Mangakahia Area School

The same report — the board assurance report of 6 May 2025 — 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 area of non-compliance during the board assurance process:

ensure that high risk activities are clearly identified in education outside the classroom (EOTC) approvals prior to board sign off. [Health and Safety at Work Act 2015]

The board has since taken steps to address the area 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 80 — 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. April 2019

   90

   Counted while ERO’s review team was at the school. Education Review Office, report of 30 May 2019

2. August 2017

   73

   Counted while ERO’s review team was at the school. Education Review Office, report of 29 November 2017

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 6 May 2025 — “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

Mangakahia Area School is in the small rural town of Titoki , southwest of Whāngarei. The school provides education for students from Years 1 to 13. In 2024 the school roll was 75 students. The board appointed a permanent principal in 2024.

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

Improvements are required to ensure all learners are engaged, make progress and achieve well.

A small majority of learners in Years 1 to 6 achieve at expected curriculum levels in mathematics; in Years 7 to 10, mathematics achievement is less than a third.

Less than half of learners in Years 1 to 10 achieve at expected curriculum levels in reading and writing.

National Certificate of Educational Achievement (NCEA) information shows an increase in attainment over the last three years; a small majority of learners achieve NCEA Level 1 and 2, and a large majority achieve NCEA Level 3.

Learners are proud of their school; they speak positively about the way staff value and affirm their identity, language and culture, enhancing their wellbeing.

Less than a third of students attend school regularly; however, regular attendance is improving towards the Government’s target and leaders and the board are actively taking steps to develop strategies that increase attendance.

Conditions to support learner success

Leaders are taking steps to foster a professional culture of continuous improvement and increase learner engagement and achievement.

Leadership is effectively guiding the school through a period of change that is focused on strengthening high quality teaching and learning.

Leaders set and implement clear strategic goals that aim to support a responsive curriculum and improve learner outcomes.

Senior leaders build good relational trust among staff that ensures positive and clear communication and collaboration for planning and teaching.

The school is taking steps to provide a responsive curriculum and high-quality teaching practice.

Students experience culturally responsive and inclusive learning environments that foster positive and respectful relationships amongst students and with staff.

Teachers are developing their use of assessment practices and student achievement information to consistently inform planning and teaching.

Teachers adapt learning programmes, using practices tailored to the individual, that increasingly support learner engagement, particularly for those at risk of not achieving.

School conditions that support learner success are being established.

The board represents and works with the community to develop the school’s vision, values and strategic direction.

Staff and students recognise and value external educational partnerships that enrich teaching and learning opportunities.

Leaders and some teachers are beginning to collect, analyse and interpret student engagement and achievement information to make evidence-based decisions for schoolwide improvement actions.

Professional learning opportunities for teachers increasingly align to improvement goals and learner needs, particularly for those learners most at risk of not achieving.

Part B: Where to next?

The agreed next steps for the school are to:

implement strategies and initiatives to improve students’ regular attendance

further develop and implement the school curriculum, integrating the new literacy and mathematics requirements schoolwide to increase student progress and achievement

strengthen schoolwide teaching, learning and assessment practices through the staff professional growth cycle to ensure consistency of approaches and the effective use of student achievement information to inform ongoing planning and teaching.

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

Within three months:

review the school’s current attendance actions and implement a plan to increase regular attendance

Within six months:

review structured literacy and mathematics approaches schoolwide and provide relevant staff professional learning that strengthens teachers’ understanding and use of highly effective teaching, learning and assessment practices

collate and analyse feedback from staff about the professional growth cycle to support its ongoing implementation and impact on practice and learner outcomes

Every six months:

review the impact of the plan to improve students’ regular attendance and identify next steps

review progress made with implementing the school curriculum, including the literacy and mathematics requirements, to support future planning and action

Annually:

review and report to the board on student attendance, progress and achievement information to inform ongoing strategic decision making and planning

evaluate the impact of teaching, learning and assessment practices on students’ engagement, progress and achievement and use this to support next steps.

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

increased regular attendance for all learners

improved progress and achievement in reading, writing and mathematics and more students achieving NCEA Levels 1, 2 and 3

effective use of assessment practices and achievement information schoolwide that support consistent high-quality teaching and learning.

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)

6 May 2025

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 this report on ero.govt.nz →