Kaihu Valley School
Full Primary · State
- Year levels
- 1–8
- Total roll
- 13
- Enrolment zone
- No
- Gender
- Co-Educational
Where is it, and how do I get in touch?
- Address
- 66 Maropiu Road, Dargaville
- Territorial authority
- Kaipara District
- Phone
- 09-4390852
- admin@kaihu.school.nz
- Website
- not reported
- Directions
- Get directions
Other schools nearby: schools in Northland
Who goes here?
Ethnicity breakdown of the total roll, shown as context. Not ranked, and not compared against any average.
- European
- 5
- Māori
- 11
- Pacific
- 3
- Asian
- 1
- MELAA
- 0
- Other
- 0
- International
- 0
Roll by year level and age
Shown as context, not ranked, not compared to any average. As at 30 June 2026, from the same annual return as the roll count above.
| Māori | Pacific | Asian | MELAA | Other | European/ Pākehā | International students | Total | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year 01 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 |
| Year 02 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| Year 03 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| Year 04 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| Year 05 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| Year 07 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| Year 08 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 5 |
| Total | 12 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 15 |
| Māori | Pacific | Asian | MELAA | Other | European/ Pākehā | International students | Total | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Age 05 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 |
| Age 06 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| Age 07 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| Age 08 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| Age 09 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| Age 11 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| Age 12 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 4 |
| Age 13 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| Total | 12 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 15 |
Source: Education Counts, Ministry of Education, CC BY 4.0
Student engagement
Age-standardised stand-down rate per 1,000 students — 2024
0%
| Kaihu Valley School | 0% |
|---|---|
| Northland Region | 52% |
| Full Primary | 35.6% |
| State | 40.2% |
| New Zealand | 37.1% |
Trend and demographic breakdown
| Female | 0% |
|---|---|
| Male | 0% |
| Māori | 0% |
| Pacific | Not available (source marker: "nd") |
| Asian | Not available (source marker: "nd") |
| Other | Not available (source marker: "nd") |
| European/Pākehā | 0% |
| Total | 0% |
Source: Education Counts, Ministry of Education, CC BY 4.0 — Table 2: Comparison stand-down rates data (2024)
Age-standardised suspension rate per 1,000 students — 2024
0%
| Kaihu Valley School | 0% |
|---|---|
| Northland Region | 6.5% |
| Full Primary | 3.9% |
| State | 4.5% |
| New Zealand | 4.1% |
Trend and demographic breakdown
| Female | 0% |
|---|---|
| Male | 0% |
| Māori | 0% |
| Pacific | Not available (source marker: "nd") |
| Asian | Not available (source marker: "nd") |
| Other | Not available (source marker: "nd") |
| European/Pākehā | 0% |
| Total | 0% |
Source: Education Counts, Ministry of Education, CC BY 4.0 — Table 2: Comparison suspension rates data (2024)
Age-standardised exclusion rate per 1,000 students — 2024
0%
| Kaihu Valley School | 0% |
|---|---|
| Northland Region | 2.7% |
| Full Primary | 1.7% |
| State | 1.9% |
| New Zealand | 1.8% |
Trend and demographic breakdown
| Female | 0% |
|---|---|
| Male | 0% |
| Māori | 0% |
| Pacific | Not available (source marker: "nd") |
| Asian | Not available (source marker: "nd") |
| Other | Not available (source marker: "nd") |
| European/Pākehā | 0% |
| Total | 0% |
Source: Education Counts, Ministry of Education, CC BY 4.0 — Table 2: Comparison exclusion data (2024)
About the school
- Equity Index (EQI)
- 563
- Boarding
- No
- Language of instruction
- All students taught in English/other setting
- Urban / rural
- Rural other
- Date opened
- 16 October 1904
The Equity Index is used by the Ministry to allocate equity funding. It describes the socio-economic barriers a school’s students face, not how good the school is. How the Equity Index works
What did ERO find?
The Education Review Office reviews every school and publishes what it finds in full. We quote ERO’s report here, section by section, in ERO’s own words and order, and link to it. We do not summarise a report, pick a line out of one, or turn one into a score. How ERO reviews schools
- Reports ERO holds
- 4
- Last reviewed
- 16 September 2024
- Latest report
- School Evaluation Report
- Report type
- Evaluation report
- Board assurance
- not reported
A board assurance statement is the board’s own account of whether it took all reasonable steps to meet its legal obligations, on the date shown. It is not ERO’s finding. ERO reports separately, in the same report, on any non-compliance it identified during that process.
