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Full Primary · State

Five Forks School

1403 Kakanui Valley Road, Waitaki · Otago & Southland

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Total roll 62
EQI 449
Founded 1912
93

Composite score

Strong

A+

Top 5% in NZ

Rank #26 of scored NZ schools

In summary

Five Forks School's June 2024 ERO review found learning outcomes are equitable and excellent, with nearly all students achieving at expected curriculum levels in reading and mathematics. The review noted leadership effectively fosters a culture committed to quality teaching and equity, and students have increasingly developed the ability to reflect on their learning and identify next steps. The school's composite score is 83.

Best suited for

Students aged 5-11 in Waitaki looking for a state-funded setting with a strong recent ERO trajectory.

Is Five Forks School a good school?

Five Forks School scores 93/100 on the SchoolsNearMe composite — a weighted average of 5 axes (academic, outcomes, retention, wellbeing, trajectory). Top 5% in NZ nationally. The full breakdown is below; every input links to its source.

Strengths from the latest ERO report

  • Leadership ensures the school's curriculum and teaching are well planned, coordinated and regularly evaluated
  • Students are increasingly able to reflect on their learning and progress and identify their next learning steps
  • Students have relevant, authentic opportunities to learn across the breadth of The New Zealand Curriculum and in contexts that reflect their lives, identities and local community

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.

How this is computed
Wellbeing
35%
standdowns 0.0/1k · suspensions 0.0/1k · exclusions 0.0/1k · top 10% of band (n=518) · why?
Composite of stand-downs, suspensions, and exclusions per 1,000 students (lower is better). Formula: standdowns/1k + 2× suspensions/1k + 5× exclusions/1k. Small primary schools with no rows score top of band ("no incidents reported"). Source: Education Counts student engagement. Year: 2024. Peer comparison: top 10% of band (n=518).
100
Trajectory
25%
+77.8% roll over 5yr (2020→2025) · top 10% of band (n=515) · why?
5-year change in total roll. −20% → 0 score, 0% → 50, +20% → 100. Source: Education Counts roll history. Year: 2025. Peer comparison: top 10% of band (n=515).
100
ERO review
40%
83/100 from ERO review 2024-06 · above band median (n=520) · why?
Composite score from the most recent Education Review Office report (Haiku-extracted 0–100 from the published review text). For primary schools this is the heaviest axis (40%) because NCEA-style outcomes data isn't applicable. Source: ERO via Wayback archive. Year: 2024. Peer comparison: above band median (n=520).
83

⚠ 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): 83/100.

Latest ERO review

2024-06-12 · Shelley Booysen, ERO

ERO report
  • Learning outcomes are equitable and excellent
  • Nearly all students achieve at expected curriculum levels in reading and mathematics; inequity in boys' achievement in writing has reduced over time
  • Leadership effectively fosters a culture committed to quality teaching and equity and excellence in student outcomes
  • Curriculum and teaching respond to students' interests and needs and effectively support them to gain sound foundation skills in literacy, communication and mathematics
  • A majority of learners attend school regularly, but not yet at levels recommended by the Ministry of Education
"Leadership effectively fosters a culture committed to quality teaching and equity and excellence in student outcomes."
— ERO, 2024-06-12 (leadership)

Composite score across reviews

2 ERO reviews on file, 2020–2024. Click a point to read that review.

latest 83
0 25 50 75 100 20202024 2020-04-01 · 79/100 2024-06-12 · 83/100

Discipline (age-standardised, per 1,000 students)

Stand-down = sent home temporarily. Suspension = formal investigation. Exclusion = removed from school. National averages shown for comparison.

Education Counts

Stand-downs · 2024

0.0

· 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.

Education Counts

Total Crown funding · 2022

$0.47M

Per-student funding · 2022

$7,529

2018

$0.3M

2019

$0.3M

2020

$0.4M

2021

$0.6M

2022

$0.5M

Roll by year level

July 2025 roll return.

Education Counts
  • Year 01
    9
  • Year 02
    4
  • Year 03
    5
  • Year 04
    5
  • Year 05
    8
  • Year 06
    8
  • Year 07
    15
  • Year 08
    10

Roll by ethnicity

Share of total roll. Students who identify with multiple ethnicities are counted once.

Education Counts
  • European/Pākehā
    91.9%
  • Māori
    6.5%
  • Asian
    6.5%
  • Pacific
    4.8%
  • Other / MELAA
    1.6%

Location

1403 Kakanui Valley Road, Waitaki. Nearby schools marked in grey.

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Frequently asked

Is Five Forks School a good school?

Five Forks School scores 93/100 on the SchoolsNearMe composite — a weighted average of 5 axes (academic, outcomes, retention, wellbeing, trajectory). Top 5% in NZ nationally. The full breakdown is below; every input links to its source.

What does the latest ERO review say?

ERO's 2024-06 review identified 5 key findings. Learning outcomes are equitable and excellent

How do I enrol my child at Five Forks School?

Contact the school directly on 03-4324110, email office@fiveforks.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?

Five Forks School is a state school. There is no tuition fee for domestic students; voluntary donations may be requested.

What is the roll size?

Five Forks School has 62 students, with an EQI of 449 (mid-range socio-economic context).

When was the school last reviewed by ERO?

The Education Review Office last reviewed Five Forks School in 2024-06, signed by Shelley Booysen. 3 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.

Last updated

12 Jun 2024

Source documents

3 cited

Spot an error?

Report a correction

Sourced from

  • ero.govt.nz
  • schoolsdata.co.nz
  • crimestats.co.nz