Education Centre's fight to stay open
- 275times
- 14 hours ago
- 2 min read
Two years on from losing $300,000 a year in local board funding, the Māngere Mountain Education Centre is putting the call out for more support so it can keep being a vital educational resource to young and old alike.
The Centre lost the funding in 2023, a cut General Manager Zane Wedding describes as a huge loss. Despite this, the Centre has kept its doors open and its visitor numbers climbing, welcoming 5,600 people in 2024 and over 6,000 in 2025.
Zane Wedding, General Managere of the Māngere Mountain Education Centre is
"The Education Centre was devastated to lose $300,000 of local board funding in 2023," Wedding says.
"However, despite this, we have continued to increase our visitor numbers, doing whatever we can to keep the doors open. Our community relationships are strong; we just hope the local board sees the value in what we provide this community."
For almost 30 years, the centre has taught the history of the maunga, its geological and archaeological features, and the stories of the people who first settled Māngere and South Auckland. Thousands of tamariki and whānau pass through its programmes each year, many of them local school groups learning about the whenua they walk on every day.
"Te Pane o Mataoho is one of Auckland's best remnant pā sites," Wedding says.
"It displays archaeological and geological features not seen elsewhere in Tāmaki Makaurau. This is what draws learner groups of all ages to engage with our education centre, and offering insight and understanding about the land we all stand on is so beneficial for the people who stand upon it. We want to be able to do this forever."
Centre chair Sophia Olo Whaanga says the funding challenges are real, but do not diminish what the centre gives back to the community.
"Our commitment is to continue working alongside our partners to secure a sustainable future that keeps our doors open, honours the aspirations of our mana whenua marae, and ensures this special place continues to inspire generations to come."
Māngere-Ōtāhuhu Local Board Chair Kaea Walter Inoke-Togiamua confirmed funding for the centre sat at just $113,000 for the 2026 financial year, down from the $300,000 provided annually between 2018 and 2023 under the council's Long Term Plan.
"Auckland Council acknowledges that the current funding and governance arrangements are not sustainable and will continue to work with the trust board to identify a long-term solution," Inoke-Togiamua says.
The funding boost in 2018 had come with a direction to integrate the Trust into the Tūpuna Maunga Authority's operations, but no changes to governance have been made and the trust remains a council-controlled organisation.
With the future of the centre still uncertain, locals are being urged to show their support by visiting, spreading the word, or donating directly to help keep the centre running.
"Together, we have created a place where our stories, our taiao and our kaimahi continue to thrive," Olo Whaanga says.
Donations can be made at mangeremountain.nz/koha.