ERO’s board assurance report of 16 September 2024 also sets out actions for compliance: the non-compliance ERO identified during that process. This is that section of the report in full, in ERO’s words.
ERO has identified the following areas of non-compliance during the board assurance process:
board meeting minutes (especially minutes of in committee meetings that exclude the public) are not documented and stored appropriately [Local Government Official Information and Meetings Act 1987]
a strategic plan has not been prepared for every 3-year period, in consultation with school community, submitted to MoE and made available to the public; developed subsequent annual implementation plan; submitted strategic and annual implementation plans to MoE; made plans available to the public via school website [Sections, 127(1)(d), 138(1)(b), 139, 142, 143, 144, 145, 146 and 639 of the Education and Training Act 2020; Statement of the National Education and Learning Priorities (NELP) 2020]
the school did not consult with the community on the school’s mobile phone prohibition policy; determine under what circumstances students need to use or access a mobile phone for a specific educational task or purpose or for health or learning support needs [Section 22 of the Education (School Boards) Regulations 2020]
does not give effect to its obligations in relation to any foundation curriculum statements, national curriculum statements, and national performance measures; and teaching and learning programmes; and monitoring and reporting on student progress [Section 5 of the Education and Training Act 2020]
an average of five hours of mathematics, reading and writing teaching and learning is not provided per week [Section 90 of the Education and Training Act 2020 (2023 Amendment)]
there is no emergency plan, including pandemic planning emergency/evacuation procedures, lockdowns, notification, duty of care for students, testing procedures [Health and Safety at Work Act 2015]
systems and processes for emergency evacuation and lockdowns, and recording, analysing and reporting accidents and hazards have not been developed [Health and Safety at Work Act 2015]
a child protection policy has not been written, containing contains provisions on the identification and reporting of child abuse and neglect in accordance with section 15 of the Oranga Tamariki Act 1989 [Sections 18 & 19 of the Children’s Act 2014]
risk management procedures for school trips / education outside the classroom are not implemented [Health and Safety at Work Act 2015]
there are no policies and procedures for the use of physical restraint in accordance with Education (Physical Restraint) Rules 2023 (MOE) [Sections 99-101 of the Education and Training Act 2020]
the school does not demonstrate and document suitable human resource management practices [Sections 597, 599 & 600 of the Education and Training Act 2020]
current teacher registrations are not maintained [Section 93 (1) of the Education and Training Act 2020]
the annual report is not available to the public on an internet site maintained by or on behalf of the Board [Section 136 of the Education and Training Act 2020]
the board is not meeting its obligations to receive monthly reports on monitoring, maintenance and hazards, and is satisfied with compliance [Health and Safety at Work Act 2015; Health and at Work (General Risk and Workplace Management) Regulations 2016; Clause 17 of the Property Occupancy Document (MOE)]
The board has not yet addressed the areas of non-compliance identified.
The roll ERO recorded, and when
ERO writes a roll into each report it publishes: a count taken for that report, on the day shown, by the review team that was there. The Ministry of Education’s current roll for this school is 13 — the figure at the top of this page, and the one to use for how big the school is now. These are a different measurement by a different body, so they will rarely agree, and a difference between them is not a change in the school.
August 2018
16
Counted while ERO’s review team was at the school. Education Review Office, report of 13 September 2018
August 2015
20
Counted while ERO’s review team was at the school. Education Review Office, report of 9 October 2015
We draw no line between these. Each was counted for its own report, years apart, by a different review team, and a roll moves between reviews for reasons none of these figures record — so the difference between any two of them measures nothing.
What ERO wrote in its latest report
This is ERO’s report of 16 September 2024 — “School Evaluation Report” — section by section, under ERO’s own headings, in ERO’s own order. Nothing is summarised, shortened or reordered.
School Evaluation Report
Tēnā koutou e mau manawa rahi ki te kaupapa e aro ake nei, ko te tamaiti te pūtake o te kaupapa. Mā wai rā e kawe, mā tātau katoa.
We acknowledge the collective effort, responsibility and commitment by all to ensure that the child remains at the heart of the matter.
