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'Simply stunning” is how Tahatai Coast School principal Ian Leckie describes the eight new murals installed at Hartford Ave Reserve in Papamoa.

Nearly every single student of the Papamoa primary school had a hand in creating the murals which were unveiled during a special ceremony held at the reserve today.

Eight stunning murals created by Tahatai Coast School students have been unveiled at Hartford Ave Reserve in Papamoa during a special ceremony held today. Photo: Tracy Hardy

Joining the school for ceremony were Tauranga City Council elected members, representatives from Papamoa Police, and Western Bay of Plenty area commander Inspector Clifford Paxton.

Ian says he is incredibly proud of his students who all put in a lot of time and effort into creating these murals.

'The school looked at how we could we contribute to beautifying and tidying up our local area,” explains Ian. 'One of the things we thought about was tidying up the playground's shelter area in the reserve.

'We then considered how we could involve each and every one of our students, which is where the idea of creating the murals came from.”

Each accademic year level at the school was responsible for creating one of the eight murals, which all measure roughly 2m x 1m.

The murals all feature a different native birds like kea, piwakawaka and ruru to represent the schools different ‘whānau' – or what others might know as ‘school houses'.

Ian says the school believes the community will take immense pride in these murals because it was their children who helped to create them.

'At least 100 kids had a hand in creating each of the murals, so every time they're at the reserve they can point at the murals and say ‘I did a bit of that' which is fantastic.

'We're so incredibly proud of their efforts and love what they have created that we're going to get a duplicate set printed off and installed at the school.”

Community development advisor Jane Denton says the panels are the result of council and the community working together to engage young people creatively.

The Tauranga City Council has worked closely with the school to create these mural panels and Jane is delighted to see the final product.

'The kids have done a wonderful job. The murals look amazing and will really help to inspire a sense of pride in the community and show that locals care about the neighbourhood.”