Windley 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 

​​Windley School provides education for learners in Years 1 to 8. The current roll of 218 learners includes 58% of learners who identify Pacific and learners who identify as Māori and Asian. The school mission Shape collaborative communities with our whānau and tamariki to create world class learning journeys is underpinned by the vision of ‘E tipu ngā rakau iti’ and values of Whanaungatanga, Manaakitanga and Tautokona. 

​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.  

• Less than half of learners attend school regularly.
• The school is ​behind​ 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.
• Chronic absence ​is​ reducing over time. 

Assessment 

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

• ​​The school is not yet using an appropriate approach and reliable practices to accurately find out about achievement against the curriculum.​
• ​​Teachers should improve 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 ​does not have​ good quality planning to increase the rate of progress for all groups of students.
• The school ​has not​ improved achievement and progress for those learners most at risk of not achieving since the previous review.
• The school ​has not​ extended achievement and progress for learners working at or above curriculum levels since the previous review.
• ​​The school is not 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 

• ​​Positive relationships exist between teachers and students. The school has adopted its local Kāhui Ako values of voice, action and identity to guide personal and school community growth.
• ​The school is focussing on strategies for accelerating progress in literacy and mathematics; teacher professional development is targeted at strengthening teaching practice for improved student outcomes.
• ​The school affirms, values and caters for students with additional learning needs; these students’ sense of wellbeing, identity and belonging is supported by a range of initiatives. Students learn in an inclusive environment.​  

Key priorities 

• Develop an action plan with clear timeframes and accountabilities to address the areas for improvement in this report.
• Ensure that the School Board and school leaders implement policies and procedures that meet statutory obligations and guide school operations
• Develop and implement consistent schoolwide assessment practices.
• Improve the use of assessment information as the foundation for planning and teaching of structured literacy and mathematics programmes.
• Improve student attendance. 

Actions to bring about improvement  

Within three months: 

• leaders and the School Board urgently address outstanding areas of non-compliance as identified in this ERO report, prioritising health and safety systems and processes
• leaders and teachers strengthen student assessment practices and moderation of data to ensure it guides teacher planning and focusses on accelerated progress
• leaders and the School Board develop an attendance plan, including systems and processes for monitoring to increase the rate of regular attendance and reduce chronic absences  

Within six months: 

• leaders review and report on the current state of schoolwide teaching and learning in structured literacy and mathematics in relation to how well it is enabling students’ progress and achievement
• leaders and teachers implement more of the new school curriculum, assessment expectations and reporting requirements

Every six months: 

• leaders review and regularly report on the progress with implementing the school’s action plan in relation to addressing the areas for improvement in the ERO report
• leaders and teachers work together to refine schoolwide teaching and learning in structured literacy and mathematics to promote ongoing student engagement, progress and achievement
• leaders and teachers analyse assessment information to plan learning initiatives and interventions to improve learning outcomes and identify next steps
• the School Board and leaders review the attendance plan to identify effective initiatives and plan actions for ongoing improvement 

Annually: 

• the School Board and leaders review the impact of the action plan as a basis for annual planning and supporting actions and accountabilities, identify areas for further improvement and share with the school community
• leaders and teachers analyse the impact of evidenced-based teaching and engagement strategies, including interventions to accelerate progress and achievement to improve structured literacy and mathematics programmes
• the School Board and leaders review student progress and achievement attendance patterns and trends, in order to identify and plan priority actions.  

Expected outcomes  

• School leadership and planning are enhanced to drive improvements in students’ progress and achievement in literacy and mathematics.
• Robust systems and processes are embedded to ensure statutory requirements for school operations are consistently met.
• Teaching programmes are strengthened through evidence-based approaches in teacher planning, assessment, and teaching and learning strategies.
• Attendance levels increase to meet the Government’s target for regular attendance. 

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 meeting 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 school’s child protection policy is implemented with fidelity, and staff roles and responsibilities are clear and supported by regular child protection training 
  [Sections 18 and 19 of the Children’s Act 2014: School boards’ child protection policies]
• ensure all teachers have completed the physical restraint training modules and that non-teaching staff are authorised and that the school reports the use of physical restraint to the Ministry of Education 
  [Sections 99, 100 and 101 of the Education and Training Act 2020: limits, rules and use of physical restraint and behaviour management at registered schools; Ministry of Education (Physical Restraint) Rules 2023]
• ensure the school’s Education Outside the Classroom (EOTC) policy and systems are implemented with fidelity, adequate staffing ratios and risk management procedures align with relevant legislation and guidelines, including obtaining board approval before the event, particularly for high-risk activities 
  [Health and Safety at Work Act 2015; Education Outside the Classroom (Ministry of Education)]
• ensure that a satisfactory safety checking process occurs for persons employed by the board, including sufficient records of identity confirmation, police vetting and a record of completed risk assessment  
  [Sections 25, 26 and 27 of the Children’s Act 2014: Safety checks of children’s workers]
• ensure that the school has obtained a police vet before the person’s employment begins at the school  
  [Section 104 and Schedule 4 of the Education and Training Act 2020]
• ensure that there are suitable systems for supporting positive behaviour for learning, including suitable supervision of students sent out of class for behaviour issues 
  [Providing a safe physical and emotional environment for students Section 127(1) and (2) Education and Training Act 2020]
• ensure that the board monitors and receives regular information about the number of students stood down, suspended or excluded 
  [Section 127(1) and (2) Education and Training Act 2020
• ensure that school systems and processes fare implemented for crisis management, emergency evacuation and lockdowns, and recording, analysing and reporting of accidents and hazards, regular drills and trial evacuations are reviewed and reported to the board  
  [Health and Safety at Work Act 2015]
• ensure that the maintains adequate board meeting minutes and records, including in-committee meetings that are documented and appropriately stored  
  [Local Government Official Information and Meetings Act 1987]
• ensure that the board has a suitable process for the management of complaints, including a policy, monitoring for timely resolution, self review and recordkeeping 
  [Good complaints handling by school boards (Ombudsman website)]. 

The board has ​not yet addressed​ the areas of non-compliance identified.  

Recommendation to the Ministry of Education 

ERO recommends that the Secretary for Education consider an intervention to appoint a limited statutory manager listed in section 171(1)h of the Education and Training Act 2020 to bring about the following improvements: 

• leadership for school improvement, including support with action planning with clear timeframes and accountabilities to address the key issues in this report
• increased learner’s progress and achievement through comprehensive assessment practices that form the basis for improving literacy and mathematics teaching and learning programmes
• implementing robust schoolwide policies, systems and procedures that support positive behaviours for learning, health and safety and employment practices
• all leaders and teachers engage in professional development supported by a professional growth cycle that shows clear evidence of progress in improved teaching and learning
• increases in regular attendance and reducing chronic absences through targeted planning, actions and monitoring.  

The next public report on ERO’s website will be a School 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 

​​​Sharon Kelly​
​​Director of Schools (Acting)​ 

​​1 September 2025​