Ngutunui School
Full Primary · State
- Year levels
- 1–8
- Total roll
- 39
- Enrolment zone
- No
- Gender
- Co-Educational
Where is it, and how do I get in touch?
- Address
- 400 Ngutunui Road, Puketotara, Pirongia
- Territorial authority
- Ōtorohanga District
- Phone
- 07-8719426
- principal@ngutunui.school.nz
- Directions
- Get directions
Other schools nearby: schools in Waikato
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.
- Uniform
- Required
Students need to be wearing black shorts or pants with the schools tee
- Required
Who goes here?
Ethnicity breakdown of the total roll, shown as context. Not ranked, and not compared against any average.
- European
- 25
- Māori
- 13
- Pacific
- 2
- Asian
- 6
- MELAA
- 0
- Other
- 1
- 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 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 5 |
| Year 02 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 6 |
| Year 03 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 4 |
| Year 04 | 5 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 7 |
| Year 05 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 7 |
| Year 06 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 6 |
| Year 07 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 3 |
| Year 08 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 5 |
| Total | 19 | 5 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 30 | 0 | 43 |
| Māori | Pacific | Asian | MELAA | Other | European/ Pākehā | International students | Total | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Age 05 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 6 |
| Age 06 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 5 |
| Age 07 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 4 |
| Age 08 | 5 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 7 |
| Age 09 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 0 | 8 |
| Age 10 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 5 |
| Age 11 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 3 |
| Age 12 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 4 |
| Age 13 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| Total | 19 | 5 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 30 | 0 | 43 |
Source: Education Counts, Ministry of Education, CC BY 4.0
Student engagement
Age-standardised stand-down rate per 1,000 students — 2024
36.5%
| Ngutunui School | 36.5% |
|---|---|
| Waikato Region | 53.9% |
| Full Primary | 35.6% |
| State | 40.2% |
| New Zealand | 37.1% |
Trend and demographic breakdown
| Female | 0% |
|---|---|
| Male | 84.6% |
| Māori | 66.2% |
| Pacific | 0% |
| Asian | 0% |
| Other | Not available (source marker: "nd") |
| European/Pākehā | 0% |
| Total | 36.5% |
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%
| Ngutunui School | 0% |
|---|---|
| Waikato Region | 6.6% |
| Full Primary | 3.9% |
| State | 4.5% |
| New Zealand | 4.1% |
Trend and demographic breakdown
| Female | 0% |
|---|---|
| Male | 0% |
| Māori | 0% |
| Pacific | 0% |
| Asian | 0% |
| 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%
| Ngutunui School | 0% |
|---|---|
| Waikato Region | 2.4% |
| 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 | 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)
- 465
- Boarding
- No
- Language of instruction
- All students taught in English/other setting
- Urban / rural
- Rural other
- Date opened
- 25 January 1914
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
- 3
- Last reviewed
- 10 October 2025
- Latest report
- School Report
- Report type
- Review report
- Board assurance
- not reported
What this report states about the school
As stated in ERO’s report of 10 October 2025 — not necessarily the position now. Each line quotes the sentence it came from.
- Year levels
- Years 1 to 8
provides education for Years 1 to 8
- Years 1 to 8
What ERO wrote in its latest report
This is ERO’s report of 10 October 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.
Every New Zealand state and state integrated school has an ERO review at least once every four years to evaluate what is working well for learners and what needs to be improved.
About the School
Ngutunui School is a primary school located south of Pirongia Village between Te Awamutu and Ōtorohanga and provides education for Years 1 to 8. The current roll of 46 students includes 33 % who identify as Māori . The school mission statement is nurture the seed and it will blossom .
Education Counts provides further information about the school’s student population, student engagement and student achievement, school enrolments and school zones. educationcounts.govt.nz/home
An explanation of the terms and judgements used in this report can be found here: Reporting | Education Review Office
What we know about learner success
This section provides a summary of learner success and wellbeing. The judgments are based on the ERO School Improvement Framework and the evidence provided to ERO during the evaluation
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? The school is improving teaching and learning.
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 are well supported to achieve their education goals.
How well does school planning and conditions support ongoing improvement? School planning and conditions to support ongoing improvement to the quality of education for learners are well established.
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.
Student Health and Safety The school board is taking reasonable steps to ensure student health and safety.
