St Peter's College (Gore)

The same report — the board assurance report of 23 September 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 areas of non-compliance during the board assurance process:

Meeting the requirements to provide 10 hours a week of teaching and learning focussed on supporting progress and achievement in reading and writing in a typical week [National Curriculum Statements, NZ Gazette 2023 go5904]

Completing all components of a workforce safety check [Children’s (Regulations for safety checks of children’s workers) Regulations 2015, regulations 5-8]

The board has since taken steps to address the areas of non-compliance identified.

Read this board assurance report on ero.govt.nz →

What ERO wrote in its latest report

This is ERO’s report of 23 September 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.

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

St Peter’s College (Gore) is an integrated Catholic college for students in Years 7 to 13 located in Gore. The college’s vision is to develop creative, lifelong learners who are challenged to reach their personal and academic potential in a supportive environment that embodies the community’s Catholic values .

A new principal was appointed at the start of 2025 and a new deputy principal was due to start later in the year. At the time of the review a Limited Statutory Manager was working with the School Board.

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

Improvement and progress

This section is about the progress the school has made since the February 2023 ERO report. It includes an explanation of the expected improvements and findings.

ERO and the school have been working together to evaluate how well the school is raising achievement in literacy for students in Years 9 and 10.

Expected Improvements and findings

The school expected to see an increase in junior students’ achievement in literacy with sustained accelerated progress for those students who need this. As a result of leadership and staffing changes, the school has made limited progress in implementing planned strategies to lift literacy achievement for Year 9 and 10 students and this remains a school priority.

Other Findings

The greatest shift that occurred in response to the school’s actions has been that junior teachers have built their capability to deliver structured approaches to aspects of literacy teaching and are collaborating on developing shared assessment practices across Year 7 to 10 to better know about the continuity of literacy learning across these years.

Junior teachers have strengthened their ability to teach literacy using structured methods and are now working together to develop shared assessment practices in Years 7–10 to ensure continuity in literacy learning.

What we know about learner success

The judgments in this section are based on the ERO School Improvement Framework and the evidence provided to ERO during the evaluation.

Less than a third Less than half Small majority Large majority Most Almost all

0 to 33% 34 to 49% 50 to 65% 65 to 79% 80 to 90% Over 90%

Learner Success and Wellbeing

This section provides a summary of learner success and wellbeing.

The majority of learners are positively engaged and achieving well; understanding the progress and achievement of junior students is a priority.

Achievement in Years 7 to 10 is variable, with disparities among some learner groups; leaders and teachers are developing consistent assessment practices to better monitor progress over time.

In 2024, the majority of Year 11 students met literacy and numeracy requirements for national qualifications.

Almost all students achieved National Certificate of Educational Achievement (NCEA) Level 2, most students achieved Level 3, and a large majority gained University Entrance (UE).

While the small majority of students attend school regularly, attendance levels remain below government targets. The school continues to work with the community to improve this.

Conditions to support learner success

This section provides a summary of leadership, teaching, curriculum and foundation school conditions for improvement.

New school leadership is building the organisational conditions to support school improvement and positive outcomes for learners.

Leadership is fostering relational trust and collaboration across the school community to realise strategic goals.

Systems and processes are being established to support a positive school culture, orderly operations, and strategic improvement.

Leaders are beginning to set and pursue goals related to fostering effective teaching and curriculum planning.

Shared expectations for effective teaching and engaging curriculum are developing.

Leaders and teachers adapt learning programmes to enhance student engagement and respond to student interests and aspirations; increasing focus is given to supporting students to gain sound foundation skills in literacy and numeracy.

Teachers of junior students are building capability in structured literacy and numeracy instruction.

Teachers across the school use their knowledge of student strengths, interests and needs to support engagement and achievement.

Leaders and teachers are working to develop shared expectations for teaching and assessment to better track and monitor student progress, especially in Years 7 to 10.

An inclusive school culture supports students’ sense of belonging and wellbeing.

Leaders and teachers are re-establishing consistent expectations and practices to foster a positive and settled learning environment.

Students report an inclusive, respectful and caring school culture.

Students’ diverse identities, languages, and cultures are recognised and valued by leaders, teachers, and students.

Dedicated pastoral staff use appropriate systems and practices to monitor and respond to a range of student wellbeing needs.

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.

Key Priorities

Develop a shared understanding of effective teaching practice and use these to foster and embed consistent high-quality teaching.

Implement consistent ways to assess students in Years 7 to 10 so it’s easier to track their progress, especially in literacy and numeracy.

Improve how the school tracks and monitors student progress, especially for those students at risk of not making sufficient progress.

Embed shared expectations and practices to sustain a positive, settled and inclusive learning culture.

Improve regular attendance.

Actions to bring about improvement

Within six months:

leaders implement the school’s attendance plan to improve regular attendance

leaders and teachers develop expectations for effective teaching and begin embedding them through professional learning and classroom practice

leaders and teachers review and confirm assessment tools and schedules for Years 7 to 10, particularly for literacy and mathematics, and plan professional learning for staff

leaders and teachers identify those learners at risk of not making sufficient progress to experience success and establish useful tracking systems

Every six months:

leaders review the quality and consistency of teaching practices and identify professional learning priorities

leaders offer opportunities for teachers to develop assessment knowledge and use it in their teaching

teachers review junior student progress using quality assessment data and plan targeted interventions

leaders review regular attendance trends and adjust initiatives as needed

Annually:

the School Board and leaders review junior student progress and achievement in reading, writing, and mathematics, identifying effective strategies and setting new priorities

the School Board and leaders review the effectiveness of systems supporting a positive school culture and identify areas for improvement

the School Board review attendance patterns, evaluate initiatives, and set new targets and share with the school community.

Expected outcomes

Improved progress and achievement in reading, writing and mathematics in Years 7 to 10 leads to success in the literacy and numeracy requirements of NCEA.

Better quality assessment information for learners in Years 7 to 10 is used to support strategic and teacher planning.

Students continue to experience a positive, inclusive and settled learning environment.

Students experience greater consistency in teaching practices across all levels of the school.

The next public report on ERO’s website will be a School Evaluation 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 (Acting)

23 September 2025

Read this report on ero.govt.nz →