A Fresh Identity

Over the past 70 years Saint Kentigern has established a unique position in New Zealand’s education landscape. Our mission to inspire our students to strive for excellence, for the glory of God and the service of others, guides us every day in all that we do.

Symbols of our identity - our name, Celtic cross, and the Saint Kentigern Blue have become synonymous with a commitment to educational excellence, service to others, extensive opportunities, and faith, setting us apart as a distinctive choice in Independent Presbyterian education.

Last year the Trust Board undertook a review of our brand identity, culminating in the all-new brand strategy and refreshed identity, developed through extensive research including surveys and focus groups with key Saint Kentigern stakeholders. This collective input from the Trust Board, Senior Leadership Team, and our community has shaped the framework for our updated brand strategy introduced at the start of 2024. 

This brand update includes a refreshed, modernised look and feel headlined by a change to our most important symbol; our logo which has been revitalised with subtle adjustments resulting in a modern interpretation of the original version. 

We have also introduced an inspiring brand tagline; Choose to Believe. It is an affirmative call to action, inviting families and students to choose Saint Kentigern and encapsulating the essence of who we are. 

The refreshed identity honours the mission of our founders and looks to the future with confidence and faith in what tomorrow holds for the whole Saint Kentigern community.

Here is our brand story:

At Saint Kentigern we believe in the potential of people to change the world and in the ‘life changing’ contribution that educational excellence can make to students, staff, families, communities, and society.

Saint Kentigern opened in 1953 on a site in rural Pakuranga our first 92 students and four educators were the pioneers of Saint Kentigern. Today, there are more than 3000 students at four Saint Kentigern schools, across two campuses, offering single-gender and co-educational education. We embrace being a school in Aotearoa New Zealand. Everything we do is underpinned by a strong tradition of Presbyterian education. 

We are an organisation bound by faith in Christ and a determination to pursue educational leadership. Our educators, administrators, families, and alumni are united in our commitment to being one of the great schools of the world. Named after the patron saint of Glasgow, our Scottish heritage adds traditions, stories and the stirring sounds of pipes and drums.

At Saint Kentigern, we have faith in what tomorrow holds. From early childhood and through a young person’s formative years, we help our students set their course, guided by moral principles. We’ve carried that commitment to acquiring knowledge, being disciplined, and living lives of service to others since 1953.

Our duty of care extends to our schools, our community, and our country. We grow and maintain long-lasting and meaningful relationships and connections and we show respect to everyone we engage with. We assume stewardship and responsibility for our people and our place.

We want each student in our care to pursue a fascinating and rich life, informed by their own curiosity and focused on excellence, service, and collective ambition. We encourage each boy and girl to step forward, take ownership and make the most of their gifts and skills.

We are open-hearted. We are accepting, tolerant, kind, and welcoming. We celebrate each individual and are passionate about their ability to reach their potential. We offer a values-driven approach to preparing young people for life that is outward looking, seeks potential, and focuses on making a positive contribution.

We engage with people in good faith. We are loyal to the things that bring us together. We are hardworking. We are inclusive. We celebrate leadership and achievement, and we motivate individuals to step up and forward. Our alumni are living proof of how connected we feel to everyone who has been here, and how influential time at our campuses can be in guiding each life journey.

Our school began because a group of future-thinking Presbyterian ministers and laity chose to believe in the Glory of God, the acquisition of knowledge, the importance of training mind and body and lives of service.

We’ve kept their faith. Whether you are learning here, sending children here, working here or one of our alumni, what unites us as a community is how we choose to believe in the power of education and faith to change lives for the better.

Fides Servanda Est.