Ladbrooks School

The same report — the board assurance report of 16 November 2022 — 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 and the board have identified the following areas of non-compliance during the board assurance process:

that in consultation, with the school's Māori community, developed and made known to the school's community policies, plans and targets for improving the progress and achievement of Māori students [ NAG 1(e) ]

ensured practice, procedure and documentation for physical restraint meets the requirements

[ Education (Physical Restraint) Rules 2017 Physical restraint (Clause 4, 10, 11) ]

the school needs to develop an emergency plan that includes sufficient emergency and evacuation procedures

[ National Civil Defence Emergency Plan Order 2015 ]

the need to ensure practice is known and implemented for the appropriate retention and disposal of school records.

[ Public Records Act 2005 ]

The board has since taken steps to address the areas of non-compliance identified.

Read this board assurance report on ero.govt.nz →

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 134 — 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.

1. November 2017

   135

   Counted while ERO’s review team was at the school. Education Review Office, report of 27 February 2018

This is one count taken for one report. It says what the roll was on that day, and nothing about how the roll has moved.

What ERO wrote in its latest report

This is ERO’s report of 7 May 2025 — “School Report” — section by section, under ERO’s own headings, in ERO’s own order. Nothing is summarised, shortened or reordered.

School 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.

About the School

Ladbrooks School is in the Selwyn District, 17 km from Christchurch city. The school provides education for learners in Years 1 to 8 in a semi-rural environment. At the time of this report the roll was 130. European/ Pākehā make up 96% of the school population with 12% of learners identifying as Māori . The school supports learners to engage in school contexts through the values of being Ready,Willing and Able to Learn Together.

Progress since November 2022 ERO report

Over the last three years the principal, with the support of the board has worked to improve school culture through building relationships and trust with the staff and the community. These efforts have enabled teachers to work in collaborative ways to provide learners with opportunities that foster individual, and collective success. Leaders are taking steps to focus on a consistent approach to assessment and quality teaching across the school which will inform strategic planning and impact positively on equitable and excellent outcomes for learners. While most learners are making expected progress, there are still a few who need to make accelerated progress to meet curriculum standards in reading, writing and mathematics. Leaders and teachers are committed to improve outcomes for these learners through purposeful interventions that are regularly monitored to evaluate learner progress.

How well placed is the school to promote educational success and wellbeing?

How well are learners succeeding? The school is working towards high levels of success and progress for all learners.

What is the quality of teaching and learning? Learners benefit from good quality teaching practice that improves progress and achievement in reading, writing and mathematics.

How well does the school curriculum respond to all learners needs? Learners have sufficient opportunities to learn across the breadth and depth of the curriculum. There is an increasingly consistent focus on supporting learners to gain skills in literacy and mathematics. Learners with complex needs require better support to achieve their education goals.

How well does school planning and conditions support ongoing improvement? The school is establishing planning and conditions that support improvements in the quality of education for learners.

How well does the school include all learners and promote their engagement and wellbeing? The school reasonably promotes learners’ engagement, wellbeing and inclusion.

How well does the school partner with parents, whānau and its community for the benefit of learners? The school is improving its reporting to parents / whānau about their child’s learning, achievement and progress. The school is improving its collection and use of information gathered through community consultation to inform strategic planning and curriculum decisions.

Student Health and Safety The school board is taking reasonable steps to ensure student health and safety.

Achievement in Years 0 to 8

This table outlines how well students across the school meet or exceed the expected curriculum level.

Foundation Skills

Reading Most learners meet or exceed the expected curriculum level. Results are not yet equitable for all groups of learners.

Writing Most learners meet or exceed the expected curriculum level. Results are becoming more equitable for all groups of learners.

Mathematics Most learners meet or exceed the expected curriculum level. Results are becoming more equitable for all groups of learners.

Attendance

The school is approaching the target of 80% regular attendance.

The school is developing a suitable plan to improve attendance.

