Taumarunui Primary School
Maata Street, Taumarunui · Waikato
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Composite score
Developing
Below median
Rank #2,129 of scored NZ schools
In summary
Taumarunui Primary School has a composite score of 66. The school has a strong whānau-based culture and has strengthened partnerships with local hapū and iwi. ERO and the school are working together to improve literacy progress, particularly for boys and Māori learners, and ongoing focus on attendance is required to support learning and achievement.
Best suited for
Students aged 5-11 in Taumarunui looking for a state-funded setting.
Is Taumarunui Primary School a good school?
Taumarunui Primary School scores 43/100 on the SchoolsNearMe composite — a weighted average of 5 axes (academic, outcomes, retention, wellbeing, trajectory). Below median nationally. ERO trajectory is improving across recent review cycles. The full breakdown is below; every input links to its source.
Strengths from the latest ERO report
- Whānau-based school culture that promotes a caring, inclusive learning environment
- Strengthened partnerships with local hapū and iwi that promote cultural diversity, identity and belonging
- Distributed leadership that supports a cohesive direction for all staff
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 205.5/1k · suspensions 17.7/1k · exclusions 0.0/1k · bottom quartile of band (n=539) · why? ▼ hide
+13.6% roll over 5yr (2020→2025) · above band median (n=524) · why? ▼ hide
66/100 from ERO review 2023-06 · below band median (n=544) · 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): 66/100.
Latest ERO review
2023-06-19 · Shelley Booysen, ERO
- High percentage of students identifies as Māori
- ERO and school working together to improve rates of progress in literacy with focus on boys and Māori learners
- Ongoing focus on attendance required to support learning and achievement
- School has whānau-based culture promoting caring, inclusive learning environment
- Strengthened partnerships with local hapū and iwi promote cultural diversity, identity and belonging
"A high percentage of students in the school identifies as Māori."
Composite score across reviews
2 ERO reviews on file, 2017–2023. Click a point to read that review.
Trajectory across review cycles
Year-over-year change per dimension based on consecutive ERO reviews.
Between 2017 and 2023, Taumarunui Primary School shifted from a general statement that 'Te ao Māori is highly evident and central to school practices' to a more targeted, partnership-driven approach. The 2023 report explicitly identifies that 'a high percentage of students in the school identifies as Māori' and documents 'ERO and school working together to improve rates of progress in literacy with focus on boys and Māori learners,' alongside 'strengthened partnerships with local hapū and iwi.' This represents a progression from cultural integration to deliberate, data-informed improvement efforts specifically targeting Māori learner outcomes.
2017-11 → 2023-06 diff source
Achievement overall improved modestly, with the score increasing from 50 to 60 between 2017 and 2023. While the earlier report noted that 'nearly 50% of students achieve success' in core subjects with gender disparities, the later report shows ERO and the school actively working to improve literacy progress, particularly for boys and Māori learners, though ongoing focus on attendance was still required.
2017-11 → 2023-06 diff source
Between 2017 and 2023, Taumarunui Primary School shifted from identifying equity disparities as ongoing challenges to implementing targeted interventions. While the 2017 report noted that "disparity in achievement for Māori and other children remains" despite school capacity, the 2023 report shows ERO and school actively working together with "targeted actions to increase rates of progress in literacy for all students with a particular focus on boys and Māori learners." Additionally, partnerships with local hapū and iwi were strengthened, moving beyond Te ao Māori integration to explicit cultural partnerships promoting belonging.
2017-11 → 2023-06 diff source
Both reports highlight strong wellbeing support, but the focus evolved from individual pastoral care systems to a broader whānau-based school culture. The 2017 report emphasized "strong processes and systems" for pastoral care, while the 2023 report emphasizes "whānau-based culture" and strengthened community partnerships with hapū and iwi as drivers of belonging and inclusion.
2017-11 → 2023-06 diff source
Leadership evolved from a developing stage focused on collaborative teacher reflection to a more structured model of distributed leadership. The 2023 report explicitly highlights 'distributed leadership that supports a cohesive direction for all staff,' whereas the 2017 report emphasized teachers being 'collaborative and reflective' without mentioning distributed leadership structures. Both reports acknowledge the need for strategic goal-setting, but the later report demonstrates progress in implementing coordinated leadership approaches.
2017-11 → 2023-06 diff source
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
205.5
18 this year · NZ avg ~37
Suspensions · 2024
17.7
1 this year · 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
$1.93M
Per-student funding · 2022
$13,124
2018
$1.1M
2019
$1.2M
2020
$1.5M
2021
$1.4M
2022
$1.9M
Roll by year level
July 2025 roll return.
- Year 01 18
- Year 02 16
- Year 03 23
- Year 04 13
- Year 05 24
- Year 06 23
- Year 07 16
- Year 08 17
Roll by ethnicity
Share of total roll. Students who identify with multiple ethnicities are counted once.
- Māori 73.5%
- European/Pākehā 23.1%
- Pacific 8.8%
- Other / MELAA 2.7%
- Asian 2.0%
Location
Maata Street, Taumarunui. Nearby schools marked in grey.
Map tiles © OpenStreetMap, © CARTO
Schools nearby
Within 15km, sorted by distance. Add any to compare with Taumarunui Primary School.
Turaki School
Full Primary · 0.4km · 176 roll
63
+20 vs this
St Patrick's Catholic School (Taumarunui)
Full Primary · 1.1km · 64 roll
75
+32 vs this
Te Kura Kaupapa Maori o Taumarunui
Composite · 2.1km · 92 roll
95
+52 vs this
Tarrangower School
Full Primary · 2.4km · 61 roll
54
+11 vs this
Taumarunui High School
Secondary (Year 9-15) · 3km · 293 roll
40
-3 vs this
Manunui School
Full Primary · 4.5km · 162 roll
51
+8 vs this
Frequently asked
Is Taumarunui Primary School a good school?
Taumarunui Primary School scores 43/100 on the SchoolsNearMe composite — a weighted average of 5 axes (academic, outcomes, retention, wellbeing, trajectory). Below median nationally. ERO trajectory is improving across recent review cycles. The full breakdown is below; every input links to its source.
What does the latest ERO review say?
ERO's 2023-06 review identified 5 key findings. High percentage of students identifies as Māori
How do I enrol my child at Taumarunui Primary School?
Contact the school directly on 07-8957131, email office@taumarunui.school.nz, or visit www.taumarunui.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?
Taumarunui Primary School is a state school. There is no tuition fee for domestic students; voluntary donations may be requested.
What is the roll size?
Taumarunui Primary School has 147 students, with an EQI of 554 (higher socio-economic need).
When was the school last reviewed by ERO?
The Education Review Office last reviewed Taumarunui Primary School in 2023-06, 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.
Sourced from
- ero.govt.nz
- schoolsdata.co.nz
- crimestats.co.nz