Fernside School
285 O'Roarkes Road, Fernside · Canterbury
Composite score
Established
Above median
Rank #1,140 of scored NZ schools
In summary
Fernside School's April 2023 ERO review found the board attested to meeting regulatory and legislative requirements across all areas. One non-compliance area was identified regarding workforce safety checking documentation, which the board has since addressed. The school has no current Ministry of Education intervention.
Best suited for
Students aged 5-11 in Fernside looking for a state-funded setting with an established ERO profile.
Is Fernside School a good school?
Fernside School scores 70/100 on the SchoolsNearMe composite — a weighted average of 5 axes (academic, outcomes, retention, wellbeing, trajectory). Above median nationally. The full breakdown is below; every input links to its source.
Strengths from the latest ERO report
- Board has attested compliance across all regulatory and legislative requirement areas
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.
standdowns 18.3/1k · suspensions 0.0/1k · exclusions 0.0/1k · below band median (n=536) · why? ▼ hide
-2.9% roll over 5yr (2020→2025) · near band median (n=534) · why? ▼ hide
75/100 from ERO review 2023-04 · below band median (n=539) · 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): 75/100.
Latest ERO review
2023-04-28 · Shelley Booysen, ERO
- Board attested to meeting regulatory and legislative requirements across all areas: Board Administration, Curriculum, Health/Safety/Welfare, Personnel Management, Finance, and Assets
- One area of non-compliance identified: school needed to check primary and secondary identity documents for workforce safety checking under Children's Act 2014
- Board has since addressed the area of non-compliance identified
"As of June 2022, the Fernside School Board has attested to the following regulatory and legislative requirements"
Composite score across reviews
3 ERO reviews on file, 2013–2023. Click a point to read that review.
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
18.3
3 this year · NZ avg ~37
Suspensions · 2024
0.0
· NZ avg ~5
Exclusions · 2024
0.0
· NZ avg ~1.5
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
$2.10M
Per-student funding · 2022
$7,380
2018
$1.6M
2019
$1.6M
2020
$1.8M
2021
$2.0M
2022
$2.1M
Roll by year level
July 2025 roll return.
- Year 01 35
- Year 02 38
- Year 03 33
- Year 04 31
- Year 05 39
- Year 06 20
- Year 07 54
- Year 08 22
Roll by ethnicity
Share of total roll. Students who identify with multiple ethnicities are counted once.
- European/Pākehā 92.6%
- Māori 9.1%
- Asian 2.1%
- Pacific 1.4%
Location
285 O'Roarkes Road, Fernside. Nearby schools marked in grey.
Map tiles © OpenStreetMap, © CARTO
Schools nearby
Within 15km, sorted by distance. Add any to compare with Fernside School.
Te Matauru Primary
Full Primary · 4km · 246 roll
56
-14 vs this
Tūtira Ashgrove School
Full Primary · 4.1km · 451 roll
74
+4 vs this
Rangiora Borough School
Full Primary · 4.7km · 341 roll
51
-19 vs this
St Joseph's School (Rangiora)
Full Primary · 5km · 182 roll
71
+1 vs this
Rangiora New Life School
Composite · 5.3km · 472 roll
62
-8 vs this
Southbrook School
Full Primary · 5.5km · 264 roll
39
-31 vs this
Frequently asked
Is Fernside School a good school?
Fernside School scores 70/100 on the SchoolsNearMe composite — a weighted average of 5 axes (academic, outcomes, retention, wellbeing, trajectory). Above median nationally. The full breakdown is below; every input links to its source.
What does the latest ERO review say?
ERO's 2023-04 review identified 3 key findings. Board attested to meeting regulatory and legislative requirements across all areas: Board Administration, Curriculum, Health/Safety/Welfare, Personnel Management, Finance, and Assets
How do I enrol my child at Fernside School?
Contact the school directly on 03-3138608, email fernsideschool@fernside.school.nz, or visit www.fernside.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?
Fernside School is a state school. There is no tuition fee for domestic students; voluntary donations may be requested.
What is the roll size?
Fernside School has 285 students, with an EQI of 412 (lower socio-economic need).
When was the school last reviewed by ERO?
The Education Review Office last reviewed Fernside School in 2023-04, signed by Shelley Booysen. 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
- schoolsdata.co.nz
- crimestats.co.nz