Waimana 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 

Waimana School provides education for learners in Years 1 to 8. Almost all of the school’s 20 students identify as Māori. A new principal started in term one of 2024.  The school’s vision of Waimana Mahora Te Kurarangi encourages students to thrive and excel. Ngā Uara values support the school’s vision and promote manaakitanga, whanaungatanga, kaitiakitanga and ako.

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. 

Achievement in Years 0 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. 

Attendance

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

• The small majority of learners attend school regularly.
• The school is approaching the target of 80% regular attendance.
• The school is yet to have a suitable plan 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 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.
• ERO was unable to verify the extent to which achievement and progress is extended for learners working at or above curriculum levels since the previous review.
• The school is making progress towards Government reading, writing and mathematics targets and is likely to meet them by 2030.

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

• Student achievement information shows rates of accelerated progress in writing and equitable outcomes for all learners are evident in literacy.
• Students participate and learn in a caring whānau environment that promotes wellbeing and inclusion.
• Leadership and the Board work collaboratively to identify strategic priorities and plan for improvements.
• A structured approach to the teaching of literacy and mathematics supports students to improve foundational skills for learning and meet the one-hour-a-day requirements.
• A deliberate focus on increasing learning in local contexts enables Māori students to build confidence and knowledge in their language, culture and identity.
• Provision of regular professional learning opportunities builds teacher capability to respond to the emerging needs of students.
• Leaders and teachers reflect on the progress of individual students to improve consistency of teaching practice and positive outcomes for learners.

Key priorities 

• Raise overall levels of achievement in writing, mathematics and reading.
• Build collective capability to accelerate student learning.
• Increase and sustain rates of regular attendance.
• Develop effective analysis of achievement data to inform annual planning and targeted actions. 

Actions to bring about improvement

Within three months:

• leaders, teachers and the Board set clear targets and implement actions to improve regular attendance
• leaders and teachers develop a plan to monitor and assess progress and achievement data
• leaders and teachers engage with parents and whānau to implement successful strategies that improve attendance 

Within six months: 

• leaders and teachers implement the plan to monitor and assess progress and achievement data
• leaders teaching across the school to identify professional learning opportunities that build capability to accelerate student learning 

Every six months:

• leaders and teachers monitor and report on the rates of progress for all students, especially those at risk of not achieving
• leaders and teachers involve parents and whānau in planning strategies to improve attendance and learner success 

Annually:

• the Board use evaluation reports on the effectiveness of school interventions and teaching practices to improve student progress, achievement and attendance to inform decision making.

Expected outcomes

• Increased rates of student progress, overall achievement and attendance.
• Improved equitable outcomes for learners in maths.
• Well established approaches to school planning for continuous improvement.

Regulatory and Legislative Requirements

This section of the report is about how the school meets 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:

• ensure the Board follows the school’s police vetting policy including obtaining police vetting every three years for employees who still work at the school
  [clause 10 and 12 schedule 4 Education and Training Act 2020]
• implement a formalised method for identifying, addressing and monitoring hazards, and regularly report hazard management practices to the board.
  [Health and Safety at Work Act 2015; Health and Safety at Work (General Risk and Workplace Management) regulations 2016].

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

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 

10 October 2025