Waitākere College
| Waitākere College | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Location | |
| Coordinates | 36°52′2″S 174°37′15″E / 36.86722°S 174.62083°E |
| Information | |
| Type | State, Co-educational, Secondary School (Year 9–13) |
| Motto | Achievement for All |
| Ministry of Education Institution no. | 44 |
| Principal | Mark Shanahan |
| School roll | 1960[1] (July 2025) |
| Socio-economic decile | 3I[2] |
| Website | waitakerecollege.school.nz |
Waitākere College is a state coeducational secondary school located in Henderson, Auckland, New Zealand, established in 1975. A total of 1960 students from Years 9 to 13 (ages 13 to 18) attend Waitākere College as of July 2025.[1]
Students entering the college are allocated into one of three "Houses". The house names use Māori words: Aroha (Love), Manawanui (Perseverance), and Matauranga (Knowledge). Their respective mascots are; a Dragon, a Lion and a Dolphin. These three houses represent the school's three core values. During the course of the year students can earn points for their house with good behaviour and marks in class and participating in extracurricular activities. These points are added up every week in an assembly to determine the winner for that particular week. This also happens at the end of terms and a final one at the end of the year shows which house has won that year with the most points.
Waitākere College offers an extra 'Performing Arts' subject formerly run by Stephen Nightingale. Entry is based on an audition process and the course runs for years 9 and 10. It covers drama, dance, music, singing, theatre, film/television, editing, theatre lighting, make-up and costume.
Waitākere College is often used as a filming location for the New Zealand soap opera Shortland Street, as the location of Ferndale High School.[3]
Enrolment
As of July 2025, Waitākere College has a roll of 1960 students, of which 525 (26.8%) identify as Māori.[1]
As of 2025, the school has an Equity Index of 482,[4] placing it amongst schools whose students have above average socioeconomic barriers to achievement (roughly equivalent to deciles 4 and 5 under the former socio-economic decile system).[5]
Notable alumni
- Shayne Elliott (born 1963/64), New Zealand banker, CEO of ANZ Bank.[6]
- Sione Lauaki (1981–2017), All Black[7]
References
- ^ a b c "New Zealand Schools Directory". New Zealand Ministry of Education. Retrieved 1 July 2025.
- ^ "Decile Change 2014 to 2015 for State & State Integrated Schools". Ministry of Education. Archived from the original on 24 January 2015. Retrieved 12 February 2015.
- ^ Moon, Paul (2009). "Taking Care of Business". In Macdonald, Finlay; Kerr, Ruth (eds.). West: The History of Waitakere. Random House. p. 138. ISBN 9781869790080.
- ^ "New Zealand Equity Index". New Zealand Ministry of Education.
- ^ "School Equity Index Bands and Groups". www.educationcounts.govt.nz. Retrieved 6 February 2025.
- ^ "Kiwi Shayne Elliott appointed to run ANZ". Stuff. Retrieved 5 August 2017.
- ^ Logan, Innes (2009). "Game On". In Macdonald, Finlay; Kerr, Ruth (eds.). West: The History of Waitakere. Random House. pp. 411–432. ISBN 9781869790080.