370 Innes Road , Mairehau, Christchurch
View on mapTēnā koutou e mau manawa rahi ki te kaupapa e aro ake nei, ko te tamaiti te pūtake o te kaupapa. Mā wai rā e kawe, mā tātau katoa.
We acknowledge the collective effort, responsibility and commitment by all to ensure that the child remains at the heart of the matter.
St Francis of Assisiatholic School is in Christchurch and provides education for more than 450 learners in Year 1 to 8. European/Pākehā make up most learners at more than 70%, Asian more than 20% and Māori more than 10%. Students and staff aim to reflect the values of Christ as portrayed by St Francis of Assisi Respect, Compassion, Service and Integrity.
For sustained improvement and future learner success, the priority for further development was to give prominence to all aspects of bicultural and culturally responsive practice.
Leaders, staff and the board have prioritised the strategic goal of increasing staff capability in te ao Māori. Targeted resourcing to achieve this priority has been allocated. In conjunction with mana whenua, the cultural narrative of the school has been given significance through class programmes and the physical environment.
| How well are learners succeeding? | The school is working towards high levels of success and progress for all learners. |
| What is the quality of teaching and learning? | Learners benefit from high quality teaching practice that improves progress and achievement in reading, writing and mathematics. |
| How well does the school curriculum respond to all learners needs? | Learners have rich opportunities to learn across the breadth and depth of the curriculum. There is a consistent focus on supporting learners to gain skills in literacy and mathematics. Learners with complex needs are well supported to achieve their education goals. |
| How well does school planning and conditions support ongoing improvement? | School planning and conditions to support ongoing improvement to the quality of education for learners are well established. |
| How well does the school include all learners and promote their engagement and wellbeing? | The school successfully promotes learners’ engagement, wellbeing and inclusion. |
| How well does the school partner with parents, whānau and its community for the benefit of learners? | The school reports usefully and accurately to parents / whānau about their child’s learning, achievement and progress. The school responds well to a wide range of information gathered through community consultation, to inform strategic planning and curriculum decisions. |
| Student Health and Safety | The school board is taking reasonable steps to ensure student health and safety. |
This table outlines how well students across the school meet or exceed the expected curriculum level.
Foundation Skills | |
| Reading | A large majority of learners meet or exceed the expected curriculum level. Results are becoming more equitable for all groups of learners. |
| Writing | Most learners meet or exceed the expected curriculum level. Results are equitable for all groups of learners. |
| Mathematics | Most learners meet or exceed the expected curriculum level. Results are equitable for all groups of learners. |
The school is approaching the target of 80% regular attendance.
The school has a suitable plan in place to improve attendance.
Regular attendance is improving towards or beyond the target.
Chronic absence is reducing over time.
The school uses an appropriate approach and reliable practices to find out about achievement against the curriculum.
Assessment information is used well to adjust teaching practices to ensure ongoing improvement in teaching and student progress.
The school has good quality planning to increase the rate of progress for all groups of students.
The school has to some extent improved achievement and progress for those learners most at risk of not achieving since the previous review.
The school has to some extent extended achievement and progress for learners working at or above curriculum levels since the previous review.
The school is making progress towards Government reading, writing and mathematics and/or pānui, tuhituhi and pāngarau targets and is likely to meet them by 2030.
This section of the report provides more detail for the school to include in strategic and annual planning for ongoing improvement across the school.
The agreed next steps for the school are to:
The agreed actions for the next improvement cycle and timeframes are as follows.
Every six months:
Annually:
Actions taken against these next steps are expected to result in:
All schools are required to promote student health and safety and to regularly review their compliance with legal requirements.
During this review the Board has attested to some regulatory and legislative requirements in the following areas:
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
ERO’s role will be to support the school in its evaluation for improvement cycle to improve outcomes for all learners. The next public report on ERO’s website will be a School Evaluation Report and is due within three years.
