The first principal was H. P. Kidson and the school had nine classrooms and one laboratory. The school felt rural with sheep grazing the land, loaned by local farmers. The first caretaker, Mr. H. J. M. Stirling, died while in the school's employ, and a sundial for his memorial was unveiled by the then Prime Minister and local MP for Lower Hutt, Walter Nash. this sundial is maintained as a memorial to those students who had died during their time at the school. The school's first Rhodes Scholarship was awarded to D. Vere-Jones in 1957, who had been Dux in 1953. He represents the school's reputation for scholarship and the many academic honours that past pupils have been awarded over its history.