Waituna Creek 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 

Waituna Creek School is located in Waimate and provides education for learners in Years 1 to 8. The school roll is 31. NZ European/Pākehā make up the largest proportion of all learners (87%), with 10% of students identifying as Māori, 3% of Pacific heritage and smaller numbers from other ethnicities. A new principal was appointed in 2023. The school’s vision is Inspiring learners to lead their community into a stronger future. The values of the school are Relationships, Resilience and Respect. 

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

Improvement and progress

This section is about the progress the school has made since the July 2022 ERO report. It includes an explanation of the expected improvements and findings. 

Expected improvement

During the previous ERO review, the school identified as a priority the enhancement of its local, culturally responsive curriculum to more effectively address the needs and aspirations of both learners and their whānau.

Findings

The school leader and teachers have implemented an integrated learning programme centred on the local environment. This provides students with meaningful and authentic learning experiences through an environmental lens. Learners are demonstrating increased levels of engagement in these learning programmes. Teachers continue to deepen their knowledge and understanding of local Māori stories and history to further enrich and support the learning context.

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 high quality teaching practice that improves progress and achievement in  reading, writing and mathematics. 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?The school is establishing planning and conditions that support improvements in the quality of education for learners.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 SafetyThe school needs to ensure a physically and emotionally safe learning environment.

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. 

Less than a third 

Less than half 

Small majority 

Large majority 

Most 

Almost all 

0 to 33%

34 to 49%

50 to 65%

65 to 79%

80 to 90%

Over 90%

Reading

Most learners meet or exceed the expected curriculum level.

Results are not yet equitable for all groups of learners.

Writing

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

Results are not yet equitable for all groups of learners.

Mathematics

Most learners meet or exceed the expected curriculum level.

Results are not yet 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 small majority of students attend school regularly.
• The school is behind the target of 80% regular attendance.
• The school is developing 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 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.
• 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 for 2030 and agrees this will need to be a key strategic priority.

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

• Learners benefit from a positive school culture that fosters a strong sense of belonging through affirming and supportive relationships with staff and peers.
• Teachers know their learners well and tailor programmes to meet individual needs. They use collaborative and responsive practices to ensure all learners are appropriately supported to succeed.
• Learners express enjoyment of engaging, authentic learning experiences that support active participation, and classrooms are calm, focused and purposeful learning environments.
• School leadership is clearly focused on strategic direction aligned with learning priorities to improve outcomes for learners.
• A structured approach to teaching mathematics is becoming embedded across the school, and a new structured literacy programme has been introduced.
• Strong professional networks give teachers access to quality professional development opportunities that builds their capability. 

Key priorities

The agreed next steps for the school are to:

• Improve students’ attendance and raise achievement, particularly in writing.
• Enhance strategic planning to focus clearly on improving outcomes for students.
• Develop the school’s curriculum to align with current best practice.
• strengthen a consistent, schoolwide approach to assessment to better inform teaching.
• Develop an internal evaluation system to identify strengths, areas for improvement, and enable the School Board to review its own performance.

Actions to bring about improvement

Within three months: 

• the School Board and principal review and update the strategic plan to clearly focus on improving learner outcomes
• the School Board and principal strengthen the school’s attendance plan and actively promote its importance to whānau and families

Within six months:

• the principal and teachers develop clear curriculum and assessment guidelines to set expectations and ensure consistency across the school to support learning
• the School Board and principal explore and implement an internal evaluation process to support ongoing improvement

Every six months:

• the School Board and principal monitor the effectiveness of the attendance plan in improving regular attendance rates
• the principal and teachers evaluate and report on the effectiveness of changes to teaching practices, and how assessment information is used to track progress toward achievement targets

Annually:

• the principal and the School Board report to the community on the effectiveness of the attendance plan in improving regular attendance, and use the findings to guide strategic planning
• the principal and teachers evaluate and report to the School Board on the effectiveness of curriculum and assessment implementation, and their impact on learner progress and achievement
• the School Board and principal review and update the strategic plan to clearly identify key priorities to support ongoing improvement.

Expected outcomes

• Increased rates of regular attendance.
• Strategic planning clearly identifies improvement priorities and focuses on enhancing progress and achievement for all learners.
• An established curriculum statement and assessment schedule that is consistently used to guide teaching practice.
• A regular cycle of internal evaluation that provides evidence of its impact on learner outcomes.

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 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:

• every safety check of a person must comply with the requirements for safety checks of core workers.
  [Section 31 Children’s Act 2014]

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

29 September 2025