Wakari School
Contributing · State
- Year levels
- 1–6
- Total roll
- 302
- Enrolment zone
- Yes
- Gender
- Co-Educational
Where is it, and how do I get in touch?
- Address
- 150 Helensburgh Road, Wakari, Dunedin
- Territorial authority
- Dunedin City
- Phone
- 03-4763140
- principal@wakari.school.nz
- Website
- http://www.wakari.school.nz
- Directions
- Get directions
Other schools nearby: schools in Dunedin · schools in Otago
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 3, 2026: Monday 20 July – Friday 25 September
Term 3 | Monday 20 July | Friday 25 September
Year stated as2026 | Start | Finish | Public Holidays
- Term 4, 2026: Monday 12 October – Friday 11 December
Term 4 | Monday 12 October | Friday 11 December
Year stated as2026 | Start | Finish | Public Holidays
- Term 1, 2027: Tuesday 2 February – Friday 9 April
Term 1 | Tuesday 2 February | Friday 9 April
Year stated as2027 | Start | Finish | Public Holidays
- Term 2, 2027: Tuesday 27 April – Friday 2 July 2027
Term 2 | Tuesday 27 April | Friday 2 July 2027
- Term 3, 2027: Monday 19 July – Friday 24 September
Term 3 | Monday 19 July | Friday 24 September
Year stated as2027 | Start | Finish | Public Holidays
- Term 4, 2027: Monday 11 October – Friday 17 December
Term 4 | Monday 11 October | Friday 17 December
Year stated as2027 | Start | Finish | Public Holidays
- Term 1, 2028: Monday 31 January* – Thursday 13 April (* date not confirmed yet)
Term 1 | Monday 31 January* | Thursday 13 April
Year stated as2028 | Start | Finish | Public Holidays
- Term 2, 2028: Monday 1 May – Friday 7 July
Term 2 | Monday 1 May | Friday 7 July
Year stated as2028 | Start | Finish | Public Holidays
- Term 3, 2028: Monday 24 July – Friday 29 September
Term 3 | Monday 24 July | Friday 29 September
Year stated as2028 | Start | Finish | Public Holidays
- Term 4, 2028: Monday 16 October – Friday 15 December* (* date not confirmed yet)
Term 4 | Monday 16 October | Friday 15 December*
Year stated as2028 | Start | Finish | Public Holidays
- Term 3, 2026: Monday 20 July – Friday 25 September
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
- Not accepted, as stated
Wakari School is no longer accepts international students.
- Not 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
- Tikanga Wakari
Welcome to Tikanga Wakari, our amazing cultural, performing arts group.
- Tikanga Wakari
Who goes here?
Ethnicity breakdown of the total roll, shown as context. Not ranked, and not compared against any average.
- European
- 250
- Māori
- 43
- Pacific
- 13
- Asian
- 26
- MELAA
- 16
- 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 | 6 | 3 | 7 | 2 | 3 | 29 | 0 | 43 |
| Year 02 | 6 | 2 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 37 | 0 | 43 |
| Year 03 | 11 | 2 | 3 | 3 | 4 | 50 | 0 | 58 |
| Year 04 | 4 | 3 | 4 | 2 | 1 | 39 | 0 | 48 |
| Year 05 | 13 | 2 | 3 | 6 | 4 | 49 | 0 | 60 |
| Year 06 | 8 | 1 | 5 | 2 | 1 | 39 | 0 | 44 |
| Year 07 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 9 | 0 | 12 |
| Total | 50 | 13 | 26 | 19 | 16 | 252 | 0 | 308 |
| Māori | Pacific | Asian | MELAA | Other | European/ Pākehā | International students | Total | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Age 05 | 6 | 3 | 7 | 1 | 2 | 27 | 0 | 39 |
| Age 06 | 6 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 4 | 39 | 0 | 47 |
| Age 07 | 10 | 2 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 49 | 0 | 56 |
| Age 08 | 5 | 3 | 4 | 2 | 2 | 40 | 0 | 50 |
| Age 09 | 13 | 2 | 3 | 5 | 3 | 47 | 0 | 57 |
| Age 10 | 8 | 1 | 5 | 3 | 2 | 38 | 0 | 44 |
| Age 11 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 12 | 0 | 15 |
| Total | 50 | 13 | 26 | 19 | 16 | 252 | 0 | 308 |
Source: Education Counts, Ministry of Education, CC BY 4.0
Student engagement
Age-standardised stand-down rate per 1,000 students — 2024
0%
| Wakari School | 0% |
|---|---|
| Otago Region | 36.8% |
| Contributing | 35.6% |
| State | 40.2% |
| New Zealand | 37.1% |
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 stand-down rates data (2024)
Age-standardised suspension rate per 1,000 students — 2024
0%
| Wakari School | 0% |
|---|---|
| Otago Region | 4.6% |
| 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%
| Wakari School | 0% |
|---|---|
| Otago Region | 2% |
| 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)
- 440
- Boarding
- No
- Language of instruction
- All students taught in English/other setting
- Urban / rural
- Major urban area
- Date opened
- 16 November 1858
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
- 22 March 2023
- Latest report
- Te Ara Huarau | School Profile Report
- Report type
- Profile report
- Board assurance
- The board attested to all areas (22 March 2023)
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 22 March 2023 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 302 — 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.
