our services include

Community Classes

From Parnell and Epsom Community Centre, The Village Square Trust offer an extensive programme of community classes and activities. Classes are organised into four terms, in sync with school holidays, and cover culture and languages; English as a Second Language (ESOL); healthy mind and body; creative art, craft and design; and music, rhythm and dance.

Social Activities

Our programme of Social Activities at Parnell Community Centre runs throughout the year and includes Bridge - daytime and evening groups, and Bridge classes; Mah Jong, Chess, Seniors Coffee and Chat, Step Out Walking group, Film Club,  Scrabble and Parnell Coffee & Chat. Other sociable activities available include groups such as Parnell U3A and Toast of Broadway Toastmasters Club, which hold regular member meetings at the Centre.

Venue Hire

The Village Square Trust offers affordable Venue Hire options from Parnell Community Centre’s Jubilee Building and Epsom Community Centre. We have nine spaces of various sizes available for hire at the Jubilee Building including the large Jubilee Hall, and five spaces available at Epsom Community Centre. Both Centre’s are centrally located with easy motorway access and free parking, making them popular for business meetings and workshops. Hire rates are significantly discounted for community groups to make the Centre accessible to all.

Early Childhood Centres

The Village Square Trust operates two Early Childhood Centres in Parnell, Auckland: Parnell Early Childhood Centre at 27 Glanville Terrace, and  Gladstone Park Early Childhood Centre at 27 Balfour Road. The centres are located close to main arterial routes to Auckland's CBD - perfect for commuting parents -  and provide quality care, excellent teacher ratios,  heart-healthy meals and snacks, leafy outdoor play areas and stimulating indoor spaces for three-month old babies to 5 year olds.

Both of our Centres have Gold Healthy Heart Awards for excellent healthy living  practices including meals, curriculum and healthy activities. Our Green Kids Programme plays a core role in life and learning at all the centres. The programme builds on the Heart Foundation's Healthy Heart initiatives and is all about taking the very best care of our children and setting them up to be healthy for life. 

Programmes for School Children

The Village Square Trust offers Before and After School Programmes, and School Holiday Programmes, delivered by experienced and highly motivated staff. The programmes provide a valuable service for hundreds of families in our community by allowing parents and caregivers to continue at their work, knowing that their children are being cared for professionally.

Term-time before and after school programmes are run at Epsom Normal Primary School and Our Lady of the Sacred Heart School in Epsom. A variety of planned activities, homework time and free play are incorporated each afternoon and a snack is also provided.

The Village Square Trust’s extensive school holiday programme runs from two locations - Parnell Community Centre and Epsom Normal Primary School - and there are up to four on-site and off-site activities and adventures to choose from each day. Our holiday programmes are perfect for busy parents who can drop their children off with us as early as 7.30am and collect them as late as 6pm.

KidsHQ SuperMeals

KidsHQ SuperMeals are frozen take-home meals, made at Parnell Early Childhood Centre each week to Parnell Early Childhood Centre's Gold Healthy Heart award-winning recipes. The meals are packed with "hidden vege" goodness and perfect for growing children. With a little added seasoning they're great for adults too! A menu of meals, in 200g and 300g packs, are available for purchase online at www.kidshq.co.nz. Meals can also be purchased directly from Parnell Community Centre, including at Parnell Farmers' Market, and at Parnell Early Childhood Centre.

Markets

The Village Square Trust started Parnell Farmers' Market in 2007 as a place to bring members of our community together and to provide the opportunity to purchase fresh seasonal produce, brought to market by the producers themselves.

Every Saturday morning, rain or shine, the market is set up in the Jubilee Building car park at 545 Parnell Road, Parnell behind Parnell Community Centre. It's open from 8am to 12 noon. The market won accolades from the New York Times in 2013, and in 2014, Auckland trendsetter The Denizen voted Parnell Farmers' Market Auckland's Best Inner City Market' for Foodies, saying that it's a "must-stop for those who have their finger on the pulse when it comes to all things worth devouring."

Craft Harvest joins Parnell Farmers' Market on the fourth Saturday of each month from 8am - 11.45am. The market is a showcase of some of Auckland's best craft talent. People can buy original, high quality handmade art and craft direct from the makers in Parnell Community Centre's Jubilee Hall.

Heritage Walks

The Village Square Trust offers a unique programme of heritage walks around the historic central Auckland suburbs of Parnell, Grafton, Newmarket, Epsom and Auckland University's campus. A full programme of guided walks is offered during the annual Auckland Heritage Festival, which runs for two weeks in September and/or October. Walks are led by knowledgeable guides who provide interesting commentary and anecdotes on local heritage treasures and the people that shaped these central Auckland suburbs. Guided Heritage Walks can be booked for private groups at any time of the year, depending on availability of our guides.

Many of the walks are also available for download in podcast format on this website and come complete with printable guides and maps

Community Initiatives and Events

The Village Square Trust seeks to facilitate community-led initiatives by helping people network to form groups for social activity or action, and by providing, within Parnell and Epsom Community Centre, places where groups can come together.

We often participate in or help promote community events in collaboration with local groups.