Mt Albert 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 

Mt Albert School provides education for learners from Years 1 to 6. The school has a roll of 500 students, with 40% Asian, 32% Pākehā/New Zealand European, 9% Pacific and 4% Māori heritage and smaller numbers of other ethnic backgrounds. The school values are Hāpai | Responsibility, Ārahi | Leadership, Tika | Integrity, and Māia | Courage.

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 December 2022 ERO report. It includes an explanation of the expected improvements and findings.

Expected improvements

School priorities were to have a more deliberate, evidence-based data approach to teaching and learning, improved culturally responsive practices and evaluative capability with a focus on equity and excellent outcomes for all learners. 

Findings 

Professional learning, coaching and consistent use of assessment processes have improved evidence‑based approaches to using data. This is creating greater coherence in teaching and learning across the school. 

Teachers include culturally responsive strategies to strengthen teaching and learning, affirming learner identity, language, and culture. Connections with whānau, community, and iwi are being used more intentionally to inform next steps.

Internal evaluation is improving teacher’s capability to use achievement data more effectively. 

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.

Achievement in Years 1 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.

Attendance

This section is about school attendance and the progress the school is making towards meeting the Government target of 80% regular attendance.

• The large majority of learners attend school regularly.
• The school is approaching the target of 80% regular attendance.
• The school has a suitable plan in place to improve attendance.
• Regular attendance is improving towards or beyond the target.

Assessment 

This section is about how the school assesses learner progress and achievement.

• The school uses an appropriate approach and reliable practices to find out about achievement against the curriculum.
• Assessment information is used well 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 has 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 for 2030 and agrees this will need to be a key strategic priority.

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

Strong, cohesive leadership provides clear direction and effective systems and processes across the school, foster a positive, collaborative culture. Leaders are approachable and improvement focused, with high expectations consistently reinforced.

All staff work well together and respond positively to the refreshed curriculum, learner needs, and school priorities. Classrooms are calm, settled, and inclusive, with high engagement supported by effective explicit teaching.

Learners are confident, engaged and have a strong sense of identity and belonging. They demonstrate pride in their school, its rich diversity, and the opportunities to uphold the school motto ‘Being the Best you can Be’. 

Learners who need additional support are quickly identified, with well-coordinated interventions reducing barriers to learning. Strong monitoring, whānau collaboration, and partnerships with specialists ensure timely, targeted support.

A capable, committed Board provides strategic and reflective governance. Well-established partnerships with parents, whānau and community ensure families are well informed and actively involved in school life.

Key priorities

• Consolidate and refine teaching, learning and assessment practices to align with the refreshed New Zealand Curriculum.
• Make use of evaluative capability to ensure excellent and equitable success for all learners especially groups of learners. 
• Improve regular attendance for all learners. 

Actions to bring about improvement 

Within six months:

• leaders work with teachers to build collective and individual evaluative capability to ensure a shared understanding and consistent focus on excellent and equitable outcomes 
• teachers identify those priority groups of learners where outcomes are not yet equitable, in literacy and mathematics, and evaluate the impact of teaching and learning strategies on learner outcomes

Every six months:

• leaders and teacher evaluate priority learners’ progress and achievement data and plan focused actions to accelerate progress
• leaders and teachers review and adapt assessment and curriculum practices that further support learners to achieve excellent and equitable outcomes 
• leaders and teachers evaluate progress against attendance targets to inform next steps and report to the school Board and community

Annually:

• leaders and teachers work together to evaluate school practices and processes to ensure they meet curriculum and assessment requirements and excellent outcomes for all learners.

Expected outcomes

• Increased levels of equity and excellence for all learners.
• A well-established assessment cycle aligned to the curriculum.
• Improved regular student attendance.

Regulatory and Legislative Requirements

This section of the report is about how the school meets regulatory and legislative requirements. This includes the provision of education for international students.

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 meeting regulatory and legislative requirements in the following areas:

Board Administration

Yes

Curriculum

Yes

Management of Health, Safety and Welfare

Yes

Personnel Management

Yes

Provision for International Students 

This section is about the quality of the provision of education for international students enrolled at the school.

Findings

The school is a signatory to the Education (Pastoral Care of Tertiary and International Learners) Code of Practice 2021 established under section 534 of the Education and Training Act 2020. The school has attested that it complies with all aspects of the Code and has completed an annual self-review of its implementation of the Code. 

At the time of this review there were 2 international students attending the school.  International students are well supported through strong pastoral care, tailored learning provision, and full integration into school life. 

School leaders maintain rigorous annual self-review processes. Leaders regularly gather parent and student feedback to strengthen the quality and impact of its international student programmes.

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

7 May 2026