Context
Kaihu Valley School a small rural school, north of Dargaville, provides education for students in Years 1 to 8. At the time of the review, the school board was in the process of appointing a new principal.
There are two parts to this report.
Part A: An evaluative summary of learner success and school conditions to inform the school board’s future strategic direction, including any education in Rumaki /bilingual settings.
Part B: The improvement actions prioritised for the school’s next evaluation cycle.
Part A: Current State
The following findings are to inform the school’s future priorities for improvement.
Learner Success and Wellbeing
Improvement is required to ensure all students are engaged, make sufficient progress and achieve well.
Insufficient achievement information is available to identify students’ achievement in relation to curriculum levels and track their progress in reading, writing and mathematics.
Students experience caring relationships with school staff and external support professionals.
Regular student attendance is below the Ministry of Education targets and impacts the continuity of learning.
Conditions to support learner success
The school is yet to establish effective educational leadership.
Leaders are yet to provide clear guidance and expectations for improved outcomes for all students.
Leaders do not plan and co-ordinate the school’s curriculum and teaching.
Immediate improvements are required for curriculum delivery and in teaching practices for quality learning opportunities.
Students do not yet experience planned and consistent learning opportunities.
A localised curriculum framework is yet to be developed.
Urgent action is required to put in place school conditions for successful learner outcomes.
Leaders and teachers do not collect student achievement information to inform decision making.
A relevant and up-to-date strategic plan is yet to be developed by the board.
The board does not have policies and procedures to promote the health, safety and wellbeing of students.
Part B: Where to next?
The next steps for the school are to:
develop a strategic plan focused on raising student achievement and improving attendance
implement policies and procedures to ensure compliance with statutory obligations
construct a curriculum framework that reflects the local community, aligns to The New Zealand Curriculum and responds to the needs of all students
design and implement schoolwide assessment of children’s learning so that teachers can plan purposeful lessons.
The actions for the next improvement cycle and timeframes are as follows.
Within three months:
take immediate action to address all areas of non-compliance as identified in the Board Assurance with Regulatory and Legislative Requirements Report 2024-2027
set strategic improvement goals and actions for teaching and learning, including strategies to monitor and improve student attendance
develop and implement a local curriculum based on The New Zealand Curriculum that meet reading, writing and mathematics requirements
develop an assessment strategy to collect recognised achievement information in reading, writing and mathematics
Every six months:
collect and report student attendance progress and achievement information in reading, writing and mathematics to whānau and the board
school leaders review progress against strategic improvement goals and targets with a focus on priorities identified by ERO
analyse student attendance, achievement and progress to inform teaching and learning improvement actions
Annually:
the board, with school leaders, implement a regular policy review cycle to assure a safe physical and emotional learning environment for learners
collect and report student attendance, achievement and progress to inform teaching and learning improvement actions
board review strategic planning priorities using student attendance, achievement and progress information.
Actions taken against these next steps are expected to result in:
students achieving at expected curriculum levels in reading, writing and mathematics by the end of Year 8
a learning-focused environment where students attend regularly and experience success
a localised curriculum that meets the requirements of The New Zealand Curriculum and is responsive to the aspirations of whānau
strong systems and processes to support school improvement.
Recommendation to the Ministry of Education
ERO recommends that the Secretary for Education consider the intervention listed in section 180 of the Education and Training Act 2020 in order to bring about the following improvements:
governance including statutory obligations, strategic planning, policy and procedures
leadership of learning
curriculum, including teaching and assessment practice.
ERO’s role will be to support the school in its evaluation for improvement cycle to improve outcomes for all learners. The next public report on ERO’s website will be a School Evaluation Report and is due within three years.
Me mahi tahi tonu tātau, kia whai oranga a tātau tamariki Let’s continue to work together for the greater good of all children
Shelley Booysen Director of Schools
16 September 2024
About the School
The Education Counts website provides further information about the school’s student population, student engagement and student achievement. educationcounts.govt.nz/home
Read the full report on ero.govt.nz →
All 4 reports ERO holds for this school
ERO reviews a school every few years — around four years between reviews is the usual cycle — so an older date here reflects where a school sits in that cycle, not how it is doing.
Source: Education Review Office, CC BY 4.0.
Roll date: 30 June 2026 (2026).