Achievement in Years 0 to 8
This section is about learner achievement. It outlines how well learners across the school meet or exceed the expected curriculum level of The New Zealand Curriculum in foundational skills.
Less than a third Less than half Small majority Large majority Most Almost all
0 to 33% 34 to 49% 50 to 64% 65 to 79% 80 to 90% Over 90%
Reading A large majority of learners meet or exceed the expected curriculum level. Results are equitable for all groups of learners.
Writing Less than half of learners meet or exceed the expected curriculum level. Results are not yet equitable for all groups of learners.
Mathematics Less than half of learners meet or exceed the expected curriculum level. Results are becoming more equitable for all groups of learners.
Attendance
This section is about school attendance and the progress the school is making towards meeting the Government target of 80% regular attendance.
The small majority of learners attend school regularly.
The school is behind the target of 80% regular attendance.
The school is developing a suitable plan to improve attendance.
Regular attendance is not yet improving towards or beyond the target.
Chronic absence is reducing over time.
Assessment
This section is about how the school assesses learner progress and achievement.
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
This section is about how well the school supports all learners to make sufficient progress.
The school is developing good quality planning to increase the rate of progress for all groups of students.
The school has to some extent improved achievement and progress for those learners most at risk of not achieving since the previous review.
The school has not extended achievement and progress for learners working at or above curriculum levels since the previous review.
The school is making progress towards meeting Government reading, writing and mathematics targets for 2030 and agrees this will need to be a key strategic priority.
Next steps for improvement
This section provides more detail for the school to include in its strategic and annual planning for ongoing improvement across the school. It outlines what the school is doing well and identifies actions for improvement.
Areas of Strength
Students demonstrate a strong sense of wellbeing and pride in their school, which leads to high engagement and positive relationships.
School leaders foster a culture of professional learning and development among staff, enhancing curriculum knowledge and teaching practice.
Staff are taking steps to embed structured literacy and mathematics across the school.
Teachers integrate te reo Māori , tikanga Māori and mātauranga Māori into teaching and learning that supports positive outcomes for all learners.
The School Board and school leaders use evidence from various sources, including community consultations and student achievement information, to evaluate and guide the school’s strategic direction with a focus on continuous improvement.
Key priorities
Building teacher capability in the use of assessment practices to accelerate student progress and achievement in writing and mathematics.
Aligning teaching, learning and assessment practices with the new curriculum requirements in reading, writing and mathematics.
Improving regular attendance.
Actions to bring about improvement
Within three months:
leaders and teachers embed structured literacy and mathematics approaches in all classes
leaders and teachers use assessment practices that accurately measure student progress and achievement
Within six months:
leaders to monitor how well teachers use assessment information to guide planning to ensure responsive programmes and engaging opportunities for learning
Every six months:
leaders to review the impact of ongoing staff professional learning on embedding new curriculum expectations for teaching and assessment practices and improving learner outcomes
leaders will review how ongoing staff professional learning affects new curriculum and assessment implementation, as well as student learning outcomes
leaders and teachers monitor rates of student attendance to identify the impact of attendance strategies to inform further school actions
Annually:
leaders and the School Board evaluate the impact of improvement actions on student achievement and plan next steps to continue enhancing reading, writing, and mathematics programmes
leaders and the Board to review information about student attendance to inform next steps and strategies to increase regular attendance rates.
Expected outcomes
A consistent approach to teaching and learning and across the school.
The effective use of student progress and achievement information to support continuous improvement in reading, writing and mathematics.
Improved regular student attendance.
Regulatory and Legislative Requirements
This section of the report is about how the school meets regulatory and legislative requirements.
Board Assurance with Regulatory and Legislative Requirements
This section of the report reviews the school's policies, procedures, documentation, and checks that it meets all regulations, maintains a safe environment, and supports students' wellbeing.
During this review the Board has attested to meeting regulatory and legislative requirements in the following areas:
Board Administration
Yes
Curriculum
Yes
Management of Health, Safety and Welfare
Yes
Personnel Management
Yes
Actions for Compliance
ERO has identified the following area of non-compliance during the Board assurance process:
every safety check of a person must comply with the requirements for safety checks for core or non-core workers [s31 (1) Children’s Act 2014].
The Board has since addressed the area of non-compliance identified.
The next public report on ERO’s website will be a School Report and is due within four 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
10 October 2025
Read the full report on ero.govt.nz →
All 3 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).