Merrin School Ngā Whetū Kohara
Full Primary · State
- Year levels
- 1–8
- Total roll
- 454
- Enrolment zone
- Yes
- Gender
- Co-Educational
Where is it, and how do I get in touch?
- Address
- 41 Merrin Street, Avonhead, Christchurch
- Territorial authority
- Christchurch City
- Phone
- 03-3588369
- office@merrin.school.nz
- Website
- http://www.merrin.school.nz
- Directions
- Get directions
Other schools nearby: schools in Christchurch · schools in Canterbury
Can my child go here?
This school has an enrolment scheme, so a place is not open to every address. How enrolment zones work
Loading zone map…
Zone boundaries shown here are approximate. Ministry of Education data warns these boundaries do not have high spatial precision and can place neighbouring addresses on different sides of a line. This is not a confirmation of enrolment eligibility — always confirm directly with the school. Zone geometry also does not reflect enrolment priority rules (siblings, special character categories, ballots) — it shows the mapped boundary only.
Check if your address is in zone →
Source: Ministry of Education, CC BY 3.0 NZ
What would the day look like?
The practical things this school states on its own website — the hours, the uniform, the term dates, and how children get there. These are the school’s own words, not the Ministry’s record and not ERO’s.
Quoted from this school’s own website, as we read it on 13 August 2026. A web page carries no date of its own, so that is the day we read it — not a statement that any of this is still the case. Each line quotes the words it came from.
- Term dates
- Term 1, 2026: Monday 2 February – Thursday 2 April
Term 1 - Monday 2 February – Thursday 2 April
Year stated as2026 Term Dates
- Term 2, 2026: Monday 20 April – Friday 3 July
Term 2 - Monday 20 April – Friday 3 July
Year stated as2026 Term Dates
- Term 3, 2026: Monday 20 July – Friday 25 September
Term 3 - Monday 20 July – Friday 25 September
Year stated as2026 Term Dates
- Term 4, 2026: Monday 12 October – Tuesday 15 December
Term 4 - Monday 12 October – Tuesday 15 December
Year stated as2026 Term Dates
- Term 1, 2026: Monday 2 February – Thursday 2 April
Who goes here?
Ethnicity breakdown of the total roll, shown as context. Not ranked, and not compared against any average.
- European
- 196
- Māori
- 46
- Pacific
- 29
- Asian
- 229
- MELAA
- 18
- Other
- 7
- International
- 7
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 | 6 | 7 | 22 | 2 | 0 | 21 | 0 | 47 |
| Year 02 | 9 | 2 | 32 | 2 | 2 | 14 | 0 | 52 |
| Year 03 | 8 | 3 | 31 | 2 | 1 | 33 | 0 | 63 |
| Year 04 | 2 | 5 | 29 | 4 | 0 | 18 | 0 | 48 |
| Year 05 | 4 | 3 | 32 | 5 | 1 | 25 | 2 | 64 |
| Year 06 | 6 | 5 | 26 | 1 | 0 | 24 | 0 | 57 |
| Year 07 | 4 | 2 | 32 | 4 | 1 | 26 | 3 | 66 |
| Year 08 | 8 | 1 | 30 | 2 | 0 | 25 | 1 | 61 |
| Total | 47 | 28 | 234 | 22 | 5 | 186 | 6 | 458 |
| Māori | Pacific | Asian | MELAA | Other | European/ Pākehā | International students | Total | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Age 05 | 6 | 7 | 20 | 1 | 0 | 20 | 0 | 43 |
| Age 06 | 7 | 2 | 31 | 3 | 2 | 12 | 0 | 51 |
| Age 07 | 7 | 3 | 32 | 2 | 0 | 33 | 0 | 62 |
| Age 08 | 5 | 4 | 30 | 4 | 1 | 19 | 0 | 50 |
| Age 09 | 4 | 4 | 31 | 5 | 1 | 24 | 2 | 63 |
| Age 10 | 6 | 6 | 27 | 1 | 0 | 27 | 0 | 62 |
| Age 11 | 4 | 1 | 27 | 4 | 1 | 20 | 2 | 53 |
| Age 12 | 6 | 1 | 30 | 2 | 0 | 25 | 2 | 61 |
| Age 13 | 2 | 0 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 0 | 13 |
| Total | 47 | 28 | 234 | 22 | 5 | 186 | 6 | 458 |
Source: Education Counts, Ministry of Education, CC BY 4.0
Student engagement
Age-standardised stand-down rate per 1,000 students — 2024
50.4%
| Merrin School Ngā Whetū Kohara | 50.4% |
|---|---|
| Canterbury Region | 38.3% |
| Full Primary | 35.6% |
| State | 40.2% |
| New Zealand | 37.1% |
Trend and demographic breakdown
| Female | 6.8% |
|---|---|
| Male | 93.2% |
| Māori | 317.4% |
| Pacific | 0% |
| Asian | 22.7% |
| Other | 39.2% |
| European/Pākehā | 23.9% |
| Total | 50.4% |
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
4.9%
| Merrin School Ngā Whetū Kohara | 4.9% |
|---|---|
| Canterbury Region | 3.7% |
| Full Primary | 3.9% |
| State | 4.5% |
| New Zealand | 4.1% |
Trend and demographic breakdown
| Female | 0% |
|---|---|
| Male | 9.7% |
| Māori | 46.1% |
| Pacific | 0% |
| Asian | 0% |
| Other | 0% |
| European/Pākehā | 0% |
| Total | 4.9% |
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%
| Merrin School Ngā Whetū Kohara | 0% |
|---|---|
| Canterbury Region | 1.7% |
| Full Primary | 1.7% |
| State | 1.9% |
| New Zealand | 1.8% |
Trend and demographic breakdown
| Female | 0% |
|---|---|
| Male | 0% |
| Māori | 0% |
| Pacific | 0% |
| Asian | 0% |
| Other | 0% |
| 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)
- 398
- Boarding
- No
- Language of instruction
- All students taught in English/other setting
- Urban / rural
- Major urban area
- Date opened
- 10 October 1965
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
- 5
- Last reviewed
- 5 November 2024
- Latest report
- School Evaluation Report
- Report type
- Evaluation report
- Board assurance
- The board attested to all areas (5 November 2024)
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.
