News & Events
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Key Events

Palmerston North Boys’ High School has a range of key events that play a pivotal part in the school calendar year.

School Calendar. Find out what events are coming up at PNBHS.

School Calendar

Term Dates
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Key Dates & Events 2026

Term 1

Senior Course Confirmation
Monday 26 January (8:30am – 1:00pm)

Teacher Only Day
Tuesday 27 January

Senior Students Return (Year 11-13)
Wednesday 28 January (9:00am – 12:30pm)

Junior Students Return (Year 9 & 10)
Thursday 29 January (9:00am – 3:20pm)

All Students Return
Friday 30 January

Crest to Crest Challenge
Monday 9 February to Friday 13 February

Year 13 Mountain Trip (Mt Ruapehu)
Monday 9 February to Friday 13 February

Year 9 ‘Meet the Teacher’
Monday 2 March

Year 10 ‘Meet the Teacher’
Tuesday 3 March

School Athletics Preliminaries
Wednesday 4 March

School Athletics Championships & Marching
Thursday 12 March

Senior Production “Newsies” Opening Night
Thursday 19 March

Summer Tournament Week
Monday 23 March – Friday 27 March

Senior Production “Newsies” Closing Night
Saturday 28 March

School Swimming Sports
Thursday 2 April

School Road Race
Wednesday 1 April

Shand Shield Senior Touch, Tennis, Table Tennis
Tuesday 31 March

End of Term One
Thursday 2 April

Term Dates 2026

Term 1

Start Date: Monday 26 January
End Date: Thursday 2 April

Term 2

Start Date: Monday 20 April
End Date: Friday 3 July

Term 3

Start Date: Monday 20 July
End Date: Friday 25 September

Term 4

Start Date: Monday 12 October
End Date: Friday 4 December

Public Holidays 2026

Waitangi Day
Friday 6 February

Good Friday
Friday 3 April

King’s Birthday
Monday 1 June

Matariki Public Holiday
Friday 10 July

Labour Day
Monday 26 October

PNBHS Events
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Crest to Crest Challenge

Crest to Crest Challenge involves around 20 Year 13 students racing from the Crest of Mt Ruapehu to the Crest at Palmerston North Boys High School over five days. The students apply to be selected for this event with strict criteria for selection. Many of our students aspire to take part in this event from Year 9. The Crest involves the students working together as a team and places all students out of their comfort zone both physically and mentally

Athletics Sports and Marching

The annual Palmerston North Boys’ High School Athletic Sports and Marching is the first event in the Shand Shield competition. The athletic sports are broken up into three separate competitions; track, field and relays. All young men compete in these events in one of four age groups, and the standard of competition is very high. The club marching, as well as providing a rare opportunity for both junior and senior students to compete in the same event, is spectacular as a spectator event. Students who perform to the highest level may be selected for the Palmerston North Boys’ High School team for the Manawatu Inter Secondary Schools Athletic championships.

Senior Production

The Palmerston North Boys’ High School and Palmerston North Girls’ High School Senior Production is an annual musical theatre production staged in late Term 1 in the Palmerston North Boys’ High School Speirs Centre for a season of nine performances over two weeks.

Road Race

The annual School Road Race is held towards the end of Term I. All young men compete in one of four challenging circuits around Ongley park and through the nearby Esplanade to earn points for their club in the Shand Shield competition.

Swimming Sports

The annual School Swimming Sports is where boys train and compete in various events in order to earn points for their club, including freestyle, breaststroke, backstroke, butterfly and medley.

Cross Country

The annual School Cross Country is held at Keeble Farm, a short distance outside of Palmerston North. This location provides us with the opportunity to offer a genuine, challenging cross country course. The Cross Country is a key event in the Shand Shield competition and students compete in one of four age group categories.

School ANZAC Service

Our School ANZAC Service is a significant occasion in our school calendar and provides our young men with an opportunity to reflect upon the sacrifices made by those Old Boys of our school who once occupied the same place they do today.

70 Old Boys served and lost their lives in WWI and 132 Old Boys in WWII.

They shall not grow old, as we that are left grow old. Age shall not weary them, nor the years condemn. At the going down of the sun and in the morning, we will remember them. Lest We Forget.

School Concert

The annual Palmerston North Boys’ High School concert is an opportunity for our cultural performance groups – choirs, such as the all-comers SOAP choir, Barbershop groups and the elite OK Chorale; musical groups, ranging from string quartets and guitar trios, to the stage band, concert band, pipers, and rock bands; Kapa Haka and Pasifika performance groups – to showcase their talents to the school community.

Senior School Ball

The annual Palmerston North Boys’ High School Ball is a social occasion for young men in Year 12 and Year 13, and is a really positive event in our school calendar. The Ball is held early in Term III and provides an opportunity for young men and young women to socialise in a formal setting.

Shand Shield Winter Tournament

Shand Shield Winter Tournament is an annual school event where clubs compete against eachother in various activities to gain points for the overall Shand Shield.

Shand Shield Choral Competition

The Shand Shield Choral is an annual school event where clubs perform their chosen songs to gain points for the overall Shand Shield.

Prizegiving

The school recognises the achievements of our young men at the Sports and Cultural Prizeigiving, the College House Prizegiving and the School Prizegiving.