Our Heritage

We turned 65 in 2022!

In 2022, NBSS celebrated its 65th anniversary since its founding at the Bah Tan Road campus in 1957, primarily for the children of the British Naval Base employees. To commemorate this milestone, the school organised a series of celebrations involving various key stakeholders of the school.

To learn more about our earlier years, scroll right down to the section titled "Back to when we first began..."!

NB65 Photo Formation

On 27 September 2022, the entire staff and student population congregated at our Plaza to form a mega ‘NB65’. The Plaza dazzled in the bright colours of the respective levels’ camp t-shirts, with Sec 1 Navalites in orange, Sec 2s in green, Sec 3s in blue, and Sec 4s and 5s in pink. Our staff wore bright red t-shirts to make up the beating heart in the middle of the formation. It was certainly a morale-booster as we headed into the end-of-year assessment season!

NB65 Water Bottle

The first hint of the 65th anniversary commemoration series came in the shape of sleek water bottles that were distributed to all students and staff. In line with the school’s focus on environmental sustainability, the bottles aimed to encourage Navalites to live more sustainably by reducing single-use plastics, while also reminding them to make healthier drink choices – plain water! The choice of bottle and design was made in consultation with student leaders, who considered weight, durability, sustainability and aesthetics as key factors – the colour of the bottle was able to change alongside the temperature of its contents!

Visit by Fandi Ahmad

On 30 August 2022, Singapore footballing treasure Fandi Ahmad visited NBSS at our invitation, to celebrate our 65th anniversary with us. He shared his thoughts with all our students and staff, and inspired them greatly with his sharing on how his ‘3DS’ mantra carried him through his ups and downs, namely: Determination, Dedication, Discipline and Sacrifice. Staff and students alike were greatly inspired and evidently starstruck, and engaged him in many questions about his take on life, sports, successes and challenges. Fandi also took the time to engage our sports leaders in a smaller-group setting, where he was able to share more details about what it took to succeed on the field. Finally, Fandi gamely recorded congratulatory messages to our graduating cohorts, which were later played at their respective Graduation Day ceremonies.

NB65 Commemorative T-Shirts

What would a celebration be without specially-designed t-shirts to get everyone into the mood? Red t-shirts were designed and distributed to Navalites, and matching black ones were given to staff, to provide our community with yet another way to show off our Navalite identity! These t-shirts would also be another option for school events in future, and featured the number ‘65’ prominently on the back.

NBSS Plants 65 Trees – In and Around School

Rounding off the commemorative events with a return to the environmental theme that kickstarted it, we brought in our external stakeholders, School Advisory Committee, alumni, former staff, Navy partners from the 8th Flotilla, and our community partners, to plant 65 trees – one for each year of our existence thus far. First, on 25 October 2022, 15 trees were planted within the school compound. Then, on 3 November 2022, we planted another 50 trees along Yishun Ring Road, along the eastern perimeter of the school. And since these trees were planted in the community, gracing the occasion was none other than our Advisor to Nee Soon South Grassroots Organisations Ms Carrie Tan! The event was supported by NParks as part of its OneMillionTrees movement, which aims to restore nature back into our city through the planting of more than a million trees across Singapore over the next 10 years.

Back to when we first began...

The history of Naval Base Secondary School (NBSS) began in 1957 when the British Navy set aside a piece of land in the British Naval Base at Bah Tan Road to build a proper school for the children of the naval base employees. The school was then known as Naval Base School and was a full school. In 1968, the school was renamed Naval Base Secondary School when the primary section moved to Canberra School.

The school was relocated from its modest buildings at Bah Tan Road to its present premises in Yishun Ring Road in July 1988. 

NBSS underwent PRIME upgrading and was temporarily housed at a holding site in Sembawang from 2008 to 2009. In December 2009, the school returned with great enthusiasm to its beautifully upgraded campus which was designed both as a “ School in a Garden ” and “ School as a Giant Art Gallery ” in-line with the emergence of visual art as a niche strength of the school.

Click on the image below for a high-res summary of milestones in NBSS history