Oakura School
Full Primary · State
- Year levels
- 1–8
- Total roll
- 379
- Enrolment zone
- Yes
- Gender
- Co-Educational
Where is it, and how do I get in touch?
- Address
- 16 Donnelly Street, New Plymouth
- Territorial authority
- New Plymouth District
- Phone
- 06-7527719
- office@oakura.school.nz
- Website
- http://www.oakura.school.nz
- Directions
- Get directions
Other schools nearby: schools in New Plymouth · schools in Taranaki
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.
What does the school say about itself?
Quoted, not summarised. Every school describes itself well, so this is here to be read as the school’s own case rather than as a finding — and a school that states nothing simply has no row.
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.
- In their words
- We encourage and model the values, principles and intent of the New Zealand Curriculum with special emphasis on:
- Be truthful, responsible and accountable for our actions
- Value ourselves, other people and the environment
- Aim high, take risks and persevere in the face of challenges
Who goes here?
Ethnicity breakdown of the total roll, shown as context. Not ranked, and not compared against any average.
- European
- 342
- Māori
- 35
- Pacific
- 6
- Asian
- 14
- MELAA
- 18
- Other
- 11
- 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 | 5 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 39 | 0 | 41 |
| Year 02 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 51 | 0 | 52 |
| Year 03 | 8 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 39 | 0 | 45 |
| Year 04 | 4 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 45 | 0 | 48 |
| Year 05 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 46 | 0 | 48 |
| Year 06 | 8 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 53 | 0 | 57 |
| Year 07 | 6 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 45 | 0 | 49 |
| Year 08 | 9 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 42 | 0 | 46 |
| Total | 48 | 6 | 12 | 9 | 3 | 360 | 0 | 386 |
| Māori | Pacific | Asian | MELAA | Other | European/ Pākehā | International students | Total | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Age 05 | 3 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 31 | 0 | 33 |
| Age 06 | 5 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 56 | 0 | 57 |
| Age 07 | 7 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 36 | 0 | 42 |
| Age 08 | 5 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 53 | 0 | 56 |
| Age 09 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 41 | 0 | 43 |
| Age 10 | 8 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 54 | 0 | 58 |
| Age 11 | 6 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 38 | 0 | 41 |
| Age 12 | 6 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 46 | 0 | 50 |
| Age 13 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 6 |
| Total | 48 | 6 | 12 | 9 | 3 | 360 | 0 | 386 |
Source: Education Counts, Ministry of Education, CC BY 4.0
Student engagement
Age-standardised stand-down rate per 1,000 students — 2024
4.3%
| Oakura School | 4.3% |
|---|---|
| Taranaki Region | 41.7% |
| Full Primary | 35.6% |
| State | 40.2% |
| New Zealand | 37.1% |
Trend and demographic breakdown
| Female | 0% |
|---|---|
| Male | 8.3% |
| Māori | 0% |
| Pacific | 0% |
| Asian | 0% |
| Other | 0% |
| European/Pākehā | 4.7% |
| Total | 4.3% |
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%
| Oakura School | 0% |
|---|---|
| Taranaki Region | 4.1% |
| 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 | 0% |
| 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%
| Oakura School | 0% |
|---|---|
| Taranaki Region | 1.6% |
| 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)
- 390
- Boarding
- No
- Language of instruction
- All students taught in English/other setting
- Urban / rural
- Small urban area
- Date opened
- 25 January 1891
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
- 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 379 — 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
344
Counted while ERO’s review team was at the school. Education Review Office, report of 14 May 2019
April 2015
328
Counted while ERO’s review team was at the school. Education Review Office, report of 20 May 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
Oakura School, in Taranaki , provides education for students in Years 1 to 8. School leadership is new; a permanent Principal was appointed in Term 2 and two Deputy Principals were appointed this year.
The school’s vision is Kia ākona te manako me te Manaaki; “Learning to think, learning to care”.
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
Most students are engaged, make good progress and achieve very well.
Achievement levels are high, almost all learners achieve at expected curriculum levels for reading and mathematics and most achieve at expected levels for writing; analysing outcomes for groups of learners is a next step.
Learners express a firm sense of belonging and connection to the school; they enjoy a range of learning opportunities including regular te reo me onā tikanga Māori.
Learners with additional needs are increasingly well supported to help them achieve and progress.
A small majority of learners attend school regularly; the school is yet to achieve Ministry of Education targets for regular attendance.
Conditions to support learner success
Leadership effectively promotes a positive school culture with strong focus on improvement for learning and wellbeing.
Leaders are embedding systems and processes to strengthen coherent practices schoolwide; enabling learners to transition through the school with clear and consistent expectations is a next step.
Leadership is increasingly well-placed to bring about the key improvements to enhance and sustain positive learning and wellbeing outcomes.
Leaders purposefully integrate and support te reo, tikanga me mātauranga Māori; capability is building schoolwide with increased expectation for visibility of te reo, tikanga me mātauranga Māori in classrooms.
Learners have a range of opportunities to engage in learning through high quality and effective teaching practices.
Staff know learners well; learners are supported to engage, inquire and apply new learning within an orderly, supportive and positive learning environment.
Teachers use achievement data, and other information, to respond to students’ learning needs and strengths; using consistently understood and applied practices schoolwide is a next step.
Younger students have some choice in their learning (agency); the junior inquiry curriculum is deliberately aligned with the school’s learner profile and actively supports student agency.
Planning for improvement is increasingly informed by good quality evidence and in partnership with the school’s community.
Leaders and teachers respect and collaborate with their community, promoting a community-wide vision for the school; expertise is valued, and the local environment is recognised as an important resource for learning, with community events well supported.
Staff, trustees and learners show a strong commitment to growing capability and understanding of te reo me ōna tikanga Māori and Te Tiriti o Waitangi; they are actively developing partnerships for learning with the Māori community.
Inclusion and wellbeing are prioritised with focus on promoting an environment that is welcoming and supportive to learners and their families and whānau.
Part B: Where to next?
The agreed next steps for the school are to:
evaluate the alignment and coherence between the school’s values and the learner profile to improve schoolwide understanding of these and to further improve learner outcomes, including attendance
refine systems, processes and practices schoolwide for improved consistency and smoother transition for learners through the school
expand data analysis to include groups of students over time, including by gender and ethnicity to identify what is working well and who for, and report this to the board and the community
further develop and grow opportunity for student agency so that learners have opportunity for more decision-making in their learning
evaluate the schoolwide provision for te reo me onā tikanga Māori ; deliberately plan and resource for ongoing improvement.
The agreed actions for the next improvement cycle and timeframes are as follows.
Within 6 months:
evaluate the alignment between the school values and the learner profile; start building a collective understanding and practice across the school
continue to refine systems, processes and practices schoolwide for improved consistency, coherence and smoother transition for learners through the school.
Every six months:
analyse data, including achievement, progress, attendance, wellbeing and engagement, for groups of learners and share this with the board and community.
Annually:
communicate the progress made against all annual goals to the community
evaluate the schoolwide provision for te reo me onā tikanga Māori and deliberately plan and resource for ongoing improvement.
Actions taken against these next steps are expected to result in:
school values consistently understood and used schoolwide to further support learner success
schoolwide consistency of effective and responsive teaching, learning and assessment practices, that improve outcomes for learning and attendance, engagement and enhance student agency for all learners
learners and teachers confidently using te reo, tikanga, me mātauranga Māori in the classroom.
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 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).