Otonga Road School
Contributing · State
- Year levels
- 1–6
- Total roll
- 501
- Enrolment zone
- Yes
- Gender
- Co-Educational
Where is it, and how do I get in touch?
- Address
- 105 Otonga Road, Springfield, Rotorua
- Territorial authority
- Rotorua District
- Phone
- 07-3486443
- otonga@otonga.school.nz
- Website
- http://www.otonga.school.nz
- Directions
- Get directions
Other schools nearby: schools in Rotorua · schools in Bay of Plenty
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.
- International students
- Accepted, as stated
Otonga School Te Kura o Tihiōtonga welcomes applications from international fee-paying students who are primary school age (5–11 years) and who will be living in New Zealand with a parent or legal guardian.
- Accepted, as stated
What is on offer beyond the classroom?
The sports, arts, clubs and groups this school names on its own website. Not a complete list of what any school offers, and not a count — a school that names more here has written more down, which is not the same as doing more.
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.
- On offer
- school productions
We are proud to provide diverse opportunities for students to participate in school productions, kapa haka, music lessons, visual art projects, and classroom performances.
- kapa haka
We are proud to provide diverse opportunities for students to participate in school productions, kapa haka, music lessons, visual art projects, and classroom performances.
- music lessons
We are proud to provide diverse opportunities for students to participate in school productions, kapa haka, music lessons, visual art projects, and classroom performances.
- school singing group
For the students who want to showcase their talents, we have a school singing group and rock band.
- rock band
For the students who want to showcase their talents, we have a school singing group and rock band.
- netball
Te Kura o Tihiōtonga has teams for netball, hockey, miniball, rip rugby, flipper ball, futsal, and cricket.
- hockey
Te Kura o Tihiōtonga has teams for netball, hockey, miniball, rip rugby, flipper ball, futsal, and cricket.
- miniball
Te Kura o Tihiōtonga has teams for netball, hockey, miniball, rip rugby, flipper ball, futsal, and cricket.
- rip rugby
Te Kura o Tihiōtonga has teams for netball, hockey, miniball, rip rugby, flipper ball, futsal, and cricket.
- flipper ball
Te Kura o Tihiōtonga has teams for netball, hockey, miniball, rip rugby, flipper ball, futsal, and cricket.
- futsal
Te Kura o Tihiōtonga has teams for netball, hockey, miniball, rip rugby, flipper ball, futsal, and cricket.
- cricket
Te Kura o Tihiōtonga has teams for netball, hockey, miniball, rip rugby, flipper ball, futsal, and cricket.
- athletics
Each year we hold athletics and cross-country events, with children going on to represent the school at inter-school and regional championships.
- cross-country
Each year we hold athletics and cross-country events, with children going on to represent the school at inter-school and regional championships.
- RATS Duathlon
Some of these include RATS Duathlon, Top School, Gymnastics, Chess, Rippa Rugby, Tough Guy and Gal Competition, Tennis, Swimming, and many more.
- Top School
Some of these include RATS Duathlon, Top School, Gymnastics, Chess, Rippa Rugby, Tough Guy and Gal Competition, Tennis, Swimming, and many more.
- Gymnastics
Some of these include RATS Duathlon, Top School, Gymnastics, Chess, Rippa Rugby, Tough Guy and Gal Competition, Tennis, Swimming, and many more.
- Chess
Some of these include RATS Duathlon, Top School, Gymnastics, Chess, Rippa Rugby, Tough Guy and Gal Competition, Tennis, Swimming, and many more.
- Rippa Rugby
Some of these include RATS Duathlon, Top School, Gymnastics, Chess, Rippa Rugby, Tough Guy and Gal Competition, Tennis, Swimming, and many more.
- Tough Guy and Gal Competition
Some of these include RATS Duathlon, Top School, Gymnastics, Chess, Rippa Rugby, Tough Guy and Gal Competition, Tennis, Swimming, and many more.
- Tennis
Some of these include RATS Duathlon, Top School, Gymnastics, Chess, Rippa Rugby, Tough Guy and Gal Competition, Tennis, Swimming, and many more.
- Swimming
Some of these include RATS Duathlon, Top School, Gymnastics, Chess, Rippa Rugby, Tough Guy and Gal Competition, Tennis, Swimming, and many more.
- school productions
Who goes here?
Ethnicity breakdown of the total roll, shown as context. Not ranked, and not compared against any average.
