Sylvia Park 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. 

About the School  

Sylvia Park School provides education for students in Years 1 to 8. The school roll is 540 students and includes 28% Pacific heritage, 20% Māori, 16% Filipino, 18% other Asian, 12% New Zealand /Pākehā, and 6% from other ethnic groups. Te Puna Waiora provides Māori bilingual education in three classes. The school hosts satellite classrooms for students from Sommerville School. 

Sylvia Park School’s mission statement: Attend, Engage, Achieve, Succeed -Growing with whānau right by our side, living our values, remaining focussed with persistence & pride - Mā te whakahīhī, mā te kaha, ka kite i tō tātou ara, ka hua mai te māia. 

Improvement and progress  

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

Expected improvements 

​​The school focused on evaluating how well the curriculum impacted on equitable outcomes on engagement and achievement for all students. This included teachers and leaders consistently using effective teaching practices to promote equitable and excellent outcomes for all learners and building on well-established connections with local iwi, marae, and the school’s Kaumatua to guide the local curriculum.​ 

Findings  

​​Senior leadership has developed and implemented schoolwide overviews for literacy and mathematics to further build consistency of quality teaching practices. The school continues to enhance outdoor learning environments for students that are relevant, purposeful and deepened connections with local mana whenua. These collectively support student wellbeing and their sense of belonging at Sylvia Park School.   ​  

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? ​​Success and progress for all learners is increasing.​ What is the quality of teaching and learning? Learners benefit from ​good quality​ teaching practice that improves progress and achievement in ​reading, writing, mathematics and pānui, tuhituhi, pāngarau​. How well does the school curriculum respond to all learners needs? 

Learners have ​rich​ opportunities to learn across the breadth and depth of the curriculum. 

There is ​an increasingly consistent​ focus on supporting learners to gain skills in foundational 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? ​​School planning and conditions to support ongoing improvement to the quality of education for learners are well established.​ How well does the school include all learners and promote their engagement and wellbeing? ​​The school successfully promotes 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 responds well to a wide range of information gathered through community consultation, to inform strategic planning and curriculum decisions.​ 

Student Health and Safety ​​The school board is taking reasonable steps to ensure student health and safety.​ 

Achievement in Years 1 to 8 

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 64% 

65 to 79% 

80 to 90% 

Over 90% 

This table outlines how well students across the school meet or exceed the expected curriculum level. 

Reading 

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

Results are ​equitable​ for all groups of learners. 

Writing 

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

Results are ​not yet equitable​ for all groups of learners. 

Mathematics 

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

Results are ​becoming more 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. 

• ​​The large majority of​ ​students​ 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 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 ​has​ good quality planning to increase the rate of progress for all groups of students. 

The school ​has significantly​ 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. 

This section of the report provides more detail for the school to include in strategic and annual planning for ongoing improvement across the school. 

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 express a strong sense of pride in their school. Indoor and outdoor learning environments effectively promote their wellbeing/hauora and engagement in learning. 
• ​The Sylvia Park School Board, leaders and staff’s focus on respectful relationships based on school values, that supports a welcoming and inclusive school and fosters a sense of belonging for students and their families/whānau. 
• ​Well-established schoolwide inquiry teaching and learning practices provides breadth and width in the school curriculum that builds on students’ language, culture and identity. Specialist curriculum teachers and learning assistants are integral to teaching and learning programmes. 
• ​Leaders build consistency in teaching practice through strengths-based approaches and coaching; structured literacy and mathematics approaches continue to be embedded schoolwide. 
• ​Teachers regularly collaborate to inquire into aspects of their teaching practice; this focus supports consistency in strategies to improve learners’ progress and achievement.  
• ​The views of parents, whānau and staff are actively sought to inform key improvement priorities, such as attendance. Feedback is used to identify key next steps and actions strengthen family engagement to support regular student attendance.

Key priorities  

• Strengthen schoolwide assessment practices and teacher moderation, enabling effective data analysis and reducing equity gaps, with a focus on increasing writing progress and achievement. 
• Improve schoolwide evaluation and reporting to the Board on the impact of targeted interventions and teaching strategies to accelerate progress of all groups of learners, including English language learners. 
• Monitor and report on the implementation of the attendance management plan and evaluate its impact on lifting regular attendance over time. 

Actions to bring about improvement  

Within six months: 

• senior leadership review schoolwide assessment tools, moderation and teacher practices to strengthen schoolwide student achievement information  
• teachers develop targeted evaluative questions to guide inquiries into the effectiveness of interventions and teaching practices that accelerates progress in literacy and mathematics 

Every six months: 

• senior leadership review mid-year schoolwide student assessment data to determine equitable outcomes in writing and mathematics, adjusting assessment and teaching practices as needed 
• teachers and leaders review interventions for priority groups to identify accelerated student progress, report findings to the Board, and refine focus areas for the next cycle of support 
• the Board and staff review attendance data to measure the impact of initiatives and adjust approaches for students not yet regularly attending 

Annually: 

• senior leadership evaluate schoolwide assessment and report to the Board progress made toward more equitable student outcomes in writing and mathematics 
• senior leadership evaluate and report on the impact of interventions and initiatives that accelerated progress for each learner group, identifying effective practices and areas for further teacher development 
• the Board, leaders and staff evaluate the effectiveness of the attendance management plan and actions and adjust for the following year. 

Expected outcomes 

• Robust schoolwide assessment analysis that provides clear information about equity between groups, progress and learning outcomes for all students particularly in writing. 
• Strengthened evaluation capability, enabling the school to identify effective teaching and assessment practices, and interventions that support accelerate progress for all students. 
• Increased and sustained levels of 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  

Background 

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

Findings 

​​The school is a recent 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.  

​No international students were enrolled at the time of the ERO review.​ 

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  

​​18 May 2026​