Darfield High School
Mclaughlins Road, Darfield · Canterbury
Composite score
Established
Below median
Rank #1,267 of scored NZ schools
Active MoE intervention — limited statutory manager
A limited statutory manager has been appointed to Darfield High School as of 2019-09-16. NZ Gazette notice
In summary
Darfield High School's Board of Trustees attested in March 2023 to meeting regulatory and legislative requirements in Board Administration, Curriculum, and Management of Health, Safety and Welfare. The school currently operates under a limited statutory manager intervention from the Ministry of Education.
Best suited for
Students aged 13-18 in Darfield looking for a state-funded setting with an established ERO profile.
Is Darfield High School a good school?
Darfield High School is currently under MoE intervention — a limited statutory manager has been appointed. The school's day-to-day teaching continues; the intervention addresses governance or operational concerns identified by the Ministry. Read the NZ Gazette notice for details.
Summary derived from ERO reports + audited financials + MoE records. Every claim links to its source — see data transparency at the bottom of this page.
Score breakdown
6 axes, each scored 0–100 on a national absolute scale. As at 2025.
L1 89% · L2 79% · UE 52% · bottom quartile of band (n=81) · why? ▼ hide
Uni 34% · Te Pūkenga 13% · Industry 11% · top quartile of band (n=77) · why? ▼ hide
79% to Y13 · bottom quartile of band (n=84) · why? ▼ hide
standdowns 33.7/1k · suspensions 5.0/1k · exclusions 1.7/1k · bottom quartile of band (n=518) · why? ▼ hide
+2.8% roll over 5yr (2020→2025) · near band median (n=515) · why? ▼ hide
72/100 from ERO review 2023-03 · bottom quartile of band (n=520) · why? ▼ hide
⚠ Insufficient EQI-band peers (n<10) to compute per-axis percentile context. The score above is absolute; treat it as a single-school read rather than a peer comparison.
Real ERO composite (from the latest review): 72/100.
Latest ERO review
2023-03-08 · Kathy Lye, Southern Region | Te Tai Tini
- Board has attested to meeting regulatory and legislative requirements in Board Administration
- Board has attested to meeting regulatory and legislative requirements in Curriculum
- Board has attested to meeting regulatory and legislative requirements in Management of Health, Safety and Welfare
- Board has attested to meeting regulatory and legislative requirements in Personnel Management
- Board has attested to meeting regulatory and legislative requirements in Finance
"As of December 2022, the Darfield High School Board has attested to the following regulatory and legislative requirements"
Composite score across reviews
2 ERO reviews on file, 2017–2023. Click a point to read that review.
NCEA achievement
School leavers with NCEA at each level. National average is ~85% (Level 1).
NCEA Level 1 · 2024
89.4%
101 of 113 leavers
-3.5pt vs prior year
NCEA Level 2 · 2024
78.8%
89 of 113 leavers
-9.4pt vs prior year
University Entrance · 2024
52.2%
59 of 113 leavers
+0.4pt vs prior year
Data: Ministry of Education / Education Counts, CC-BY-4.0
Stay-on rate
Percentage of students who stay at school until at least their 17th birthday — the standard NZ proxy for Year-9-to-Year-13 retention.
78.8%
2024 cohort · 113 students
-2.4pt vs 2023
Discipline (age-standardised, per 1,000 students)
Stand-down = sent home temporarily. Suspension = formal investigation. Exclusion = removed from school. National averages shown for comparison.
Stand-downs · 2024
33.7
43 this year · NZ avg ~37
Suspensions · 2024
5.0
7 this year · NZ avg ~5
Exclusions · 2024
1.7
2 this year · NZ avg ~1.5
Vocational Pathway Awards
School leavers achieving Vocational Pathway Awards by industry sector (2024).
- Service Industries 3
- Creative Industries 3
- Manufacturing and Technology 1
Government funding
Crown funding only (school operations + teacher salaries + property). Excludes locally-raised funds, international fees and trading income — those are in the audited financial report above.
Total Crown funding · 2022
$7.58M
Per-student funding · 2022
$9,420
2018
$6.5M
2019
$6.6M
2020
$7.6M
2021
$7.3M
2022
$7.6M
Roll by year level
July 2025 roll return.
- Year 07 148
- Year 08 128
- Year 09 150
- Year 10 104
- Year 11 108
- Year 12 115
- Year 13+ 65
Roll by ethnicity
Share of total roll. Students who identify with multiple ethnicities are counted once.
- European/Pākehā 85.1%
- Māori 12.7%
- Asian 10.7%
- Other / MELAA 4.5%
- International 3.6%
- Pacific 2.1%
Location
Mclaughlins Road, Darfield. Nearby schools marked in grey.
Map tiles © OpenStreetMap, © CARTO
Schools nearby
Within 15km, sorted by distance. Add any to compare with Darfield High School.
Darfield School
Contributing · 0.2km · 301 roll
55
-12 vs this
Kirwee Model School
Contributing · 9.3km · 156 roll
43
-24 vs this
Greendale School
Contributing · 9.3km · 34 roll
66
-1 vs this
Sheffield Contributing School
Contributing · 12.7km · 91 roll
79
+12 vs this
Hororata School
Contributing · 12.8km · 95 roll
83
+16 vs this
Glentunnel School
Contributing · 13.8km · 105 roll
80
+13 vs this
Frequently asked
Is Darfield High School a good school?
Darfield High School is currently under MoE intervention — a limited statutory manager has been appointed. The school's day-to-day teaching continues; the intervention addresses governance or operational concerns identified by the Ministry. Read the NZ Gazette notice for details.
What does the latest ERO review say?
ERO's 2023-03 review identified 6 key findings. Board has attested to meeting regulatory and legislative requirements in Board Administration
How do I enrol my child at Darfield High School?
Contact the school directly on 03-3188411, email admin@darfield.school.nz, or visit www.darfield.school.nz. For state schools, check your home address against the school's enrolment zone — some schools are in-zone-only.
What are the fees?
Darfield High School is a state school. There is no tuition fee for domestic students; voluntary donations may be requested.
What is the roll size?
Darfield High School has 805 students, with an EQI of 447 (mid-range socio-economic context).
When was the school last reviewed by ERO?
The Education Review Office last reviewed Darfield High School in 2023-03, signed by Kathy Lye. 4 ERO reports are on file in our archive.
Data transparency
Every fact on this page links to its source. We never publish a claim without provenance — read our methodology for the full rules.
Sourced from
- ero.govt.nz
- gazette.govt.nz
- schoolsdata.co.nz
- crimestats.co.nz