It was in March 1877 when Mr. Robert Graham held a petition for a new school. During that time, facilities for education were already provided by the schools at Mt. Hobson, Tamaki West, Onehunga and Panmure. On May 27 of the same year, the first meeting was held at the Ellerslie Hotel and it was then that the school committee was elected. The construction of the school began sometime in June and we opened our doors to parents and students in November 12, 1877. Mr. Thomas Howells was the first principal of the school in 1878 and in June of 1880, they bought a four-roomed cottage for the staffroom.
After 2 years, the roll had reached around 150 and there was a need to build a new classroom. After a few years, the roll continued to grow that it was difficult to accommodate everyone in the school. Our rooms back then, were uneven in size which leads us to use the largest room for four standard classes. The Board accordingly applied to the government for a new classroom and our plea was approved in 1910. The new classroom was built a year after.
By October of 1913, we only had enough room to accommodate 304 students and we had 395. There was the problem of overcrowding again. The Board came up with the decision that we needed a separate infant department and our request was granted in January 1914. The modern system for drainage was installed in 1926 and in 1930, we already have our own dental clinic. We had the electric lighting installed in 1936 and applications for new classrooms were submitted in 1938 and 1939. We received the grant for these new classrooms in 1940 and we were able to use them on August 4, 1941. Our Assembly Hall was built in 1956.
We had our playground extended in 1955. We had it extended to the area behind the Bowling Club which includes access to the Main Highway. In 1957, we had a swimming pool constructed for the use of staff and students. Our school continued to grow with the construction of new buildings and facilities – caretaking shed, new toilets, furniture storage, side entrance, etc. There was a rapid growth in our roll in 2002 and with this, we had more constructions and improvements.
1995 - 1998
- Canteen - 1995
- Adventure playground and Fitness trail - 1993
- Rooms 11-15 - 1996
- Rooms 16 & 17 - 1997
- Rooms 18, 19 & an upgrade in the Administration area - 1998
2005 - 2007
- Roll count is at 500
- 22 classrooms
- 2 specialist teachers in Music and Technology
- Music specialist teacher for Year 1-6 every week in class group
- 3 orchestras, 2 choirs, 1 band
- New senior playground build
2008 - 2009
- Roll count is at 490 students in 5 teams
- Management team has 7 members
- Server room with air conditioning was built to meet the growing I.C.T. demands
- Upgrade of security and fire systems
- Introduction of an 8th curriculum “Languages” – Spanish, French and Maori offered at Year 8/7 level
- Environmental science – introduction of Worm Farm, composting and ‘Trees for Survival’ planting
Ellerslie School Principals
| Thomas Howells | 1879 |
| H.R. Hyatt | 1879 - |
| Robert M.Mitchell | 1879 - 1882 |
| Rev. Geo Brown | 1882 - 1886 |
| James E. Waygood | 1887 - 1893 |
| Evan R. Lillington | 1893 - 1902 |
| Mr Collins | 1902 |
| Joseph Wooller | 1902 - 1920 |
| James Vulgar | 1920 - 1934 |
| Joseph G. Gasparich | 1934 - 1936 |
| John Marsh | 1937 - 1950 |
| W. J. Barham | 1951 - 1958 |
| J. W. Hook | 1959 - 1960 |
| W. R. Hill | 1961 - 1963 |
| R. W. Jessup | 1964 - 1967 |
| W. Beach | 1968 - 1976 |
| John Goddard | 1977 - 1979 |
| Marjorie Butters | 1979 - 1987 |
| Jo Wilson | 1988 - 2005 |
| Christopher Magner | 2005 - 2016 |
| Lisa Harland | 2016 - 2019 |
| Nick Butler | 2019 - Present |
Ellerslie School Map 2023
All schools must operate under the provisions of the Education Act of 1989. Boards of trustees govern all state and integrated schools in New Zealand.
The boards are made up of:
- elected parent and community volunteers
- the school principal
- a student representative
- a staff representative
- and in state integrated schools – representatives of the property owner.
Independent schools are governed by committees, trustee boards and management boards acting on behalf of the owners.
Boards of Trustees
The Board governs the school, employs the staff and manages school property. Every board must establish a charter which sets out the aims and objectives of the school. Boards of trustees are then accountable for meeting the objectives in their charter and for managing the funds they receive from the government to run the school. They are required to present an annual report to the Ministry of Education which is available for you to see.
The Principal
The role of the principal is to manage the day-to-day activities of the school within the policies set by the Board. A principal is also usually responsible for assessing staff performance.
Parents
Parent groups also provide support to schools. Parents are encouraged to help out however they can at their child’s school. Check with your school to see how you might be involved.
The Ellerslie School Board
Our Board consists of parents elected by parents of pupils for a 3 year term, the Principal and a staff representative, elected by fellow staff members.
| Presiding Member / Personnel | Grant McKendry |
| Principal | Nick Butler |
| Staff Representative / Health and Safety | Shelley Bardsley |
| Finance and Fundraising | Dipak Govind |
| Cultural Responsiveness | Fiona Dow |
| Property | Corrina Gibbons-Hurunui and James Dench |
| Policies | Steph Bond |
The Board meets at 6:30pm on the 3rd or 4th Monday of each month, excluding January. The Board welcomes members of the public who wish to attend meetings. Anyone wishing to address The Board however can only do so with prior agreement from the chairperson.
Scheduled meetings for 2023
- 20 February 2023
- 20 March 2023
- 15 May 2023
- 19 June 2023
- 17 July 2023
- 21 August 2023
- 18 September 2023
- 16 October 2023
- 20 November 2023
The Volunteer Hub consists of our school’s whānau and members of Ellerslie community who volunteer at one or a variety of school fundraising events, social events or projects. Every volunteer opportunity provides a great way to meet new people in and outside school, have fun, make a difference, and be a part of our fantastic community. There is no minimum number of hours that people need to volunteer for. Every hour given is very much appreciated and counts.
An outline of what our volunteers help with:
Fundraising: Trivia Night, raffles, Ellerslie Fairy Festival, Pizza & Mufti days
Social: school discos, Ellerslie Santa Parade, school sports teams
Projects: school crossing duty, Walking School Bus, Chip Packets Project NZ, Trees for Survival
The Volunteer Hub meets twice a term for those that are available, and shares news and volunteering opportunities on their What’s App and Facebook page. Please contact Sarah, School Engagement Coordinator, at sarahn@ellerslie.school.nz if you are interested in joining, or please pass on details to those that you think might be.
Ellerslie School Supporters – promoting our community who supports us
Last year we launched 'Ellerslie School Supporters (ESS)' to ensure businesses, Trusts & community groups who support us are promoted effectively through various channels including at events, in our newsletters & website, and social media.
Support can be given in many forms including:
donating products or services to use in school or fundraising events
time given to help at our school-crossing
giving a talk to students about a specific topic or profession
monetary - towards a key fundraiser for the year eg school minibus or sunshade
placing an advert in our newsletter which is sent to over 550 families fortnightly & throughout our community
Every term
March
August
September
If you want to know more please contact sarahn@ellerslie.school.nz
Current Key Sponsors:
Enrolment Info
Information & Forms
12 Kalmia Street, Ellerslie, Auckland | Phone: (09) 579 5477 | Email: office@ellerslie.school.nz
