Flemington School (Waipukurau)

School Evaluation 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.

Context 

Flemington School (Waipukurau) is a rural school located in Central Hawkes Bay and provides education for students in Years 1 to 8. The school’s vision that students will be confident, resilient and innovative learners who can successfully contribute in a fast changing world, is promoted through the values of Respect, Integrity, Success, Empathy.

There are two parts to this report.

Part A: An evaluative summary of learner success and school conditions to inform the school board’s future strategic direction, including any education in Rumaki/bilingual settings. 

Part B: The improvement actions prioritised for the school’s next evaluation cycle. 

Part A: Current State 

The following findings are to inform the school’s future priorities for improvement.

Learner Success and Wellbeing 

• The 2023 achievement information shows that most learners achieved at or above the expected curriculum levels in reading, writing and mathematics; Māori learners achieve above their peers in all areas.
• Achievement information for mid 2024 indicates a sustained trajectory of improvement for all learners.
• Students with additional learning needs are identified, have targeted support and progress well within an inclusive learning environment.
• The school is yet to meet the Ministry of Education targets for regular attendance; strategies to improve attendance are focused on building positive relationships with students and whānau to promote engagement in learning.

Conditions to support learner success

• Strategic planning and improvement goals, developed in collaboration with the community, board and staff are focused on equitable and excellent outcomes for all students with clear measures for success.
• Leadership builds relational trust within the teaching team, resulting in collaborative approaches to relevant professional growth and responsive teaching programmes that meet students’ learning needs.
• Comprehensively analysed achievement information is used well to inform school wide decision making that improves student outcomes; this includes cohesive, ongoing development of structured literacy and mathematics approaches across the school.

• Teachers engage students in meaningful learning within a positive, supportive environment; they develop concepts, ideas and skills through effective deliberate acts of teaching.
• Students at risk of not achieving are clearly identified, have targets set, their progress monitored and regularly reported to whānau, parents and the board; these students make good progress and achieve.
• Local contexts are reflected in the curriculum and through a range of activities students see themselves in their learning; continuing to support the integration of te reo Māori, tikanga Māori and mātauranga Māori is a planned next step, affirmed by ERO’s evaluation. 

• A systematic approach to planning for school improvement is in place informed by high quality evidence and evaluation.
• Professional learning in structured literacy is well aligned to improvement goals and maintained until practices are embedded; further development of supporting teachers’ practice in structured mathematics is planned.
• Parents, whānau and community collaboration with the school enrich learning opportunities and enhance student achievement and wellbeing.
• The board works collaboratively, is improvement focused and supporting leadership to reduce barriers to learning and sustain improved outcomes for learners.

Part B: Where to next? 

The agreed next steps for the school are to: 

• use the strategies in place and continue the engagement focus with families, to improve attendance rates for all learners
• through focused professional learning continue to strengthen teacher capability and capacity in effective, evidence-based teaching practices to sustain improved learner outcomes for students in writing and mathematics
• develop a responsive curriculum that integrates te reo Māori, tikanga Māori and mātauranga Māori to support learners’ strengths, identity and culture. 

The agreed actions for the next improvement cycle and timeframes are as follows.

Within six months:

• analyse attendance data and measure progress towards improving regular attendance for all groups of learners
• undertake school-wide professional development in writing and mathematics
• continue the development of a curriculum framework, strengthening te reo Māori, tikanga Māori and mātauranga Māori across the school and in everyday practices.

Every six months:

• monitor the effectiveness of strategies to increase and sustain regular attendance
• monitor progress against targets and actions in the school’s annual plan, to inform next steps to take
• gather teacher voice about the quality of the professional learning and the impact on teaching, to identify next steps and to enhance confidence and practice.

Annually:

• evaluate and report progress against targets and actions in the school’s annual plan, including attendance, to inform next steps to improve learner achievement, wellbeing and engagement
• evaluate the extent to which a responsive curriculum integrates te reo Māori, tikanga Māori, and mātauranga Māori.

Actions taken against these next steps are expected to result in:

• improved regular student attendance
• high quality evidence based, teaching practices that sustain equitable and excellent outcomes for students
• te reo Māori, tikanga Māori, and mātauranga Māori increasingly integrated within a responsive curriculum that meets the needs and aspirations of learners and their whānau.

ERO’s role will be to support the school in its evaluation for improvement cycle to improve outcomes for all learners. The next public report on ERO’s website will be a School Evaluation Report and is due within three 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

Shelley Booysen
Director of Schools

5 March 2025

About the School

The Education Counts website provides further information about the school’s student population, student engagement and student achievement.  educationcounts.govt.nz/homeSchool Evaluation Report