May 2017
329
Counted while ERO’s review team was at the school. Education Review Office, report of 13 July 2017
November 2013
289
Counted while ERO’s review team was at the school. Education Review Office, report of 17 March 2014
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 22 March 2023 — “Te Ara Huarau | School Profile Report” — section by section, under ERO’s own headings, in ERO’s own order. Nothing is summarised, shortened or reordered.
Background
This Profile Report was written within 15 months of the Education Review Office and Wakari School working in Te Ara Huarau , an improvement evaluation approach used in most English Medium State and State Integrated Schools. For more information about Te Ara Huarau see ERO’s website. www.ero.govt.nz
Context
Wakari School is situated in the hill suburbs of Dunedin. It provides education for students in Years 1 – 6. The school has a vision for happy, confident learners - ngā akonga harikoa, ngā ākonga māia hoki . The school is currently undergoing significant property improvements. An Acting Principal has been appointed until a permanent Principal appointment is made in 2023.
Wakari School’s strategic priorities for improving outcomes for learners are to:
provide classroom learning programmes that reflect a commitment to high-quality teaching and learning
perform to the highest professional standards - critically reflecting, adapting and implementing change
provide the staff and pupils of Wakari School with the best facilities and resources to enable a full and rich curriculum delivery.
You can find a copy of the school’s strategic and annual plan on Wakari School’s website.
ERO and the school are working together to evaluate the effectiveness of the Mathematics curriculum across all levels of the school.
The rationale for selecting this evaluation is:
school leaders have identified a need to improve teachers’ collective pedagogical knowledge of mathematics teaching and improve the consistency of teacher practice across the school
the school has recently implemented the PRIME Maths programme and wishes to evaluate its impact on learning outcomes for all students.
The school expects to see consistent and effective Mathematics teaching practices embedded across the school and that the positive trends, recently identified in the school’s achievement data for Mathematics, are sustained and extended.
Strengths
The school can draw from the following strengths to support its goal to evaluate the effectiveness of the Mathematics curriculum across all levels of the school:
a strategic, collaborative approach to improving outcomes for learners
a stable and experienced staff, who are adaptive and responsive to the needs of their students
the pedagogical expertise to lead curriculum change from within the school.
Where to next?
Moving forward, the school will prioritise:
continued professional learning for teachers to further compliment the existing Mathematics programmes
the refinement of the school-wide basic facts programme, with a renewed focus on division, in line with the recent achievement gap analysis
continuing to extend and challenge learners to exceed expectations in Mathematics.
ERO’s role will be to support the school in its evaluation for improvement cycle to improve outcomes for all learners. ERO will support the school in reporting their progress to the community. The next public report on ERO’s website will be a Te Ara Huarau | School Evaluation Report and is due within three years.
Kathy Lye Acting Director Review and Improvement Services (Southern) Southern Region | Te Tai Tini
22 March 2023
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).