Built in a Church Factory, Placed on Church Land: A Diocese’s Prefab Homes Arrive in Whanganui

• The Anglican Diocese of Wellington is building prefab homes in its own factory
• Two new two-bedroom homes were placed on church land at St Luke’s Castlecliff, Whanganui
• Eight homes had already been built at Taitā in Lower Hutt
• The archbishop said the diocese is putting homes on available parish land

An Anglican diocese in New Zealand is building its own houses and placing them on church land. Anglican Taonga reported on 8 November 2024 that two new homes from the Diocese of Wellington’s prefabrication factory in Featherston had been delivered to St Luke’s Castlecliff in Whanganui on 22 October, and were to be blessed on 10 November.

The two-bedroom, energy-efficient homes sit on church land next to the vicarage. The priest-in-charge, Chris Kirby, described the site as previously an under-used, sloping and scruffy part of the section. They follow eight homes already built at Taitā in Lower Hutt, and the programme is led by diocesan housing manager Nick Young.

Archbishop Justin Duckworth explained the thinking: “New Zealand faces a housing crisis. Our diocese is responding by putting new homes on available parish land.”

Rose Robinson, who is involved in the diocesan housing programme, said the homes would raise standards for renters. “Rental accommodation is usually older housing stock, which is so far below the standard of building code. These houses are built to above code standard meaning they will be cosy, healthy, economical homes for tenants,” she said. The report did not give costs.

The Wellington approach combines two ideas: using land a church already owns, and controlling construction costs by building in its own factory. Prefabrication allows homes to be built quickly and placed on small, awkward parcels that a conventional developer might ignore.

Many Jamaican churches have spare corners of land beside manses and church halls. The Wellington model suggests they could host small numbers of well-built rental homes, possibly using prefabricated, hurricane-rated designs. After Hurricane Melissa, that approach could help churches provide quality housing quickly, and diaspora congregations could help fund units for families in their home parishes.

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