Belfast School

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 

Pūtahi Belfast School operates as a single kura across two physical sites, a junior and a senior campus. It is situated in Christchurch and provides education for students in Years 1 to 8.  The school values, care – awhina, share – mahi tahi, learn – ako and grow – e tipu, underpin their curriculum.

There are three parts to this report.

Part A: A summary of the findings from the most recent Education Review Office (ERO) report and/or subsequent evaluation.

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

Part A: Previous Improvement Goals

Since the previous report in August 2022, the school and ERO have worked together to evaluate how well the localised curriculum provides guidance for a cohesive and consistent approach for teaching and learning. 

Expected Improvements and Findings

The school expected to see:

Deepening of reciprocal relationships with iwi.

• Teachers and leaders have deliberately used the cultural narrative (the personalised school naming document approved by Ngāi Tūāhuriri Education Committee) in of the school, with the support of whānau and iwi to plan and implement the localised curriculum and to inform the development of the new senior campus.

Strengthening of partnerships with parents.

• The school is using a wider range of effective engagement strategies with parents; this has increased the number of parents and teachers purposefully engaging to better support the child’s learning. 

Increased equity in learning outcomes across various groups of students in the school.

• The school has sustained high achievement in reading, writing and mathematics for all groups of students.
• Progress and achievement data shows significant improvement in outcomes for Pacific students in writing and mathematics.
• Equity in outcomes between groups of students has shown improvement particularly for Pacific students and Māori students; continuing to improve outcomes for Māori students and girls in mathematics and boys in writing remains a priority for these students. 

Other Findings

The greatest shift that occurred in response to the school’s action has been embedding the cultural narrative into the local curriculum. Students increasingly experience their own cultures and identities within teaching and learning enhancing their wellbeing and sense of belonging.

Part B: Current State

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

Learner Success and Wellbeing 

• A large majority of students achieve at or above curriculum expectations in reading, writing and mathematics.
• Outcomes for Pacific learners are equitable; Māori student outcomes continue to improve and are increasingly equitable.
• Improving equity for groups of students’ achievement remains a priority, including boys in writing and girls in mathematics.
• The majority of learners attend school regularly; the school is not yet meeting the Ministry of Education’s target for regular attendance.

Conditions to support learner success

• Teachers and leaders value students, parents and whānau feedback and ideas for improvement; they keep the board and community well informed on the progress towards achieving these goals and aspirations.
• Leaders and teachers comprehensively analyse a wide range of achievement information to inform responsive changes to teaching and learning.
• Leaders foster a culture of critical reflection; current research in education is used to refine and improve teaching practice and outcomes for learners.

• Teachers and leaders make appropriate changes to their teaching practice in response to targeted professional development; this strengthens consistency across the school.
• Student achievement and engagement is enhanced through meaningful teaching and learning that increasingly includes te reo Māori, tikanga Māori and mātauranga Māori.
• Students with additional learning needs are well supported to access the breadth and depth of the localised curriculum; these learners benefit from well-considered plans and effective strategies.

• Leaders and teachers use strong and embedded evaluation practices to identify areas of high quality practice and processes, and target improvement priorities.
• Rigorous analysis and discussions on students’ progress and achievement by the board and school leadership underpins effective resourcing and improvement focused strategic planning.
• Strong partnerships with outside agencies support the wellbeing and improved attendance for those learners at risk of not engaging and attending. 

Part C: Where to next?

The agreed next steps for the school are to: 

• continue to strengthen high quality teaching practice to improve equitable outcomes for Māori students, girls in mathematics and boys in writing
• develop initiatives and implement strategies for ongoing improvement to attendance.

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

Within six months:

• teachers undertake professional development to extend the range of strategies and approaches used to target learners at risk of underachievement

Every six months:

• collate and analyse student progress and achievement data for trends and patterns, and use this to inform next improvement priorities
• review intentional strategies used to improve attendance, acknowledge what is working well and identify where to next
• reflect on and review the implementation of effective teaching strategies for progress and achievement particularly for equity in outcomes for Māori students and between genders

Annually:

• continue to use and report to the board on student wellbeing, engagement, progress and achievement data to inform responsive decision making, and effective strategies for improving attendance, teaching and learning
• evaluate the effectiveness of strategies used to improve equitable outcomes in writing and mathematics and make changes where needed.

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

• improved equity and excellence in outcomes for groups of students in writing and mathematics
• increased student engagement in learning
• students attending regularly.

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

Sharon Kelly
Acting Director of Schools

26 February 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/home