for reading, writing, and kaupapa Māori research is shaping his path toward a PhD and future as a kairangahau.