Sir Edmund Hillary Collegiate Junior School

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

Sir Edmund Hillary Collegiate Junior School provides education for students from Years 1 to 6. The school’s roll is approximately 380, with learners with Pacific heritage making up the largest proportion of all learners. Since the previous ERO report, the School Board appointed a new principal. The school has five Samoan bilingual classes and two Māori enrichment classes. 

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 some opportunities to learn across the breadth and depth of the curriculum.

There is a variable 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?The school is establishing planning and conditions that support improvements in the quality of education for learners.How well does the school include all learners and promote their engagement and wellbeing?The school is taking steps to improve 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.

The school is improving its collection and use of information gathered through community consultation to inform strategic planning and curriculum decisions.

Student Health and SafetyThe school needs to ensure a physically and emotionally safe learning environment.

Achievement in Years 0 to 6

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 65%

65 to 79%

80 to 90%

Over 90%

Reading

A small 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

A small majority of learners meet or exceed the expected curriculum level.

Results are 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. 

• Less than half 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 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 their use of 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 to some extent 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 and/or pānui, tuhituhi and pāngarau targets for 2030 and agrees this will need to be a key strategic priority.

Support

During the course of this review ERO had concerns about the quality of education being provided and made recommendations for support and/or intervention to the Secretary/Ministry of Education.

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 benefit from respectful relationships with their teachers and peers that help support greater engagement and build confidence within a caring learning environment.
• Leadership is focused on building consistency of schoolwide practices and expectations that improve teaching and learning.
• Structured literacy has been implemented in Years 1 to 3 and is beginning to be established across other year levels.
• Students experience rich cultural environments provided by the Samoan bilingual classes and Māori enrichment classes that reflect students’ identities and the diverse community.
• Targeted professional learning is developing teachers’ knowledge and skills to more effectively meet the many different needs of learners. 

Key priorities

• Improve students’ regular attendance.
• implement a cohesive school curriculum and learning progressions that align with the new structured literacy and mathematics requirements.
• Accelerate the achievement of all students.
• Establish schoolwide consistency of teaching, learning and assessment practices
• Improve in quality teaching to raise student progress and achievement.

Actions to bring about improvement

Within three months: 

• the School Board and leaders formalise an attendance action plan to increase rates of regular attendance
• leaders review learning programmes to inform the development of schoolwide curriculum planning and delivery

Within six months:

• leaders establish a cohesive curriculum overview and learning progressions to provide clear guidance for teaching and learning programmes
• leaders provide professional learning opportunities for staff to support the implementation of structured mathematics schoolwide

Every six months:

• the School Board and leaders monitor and review strategies and initiatives from the attendance action plan to inform next steps
• leaders gather student, staff and whānau voice on the implemented curriculum and make refinements as needed
• leaders provide staff ongoing professional learning to strengthen consistency of teaching, learning and assessment practices
• leaders and teachers systematically collate and analyse student progress and achievement information to know the impact of teaching on student outcomes, identifying future actions and share with the Board to guide decision making 

Annually:

• senior and middle leaders evaluate the implementation of the curriculum to continually refine teaching and learning programmes
• the School Board and leaders review student attendance, progress and achievement and use this information to inform ongoing strategic decision making and improvement planning. 

Expected outcomes 

• Improved rates of regular student attendance
• Accelerated progress and achievement in reading, writing and mathematics
• Learners experience a well-integrated curriculum that responds to whānau and school community aspirations
• Consistent, high-quality teaching, learning and assessment practices embedded schoolwide. 

Regulatory and Legislative Requirements

This section of the report is about how the school meet 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 some 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 areas of non-compliance during the board assurance process:

• follow school policy, processes and practices relating to stand downs
  [s78 to 89 Education and Training Act 2020]
• hold regular trial evacuation practices and report these to the board. 
  [Health and Safety at Work Act 2015; Fire and Emergency New Zealand Act 2017; Fire Safety, Evacuation Procedures and Evacuation Schemes Regulations 2018] 

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

Recommendation to the Ministry of Education

ERO recommends that the Secretary for Education/Ministry of Education consider intervention for specialist help as listed in section 171 of the Education and Training Act 2020 in order to bring about the following improvements:

• effectively implement The New Zealand Curriculum
• develop and implement schoolwide assessment practices.

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

30 September 2025