The board assurance report of 5 November 2024 carries no actions-for-compliance section — the section ERO uses when it names non-compliance it identified. That is what this report contains; it is not ERO saying it found none. Other reports ERO holds for this school may say something different.
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 454 — 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.
April 2019
471
Counted while ERO’s review team was at the school. Education Review Office, report of 29 May 2019
September 2015
439
Counted while ERO’s review team was at the school. Education Review Office, report of 2 November 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 5 November 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
Merrin School Ngā Whetū Kohara is situated in Avonhead, Christchurch and provides education for students in Year 1 to 8. Their vision is for all children to shine , by purposefully providing a learning environment that nurtures and grows every child .
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
The school is achieving increasingly equitable and excellent outcomes for most learners.
Most students are achieving at or above curriculum expectations in reading, writing and mathematics with increasing equity between groups of learners.
Improving equity in achievement for groups of students remains a priority, including Māori and Pacific students in reading, writing and mathematics.
Inclusion and wellbeing practices support children to have a strong sense of belonging.
A large majority of students attend school regularly; the school is yet to achieve the Ministry of Education 2024 attendance target.
Conditions to support learner success
Strategic and collaborative leadership foster a learning culture committed to high quality teaching.
The school board is well informed by leaders about progress and achievement for all students across curriculum areas; this supports effective decision making to prioritise resourcing.
Leaders ensure professional development is effective and aligned to improvement priorities and strengthens the quality and consistency of teaching practice.
Leaders and teachers deliberately set appropriate expectations for high quality, evidence-based teaching approaches that are collaboratively developed, implemented, and monitored.
Students experience a broad and responsive curriculum.
Leaders support teachers to inquire into their practice to better understand what is working well and inform where to next for learners.
Teachers and leaders know students well and implement learning programmes deliberately aligned to individual student needs and interests; this is increasing learners’ engagement in learning.
Teachers use comprehensive guidelines for curriculum delivery, consequently consistent and cohesive practices across the school support student achievement and wellbeing.
Key organisational conditions that support learner success are well established.
Student wellbeing is enhanced through deliberately planned and monitored actions undertaken by teachers and leaders in response to identified needs.
Leaders, teachers and the school board engage in a robust consultation process with students, whānau and staff; this gathers aspirations that inform improvement priorities.
Students increasingly see their language and identity represented in the curriculum; teachers engage in professional learning that improves their understanding and capability in tikanga Māori and mātauranga Māori.
The board, leaders and teachers undertake well considered review and reflection to identify areas of strength and to target areas for ongoing improvement.
Part B: Where to next?
The agreed next steps for the school are to continue to:
continue to strengthen teaching practice for equitable outcomes for Māori and Pacific students' achievement in reading, writing and mathematics
teachers and leaders to prioritise the development of initiatives and implementation of strategies to improve attendance.
The agreed actions for the next improvement cycle and timeframes are as follows.
Within six months:
review intentional strategies used to improve attendance, acknowledge what is working well and identify where to next
teachers undertake professional development to extend the range of strategies and approaches used to support learners at risk of underachievement.
Every six months:
collate and analyse student progress and achievement data for trends and patterns, and use this to inform next improvement priorities
reflect on and review the implementation of effective teaching strategies for attendance, progress and achievement particularly for Māori and Pacific students.
Annually:
continue to use and report to the board student wellbeing, engagement, progress and achievement data to inform responsive decision making, and effective strategies for improving attendance, teaching and learning
evaluate the effectiveness of strategies used to improve equitable outcomes in reading, writing and mathematics and make changes where needed.
Actions taken against these next steps are expected to result in:
improved outcomes in reading, writing and mathematics particularly for Māori and Pacific students
increased student engagement in learning and more students attending regularly.
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
5 November 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 5 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).