- European
- 282
- Māori
- 121
- Pacific
- 15
- Asian
- 154
- MELAA
- 15
- Other
- 1
- International
- 3
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 | 21 | 1 | 24 | 2 | 0 | 53 | 0 | 78 |
| Year 02 | 17 | 0 | 30 | 3 | 0 | 44 | 2 | 84 |
| Year 03 | 22 | 1 | 29 | 1 | 1 | 51 | 0 | 90 |
| Year 04 | 20 | 4 | 33 | 2 | 0 | 35 | 0 | 88 |
| Year 05 | 17 | 2 | 15 | 2 | 0 | 44 | 0 | 77 |
| Year 06 | 21 | 5 | 26 | 0 | 0 | 35 | 0 | 80 |
| Year 07 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 7 | 0 | 12 |
| Total | 119 | 14 | 160 | 10 | 1 | 269 | 2 | 509 |
| Māori | Pacific | Asian | MELAA | Other | European/ Pākehā | International students | Total | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Age 05 | 18 | 1 | 22 | 2 | 0 | 49 | 0 | 72 |
| Age 06 | 20 | 0 | 32 | 3 | 0 | 50 | 2 | 92 |
| Age 07 | 20 | 1 | 27 | 1 | 1 | 47 | 0 | 83 |
| Age 08 | 21 | 4 | 35 | 2 | 0 | 38 | 0 | 93 |
| Age 09 | 16 | 2 | 14 | 2 | 0 | 42 | 0 | 74 |
| Age 10 | 23 | 5 | 26 | 0 | 0 | 36 | 0 | 82 |
| Age 11 | 1 | 1 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 7 | 0 | 13 |
| Total | 119 | 14 | 160 | 10 | 1 | 269 | 2 | 509 |
Source: Education Counts, Ministry of Education, CC BY 4.0
Student engagement
Age-standardised stand-down rate per 1,000 students — 2024
20.6%
| Otonga Road School | 20.6% |
|---|---|
| Bay of Plenty Region | 37.4% |
| Contributing | 35.6% |
| State | 40.2% |
| New Zealand | 37.1% |
Trend and demographic breakdown
| Female | 12.3% |
|---|---|
| Male | 26.6% |
| Māori | 45% |
| Pacific | 0% |
| Asian | 0% |
| Other | 0% |
| European/Pākehā | 20% |
| Total | 20.6% |
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%
| Otonga Road School | 0% |
|---|---|
| Bay of Plenty Region | 3.8% |
| Contributing | 3.5% |
| 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%
| Otonga Road School | 0% |
|---|---|
| Bay of Plenty Region | 1.4% |
| Contributing | 1.5% |
| 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)
- 415
- Boarding
- No
- Language of instruction
- All students taught in English/other setting
- Urban / rural
- Large urban area
- Date opened
- 1 February 1960
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
- 17 October 2024
- Latest report
- School Evaluation Report
- Report type
- Evaluation report
- Board assurance
- The board attested to all areas (17 October 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 same report — the board assurance report of 17 October 2024 — 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:
renewal of police vets for non-teaching staff every three years [ section 104, Education and Training Act 2020].
The board has since addressed the area of non-compliance identified.
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 501 — 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.
November 2019
560
Counted while ERO’s review team was at the school. Education Review Office, report of 13 December 2019
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 17 October 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
Otonga Road School - Te Kura o Tihiōtonga is located in Springfield, Rotorua . It caters for students in Years 1 to 6. A new principal and leadership team has been appointed since the previous ERO review. The school’s whakatauki is ‘ Mā te kōtahitanga e ngā hau e whā, ka kaha, whakatupu ngātahi tātoa , united by the four winds, we grow stronger together .’
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 experience high levels of academic success, achievement and positive wellbeing.
Most students achieve at or beyond the expected curriculum level in reading and writing with some variance in achievement for Māori and Pacific boys in writing and girls in mathematics.
Almost all students achieve at or beyond the expected curriculum level in mathematics; strategies to accelerate the progress of a small number of students to reach these expectations are in place.
Students and families report a strong sense of belonging in a positive and welcoming school environment.
The school has exceeded the Ministry of Education attendance target and continues to develop strategies to improve attendance.
Conditions to support learner success
Leadership effectively establishes a student-centred and relational school culture that supports effective curriculum delivery, quality teaching and positive outcomes for learners.
Leaders use a wide range of research informed evidence to coherently plan and successfully monitor the school’s strategic priorities.
Schoolwide leadership ensures effective planning, coordination and evaluation of the school’s curriculum and teaching.
Leaders identify and respond to teacher professional development needs; this successfully supports the implementation of the school’s strategic plan.
Students experience a rich curriculum and are well supported by effective teaching practices.
The localised curriculum is well planned to offer a wide variety of rich learning opportunities in response to student needs and interests.
Students have a collaboratively developed individualised progress plan that supports their learning at school and strengthens home school partnerships; additional learning needs are supported.
Teachers create respectful and caring learning environments that enhance student participation and engagement.
Conditions that underpin a successful school are embedded and aligned.
Leaders and teachers affirm, value and cater for diverse identities, languages and cultures of students, parents, whānau and families.
Staff engage with and contribute to professional education networks to build and share their knowledge and expertise.
The school is strengthening and embedding authentic partnerships with mana whenua .
Part B: Where to next?
The agreed next steps for the school are to:
further extend the reporting of progress and achievement data to more fully understand learning trends and patterns of specific groups of students to enable more targeted responses
strengthen the quality of te reo Māori, tikanga Māori and mātauranga Māori learning opportunities
evaluate the use of learning dispositions in line with the school’s graduate student profile to determine the impact on student achievement and wellbeing.
The agreed actions for the next improvement cycle and timeframes are as follows.
Every six months:
report trends and patterns of achievement for all groups, including learners of English language and Pacific students and identify specific responses to any gaps in achievement
gather student voice about experiences of te ao Māori in the school environment and plan an agreed response to the feedback to inform teaching programmes
gather student voice in relation to learning dispositions to understand how well the shared language of learning is embedded and useful; plan an agreed response to the feedback.
Annually:
continue to monitor achievement data against school goals to inform improvement priorities, particularly for those students who are not yet at the expected curriculum level
use an agreed monitoring process to review and report on how effectively teachers are integrating te reo Māori, tikanga Māori and mātauranga Māori in the classroom
review the use of learning disposition strategies and the contribution their use has made to active involvement in their learning and improving outcomes.
Actions taken against these next steps are expected to result in:
a refined understanding of student achievement trends and patterns to inform and support targeted responses to the needs of particular individuals and groups of learners
increasing parity in outcomes for Māori and Pacific boys in writing and girls in mathematics
classroom environments rich in te reo Māori, tikanga Māori and mātauranga Māori , to support the growth in language, culture and identity of all students
enhanced levels of student engagement and active involvement in their learning.
sustained levels of regular attendance.
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
17 October 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).