Bell Block, New Zealand

Bell Block is a town in Taranaki, New Zealand. State Highway 3 runs through it. It is 6 km north-east of the centre of New Plymouth and 1 km from the outer edge of New Plymouth at Waiwhakaiho. Waitara is about 9 km to the north-east. New Plymouth Airport is located immediately to the north-east of Bell Block.

History and culture

The land was purchased in November 1848 by Dillon Bell from the Puketapu iwi. The initial purchase was but more land was added subsequently. Disagreements over the sale of the land contributed to the First Taranaki War. A blockhouse was built by local settlers in early 1860, in order to protect their homes and farms during heightened tensions just prior to the advent of the First Taranaki War. When government troops arrived, a full stockade was built at the site, known as Bell Block Stockade, Bell Blockhouse or Hua Blockhouse. During this time, almost all Bell Block residents took refuge at New Plymouth. Some of the earthworks continued until 1972 when a hotel was built on the site.
Much of New Plymouth's heavy and medium industry is situated around Bell Block, which led to heavy traffic congestion. Construction of an arterial bypass of the town commenced in late 2006. A previously unknown Māori Pā site was discovered during site investigations and was excavated by archaeologists prior to construction.

Marae

Muru Raupatu marae and meeting house is a meeting place for the Puketapu hapū.
In October 2020, the Government committed $817,845 from the Provincial Growth Fund to upgrade it and Te Kohanga Moa marae, creating 15 jobs.

Demographics

Bell Block covers and had an estimated population of as of with a population density of people per km².
Bell Block had a population of 7,869 in the 2023 New Zealand census, an increase of 828 people since the 2018 census, and an increase of 2,010 people since the 2013 census. There were 3,810 males, 4,038 females, and 21 people of other genders in 2,889 dwellings. 1.8% of people identified as LGBTIQ+. There were 1,584 people aged under 15 years, 1,245 aged 15 to 29, 3,318 aged 30 to 64, and 1,719 aged 65 or older.
People could identify as more than one ethnicity. The results were 79.0% European ; 19.0% Māori; 3.4% Pasifika; 11.9% Asian; 0.9% Middle Eastern, Latin American and African New Zealanders ; and 2.2% other, which includes people giving their ethnicity as "New Zealander". English was spoken by 96.2%, Māori by 3.1%, Samoan by 0.7%, and other languages by 10.4%. No language could be spoken by 2.3%. New Zealand Sign Language was known by 0.5%. The percentage of people born overseas was 20.1, compared with 28.8% nationally.
Religious affiliations were 33.3% Christian, 2.4% Hindu, 0.7% Islam, 0.6% Māori religious beliefs, 0.4% Buddhist, 0.4% New Age, and 2.4% other religions. People who answered that they had no religion were 52.0%, and 8.1% of people did not answer the census question.
Of those at least 15 years old, 1,008 people had a bachelor's or higher degree, 3,558 had a post-high school certificate or diploma, and 1,725 people exclusively held high school qualifications. 663 people earned over $100,000 compared to 12.1% nationally. The employment status of those at least 15 was 3,036 full-time, 798 part-time, and 135 unemployed.

Name	Area	Population	Density	Dwellings	Median age	Median income
Bell Block West	3.89	3,444	885	1,287	42.1 years	$37,300
Bell Block Central	1.11	2,895	2,608	1,056	37.8 years	$37,600
Bell Block East-Puketapu	6.93	1,530	221	546	39.6 years	$48,700
New Zealand					38.1 years	$41,500

Features and attractions

The Waipu Lagoons are North Taranaki's only wetland area. The lagoons are home to a variety of wildlife, and are an important natural home for the endangered Australasian bittern.
In December 2014 the northern end of New Plymouth's coastal walkway was extended from Hickford Park, Bell Block through to Tirimoana Crescent, making it possible to cycle or walk from Bell Block into central New Plymouth.
The construction of Taranaki's first world-class BMX facility began in Bell Block in July 2015 and was completed in early 2016.
The BMX track is the latest addition to the Bell Block cycle park, which includes a 1.75 km closed road circuit with two separate 1 km loops and a 333-metre velodrome. The cycle park also has a collection of tracks for children including a miniature town route with traffic lights, a roundabout, railway crossing, accessible car parks, pedestrian crossing and speed bumps, all scaled down to 60 per cent of the original size, to help teach children safety while cycling.

Education

Bell Block School and Puketapu School are coeducational full primary schools with rolls of and students respectively as of Bell Block School celebrated the 150th anniversary of education in Bell Block in 2006. The present school dates from 1872. It reached a roll of almost 700 pupils in 1979, which dropped once Puketapu School was built in 1980.

Transport

Devon Road, part of State Highway 3, travels through Bell Block running west towards Waiwhakaiho and New Plymouth and east towards Waitara. Citylink buses connect the suburb to both locations.
Bell Block railway station was located at the Southern edge of Bell Block. It closes in 1986 except to private sidings.The former Corbett Road railway station also served the area before closing in 1963.