Karetu School
40 Kura Road, Kawakawa · Northland
Composite score
Developing
Below median
Rank #1,681 of scored NZ schools
In summary
Karetu School is a full primary in Kawakawa, Tai Tokerau, with a roll of 81 students. An August 2024 ERO board assurance review identified five areas of non-compliance: Child Protection policies, Education Outside the Classroom policies, staff vetting procedures, disciplinary procedures, and emergency management policies. The Board has not yet addressed these non-compliance areas, though it has attested to meeting regulatory requirements across other major governance areas.
Best suited for
Students aged 5-11 in Kawakawa looking for a state-funded setting.
Is Karetu School a good school?
Karetu School scores 58/100 on the SchoolsNearMe composite — a weighted average of 5 axes (academic, outcomes, retention, wellbeing, trajectory). Below median nationally. The full breakdown is below; every input links to its source.
Strengths from the latest ERO report
- Board has attested to compliance across all major administrative and governance areas as of February 2023
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 0.0/1k · suspensions 0.0/1k · exclusions 0.0/1k · top 10% of band (n=468) · why? ▼ hide
-20.9% roll over 5yr (2020→2025) · bottom quartile of band (n=469) · why? ▼ hide
43/100 from ERO review 2024-08 · bottom 10% of band (n=471) · 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): 43/100.
Latest ERO review
2024-08-12 · Shelley Booysen, ERO
- Board has attested to meeting regulatory and legislative requirements across Board Administration, Curriculum, Health/Safety/Welfare, Personnel Management, Finance, and Assets
- Five areas of non-compliance identified: Child Protection policies, Education Outside the Classroom policies, staff vetting procedures, disciplinary procedures, and emergency management policies
- Board has not yet addressed the identified areas of non-compliance
"As of February 2023, the Karetu School Board has attested to the following regulatory and legislative requirements"
Composite score across reviews
2 ERO reviews on file, 2018–2024. 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
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.
Total Crown funding · 2022
$1.37M
Per-student funding · 2022
$16,908
2018
$0.7M
2019
$0.7M
2020
$1.0M
2021
$1.6M
2022
$1.4M
Roll by year level
July 2025 roll return.
- Year 01 12
- Year 02 8
- Year 03 8
- Year 04 11
- Year 05 15
- Year 06 10
- Year 07 12
- Year 08 11
Roll by ethnicity
Share of total roll. Students who identify with multiple ethnicities are counted once.
- Māori 70.4%
- European/Pākehā 49.4%
- Pacific 7.4%
- Asian 2.5%
- Other / MELAA 1.2%
Location
40 Kura Road, Kawakawa. Nearby schools marked in grey.
Map tiles © OpenStreetMap, © CARTO
Schools nearby
Within 15km, sorted by distance. Add any to compare with Karetu School.
Bay of Islands College
Secondary (Year 9-15) · 7km · 472 roll
45
-13 vs this
Opua School
Full Primary · 7.3km · 103 roll
82
+24 vs this
Kawakawa Primary School
Full Primary · 7.9km · 257 roll
51
-7 vs this
Te Kura o Waikare
Composite · 8.3km · 85 roll
78
+20 vs this
Paihia School
Full Primary · 11.5km · 156 roll
55
-3 vs this
TKKM o Taumarere
Composite · 12km · 136 roll
23
-35 vs this
Frequently asked
Is Karetu School a good school?
Karetu School scores 58/100 on the SchoolsNearMe composite — a weighted average of 5 axes (academic, outcomes, retention, wellbeing, trajectory). Below median nationally. The full breakdown is below; every input links to its source.
What does the latest ERO review say?
ERO's 2024-08 review identified 3 key findings. Board has attested to meeting regulatory and legislative requirements across Board Administration, Curriculum, Health/Safety/Welfare, Personnel Management, Finance, and Assets
How do I enrol my child at Karetu School?
Contact the school directly on 09-4040273, email office@karetu.school.nz, or visit www.schoolground.co.nz. For state schools, check your home address against the school's enrolment zone — some schools are in-zone-only.
What are the fees?
Karetu School is a state school. There is no tuition fee for domestic students; voluntary donations may be requested.
What is the roll size?
Karetu School has 81 students, with an EQI of 497 (mid-range socio-economic context).
When was the school last reviewed by ERO?
The Education Review Office last reviewed Karetu School in 2024-08, 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.
Sourced from
- ero.govt.nz
- schoolsdata.co.nz
- crimestats.co.nz