Regular attendance is improving towards or beyond the target.

Chronic absence is not yet reducing over time.

Assessment

The school is improving its approach and the reliability of its practices to accurately find out about achievement against the curriculum.

Teachers are developing assessment information to adjust teaching practices to ensure ongoing improvement in teaching and student progress.

Progress

The school is developing good quality planning to increase the rate of progress for all groups of students.

The school has not improved achievement and progress for those learners most at risk of not achieving since the previous review.

The school has to some extent extended achievement and progress for learners working at or above curriculum levels since the previous review.

The school is meeting Government reading, writing and mathematics targets set for 2030.

Part B: Findings for the school

This section of the report provides more detail for the school to include in strategic and annual planning for ongoing improvement across the school.

Areas of Strength

Learner well-being is supported through caring relationships with teachers.

Teachers work in teams to discuss learners’ progress and achievements and share relevant information and practices to support learners to experience success.

Learner feedback is gathered and analysed to inform leaders and teachers about learner engagement across the curriculum.

Learners express a strong sense of belonging and enjoy the relationships that they have with other learners across the whole school.

The school has implemented structured literacy and will be ready to implement a structured approach to mathematics in 2026.

Leaders are strengthening relational trust for effective collaboration and building teacher capability across the school.

Curriculum design includes five hours a week each of reading, writing and mathematics; learners needing to make accelerated progress these areas are identified in school achievement overview.

Key priorities and actions for improvement

The agreed next steps for the school are to:

develop and implement consistent school wide assessment practices and tools to better inform planning and strengthen the reliability of school wide data

set specific improvement goals to target the acceleration of learners at risk of under achievement in the strategic and annual plan

design and implement clear processes around the analysis of student data that identify the strategies and actions to accelerate or extend progress for identified learners

improve regular attendance to meet the Government requirement of 80% of students to be present for more than 90% of the term.

The agreed actions for the next improvement cycle and timeframes are as follows.

Within six months:

develop shared, school wide understanding of the purpose of assessment to inform planning and practice

implement a school wide assessment framework that identifies tools and timings

leaders to develop coherence across the curriculum to align with the school wide assessment overview

identify goals and plan actions for students who are not making sufficient progress in reading, writing or mathematics

leaders and teachers to communicate with and support parents and whānau regarding the importance of regular learner attendance

Every six months:

school leaders provide evaluative reports on student progress and achievement to the board to inform ongoing strategic planning and resourcing

track and monitor school wide progress of learners who are at risk of not achieving and document next steps and actions to accelerate progress

review the impact of the programmes provided for learners who are achieving above the curriculum level and adjust if necessary

Annually:

devise measurable goals around learners' achievement and progress in reading, writing and maths in strategic and annual plans

individual learning plans in place and actions listed for students who need to make accelerated progress within the year.

develop a more specifically integrated school wide curriculum with explicit contexts for each of the curriculum phases

evaluate the impact of strategies to improve learner engagement and attendance.

Actions taken against these next steps are expected to result in:

consistent school wide understanding and implementation of assessment practices to inform planning and strategic decision making

an assessment timeline that is linked to planned learning across the curriculum

consistent teaching practice and specific goal setting to improve outcomes for learners especially those at risk of not achieving or who need extension

distributed leadership to support high quality teaching and assessment practices that have a positive impact on learner progress and achievement

improved learner engagement and attendance.

Board Assurance with Regulatory and Legislative Requirements

All schools are required to promote student health and safety and to regularly review their compliance with legal requirements.

During this review the Board has attested to some regulatory and legislative requirements in the following areas:

Board Administration

Yes

Curriculum

Yes

Management of Health, Safety and Welfare

Yes

Personnel Management

Yes

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

Sharon Kelly Director of Schools (Acting)

7 May 2025

Education Counts

This website provides further information about the school’s student population, student engagement and student achievement. educationcounts.govt.nz/home

Read this report on ero.govt.nz →