Last updated October 2026
Kennington is a small rural settlement on the eastern edge of Invercargill, set beside the Waihopai River. State Highway 1 runs through it, and the Main South Line railway follows the same corridor north.
The locality is recorded across Invercargill City and Southland District, so it reads as open farming country rather than a city suburb. Older records knew this ground as One Tree Point. The memorial gates of the former Kennington School, the community hall, and the heritage homestead Ardneil are the landmarks most people notice.
Official Locality Facts
- Population (2023 Census)
- About 240, up 3% since 2018
- Land area
- 14.66 km²
- Location
- 9.5 km east of central Invercargill
- Council
- Invercargill City Council and Southland District Council
- Neighbouring suburbs
- Longbush, Seaward Bush, Waimatua, Rimu, Mill Road, Mokotua
- Getting there
- State Highway 1 runs through Kennington on the main road north from Invercargill. The Main South Line railway also passes through, but passenger trains no longer stop here. No local bus service was confirmed.
- Schools
- Rimu School, a state primary for years 1 to 8, established by 1893, is the school named in published profiles of Kennington. Kennington School closed in 1971.
- Nearby landmarks
- Kennington Memorial Gates, Ardneil, Kennington Hall, Waihopai River
Who Lives in Kennington
About 240 residents in 90 households. From the 2023 Census, with the New Zealand figure alongside for comparison.
About Kennington
Kennington is farming country on the flat eastern side of Invercargill. Paddocks, shelter belts and the Waihopai River define the setting more than shops or footpaths. It is described as a rural settlement on the river, with State Highway 1 and the Main South Line both passing through.
Driving north out of the city, this is one of the first stretches where the built-up area gives way to dairy and grazing land.
The older European name for the district was One Tree Point. Heritage New Zealand records that in February 1872 the Crown granted Section 29, Block II of the Invercargill Hundred, in the district of One Tree Point, to surveyor Robert Gillies.
In 1882 Robert Coupland bought part of that land and named his farm Dunragit, after his home town in Scotland. The name Kennington later attached to the settlement. Published profiles list Ngāi Tahu as the local iwi. The river name is also the source of the city’s Māori name, Waihōpai.
A public school stood here for decades. The Kennington School war memorial gates were unveiled in August 1927, with marble tablets naming former pupils who served or died in the First World War. After the Second World War an arch was added and the walls extended so that men from the school and the wider district could be recorded.
Invercargill City Council notes 109 names on the gates, including a tablet for Brigadier James Hargest and his sons Geoffrey and Peter. The school closed in 1971. The gates remain at the former school site.
Day-to-day life is still organised around farms, the highway and a few community places. A proposal for a large incinerator was abandoned after residents raised concerns about air and about bore and rain water. There is no passenger rail stop, and everyday shopping is back in Invercargill. Rimu School, established by 1893, is the state primary associated with the settlement in published education profiles.
Getting Around
State Highway 1 is the practical way in and out. It is the main road north from Invercargill through Kennington. The Main South Line railway runs through the settlement as well. Local passenger trains that once stopped here ended decades ago.
The Southerner was an express rather than a local stopping service, and passenger trains have not operated on the line since that express was cancelled on 10 February 2002. No public bus route specific to Kennington was confirmed, so most visits are by car.
History and Heritage
Ardneil, at 30 Rimu Road, is the homestead Heritage New Zealand lists for Kennington. John McNab commissioned architect C.J. Brodrick to design the house. When the contractor did not finish, Brodrick completed the work in November 1903. McNab lived there only briefly.
In 1905 Henry Fowler bought the property and named it Ardneil after his home in Scotland. Heritage New Zealand also notes Fowler as a pioneer of the Kennington dairy factory, and records that Arnold Nordmeyer, later a Labour Party leader, had a temporary charge of the Kennington Presbyterian Church while connected with the house.
The homestead is a private home, not a public museum. Heritage New Zealand describes a red-brick house with a turret, decorated verandas and a mix of Queen Anne Revival, Anglo-Dutch and Italian Renaissance detailing. It was a social focus for rural Kennington in its early years.
The Hillis family bought it in 1927, and the listing notes that the house was later restored by the family.
Community Facilities
Kennington Hall has been the settlement’s community venue for more than a century. Local reporting describes it as the place for weddings, birthdays and community gatherings, including Christmas in the park and Anzac Day services.
The Kennington Memorial Gates, listed by Invercargill City Council, stand at the former school site and remain the public focus for remembrance. Together the hall and the gates are the clearest community landmarks in an otherwise quiet farming settlement.
Near Kennington
Just outside Kennington, within 10 km of its centre, nearest first.
Places
Businesses
Where to Learn More
Invercargill City Council: War memorials: Council notes on the Kennington Memorial Gates, including the rolls of honour and the Hargest tablet.
NZ History: Kennington School war memorial gate: History of the 1927 gates, the later arch, and the closure of Kennington School.
Heritage New Zealand: Ardneil: Listing entry for the Kennington homestead, its architects and owners, and the One Tree Point land history.
Frequently Asked Questions
Where is Kennington?
Kennington is a rural settlement on the eastern edge of Invercargill, beside the Waihopai River. State Highway 1 runs through it.
Is Kennington part of Invercargill?
It sits on the city’s eastern edge. The locality is recorded under both Invercargill City and Southland District, so a particular property may fall in either council area. Check the address with the relevant council.
How do you get to Kennington?
Drive north from Invercargill on State Highway 1. The railway line passes through, but there is no passenger train stop, and no local bus service was confirmed.
Is there a school in Kennington?
Kennington School closed in 1971. Rimu School, a state primary for years 1 to 8 established by 1893, is the school named in published profiles of the settlement.
What are the Kennington Memorial Gates?
They are the First and Second World War memorial at the former Kennington School. The gates were unveiled in August 1927, an arch was added after the Second World War, and Invercargill City Council records 109 names, including Brigadier James Hargest and his sons.
What was One Tree Point?
One Tree Point was the earlier name for this district. Heritage New Zealand traces European land titles here from a Crown grant to Robert Gillies in 1872, before the Kennington name became established.
Which iwi is associated with Kennington?
Published profiles list Ngāi Tahu as the local iwi. The settlement stands on the Waihopai River, the source of the city’s Māori name, Waihōpai.
Can I visit Ardneil?
Ardneil is a heritage-listed private homestead at 30 Rimu Road, not a public museum. The Heritage New Zealand listing is the reliable way to read its history. Do not assume the house or grounds are open to visitors.
Spotted something incorrect on this page? Let us know.
Explore Invercargill only lists suburbs officially recognised by Land Information New Zealand (LINZ), and Kennington is one of them. Suburb boundary: LINZ, CC BY 4.0.