Me mahi tahi tonu tātau, kia whai oranga a tātau tamariki
Let’s continue to work together for the greater good of all children
Sharon Kelly
Acting Director of Schools
26 March 2025
This website provides further information about the school’s student population, student engagement and student achievement. educationcounts.govt.nz/home
St. Francis of Assisi Catholic School is a state integrated full primary school in Christchurch catering for students in Years 1 to 8. It has a roll of 371 students. The school was newly created in 2016 as a result of the merger of two Catholic schools. A new principal and leadership team were appointed to lead the school. It is governed by a board of trustees and proprietor representatives.
The school’s vision states that the school is ‘Choosing to be an innovative Catholic Learning Community that inspires and empowers learners to succeed’. The school has values of respect, compassion, service and integrity.
To support the school’s vision and values, the current strategic goals focus on the community, the learners and stewardship. The school has set specific annual targets for 2019 in relation to literacy and mathematics.
Leaders and teachers regularly report to the board, schoolwide information about outcomes for students in the following areas:
The school is achieving equitable and excellent outcomes for most of its students. Achievement information from 2016 to 2018 shows that most students, including Māori, achieved at or above curriculum expectations in reading, writing and mathematics. Almost all students achieved at or above curriculum expectations in reading in 2016 and 2017.
Wellbeing survey data from 2018 shows that most students believe that they and their families are welcome at the school and are respected by their teachers.
The school is effective in accelerating learning for those Māori and other students who need this.
Student progress information from 2017 and 2018 shows that learning was accelerated for almost half of the students who needed this in reading, writing and mathematics.
Learners are at the centre of the school curriculum. Active engagement is encouraged, and they develop understandings of themselves as learners. Programmes are localised to reflect the special character of the school and the school values. A shared understanding of learning provides opportunity for innovation and connection. Curriculum design is flexible and increasingly informed by student voice and agency. This allows opportunity for students and teachers to be leaders of learning.
Leaders work strategically in all aspects of planning, coordination and evaluation of the school curriculum and teaching. There is a deliberate focus on using student achievement information to inform decision making about resourcing for school improvement. Leaders provide a foundation of research-based professional learning to support organisation structures and pathways of programme design. Leaders promote a strong sense of school identity and an ethos of inclusion and care that is shared by the wider school community.
Effective knowledge building practices and frameworks are implemented and refined by teachers to improve student outcomes. Learning environments are settled, respectful and promote student engagement in learning.
The school has identified and the ERO evaluation confirms that the school needs to give prominence to culturally responsive practices. This includes valuing te ao Māori and knowing and using te reo Māori and tikanga Māori in everyday practice.
Before the review, the board and principal of the school completed the ERO board assurance statement and self-audit checklists. In these documents they attested that they had taken all reasonable steps to meet their legislative obligations related to the following:
During the review, ERO checked the following items because they have a potentially high impact on student safety and wellbeing:
On the basis of the findings of this review, ERO’s overall evaluation judgement of St Francis of Assisi Catholic School’s performance in achieving valued outcomes for its students is: Strong.
ERO’s Framework: Overall Findings and Judgement Tool derived from School Evaluation Indicators: Effective Practice for Improvement and Learner Success is available on ERO’s website.
For sustained improvement and future learner success, the school can draw on existing strengths in:
For sustained improvement and future learner success, priorities for further development are in:
Dr Lesley Patterson
Director Review and Improvement Services Te Tai Tini
Southern Region
24 February 2020
| Location | Christchurch |
| Ministry of Education profile number | 738 |
| School type | Full Primary (Years 1-8) |
| School roll | 371 |
| Gender composition | Boys 48 %, Girls 52% |
| Ethnic composition | Māori 5 % NZ European/Pākehā 77 % Other ethnicities 18 % |
| Students with Ongoing Resourcing Funding (ORS) | Yes |
| Provision of Māori medium education | No |
| Review team on site | November 2019 |
| Date of this report | 24 February 2020 |
| Most recent ERO report(s) | School Assurance Review April 2018 |