Key facts
- School number383
- School typeSecondary · Years 9–15
- AuthorityState
- GenderBoys School
- BoardingNo
- Language of instructionEnglish medium / other settings
- Established3 February 1936
About Kings High School (Dunedin)
Kings High School is a state secondary school for boys located in Dunedin, New Zealand. The school's stated purpose is captured in the phrase "Building Men for Life", which reflects its focus on developing character alongside academic and co-curricular achievement.
The school operates with a single-sex model, with teaching staff described as specialists in working with young men. Its programme combines academic study with sporting and artistic activities, and pastoral support is identified as a formal part of the school's structure.
Kings High School is a state school, and its Charitable Trust was established on the basis that state funding falls short of the cost of running the school's programmes. The Trust raises funds for facility maintenance and improvement, academic and co-curricular programmes, and longer-term capital projects including a gym redevelopment and a proposed resumption of boarding.
The school has a Parent, Teacher, Student Association (P.T.S.A.) and a King's High School Old Boys' Association, both of which maintain active roles in the school community.
Enrolment
No enrolment scheme listedNo enrolment scheme is currently listed for Kings High School (Dunedin) in the available Ministry of Education data. Check the current Ministry of Education information or contact the school for the latest enrolment arrangements.
School donations
The Ministry of Education profile states that: "Donations may be requested".
With an Equity Index of 453, Kings High School (Dunedin) is in the range eligible to opt into the Ministry's donations scheme — receiving additional government funding per student in exchange for not seeking donations (except for overnight camps).
Check directly with the school for current charges, contributions or other costs. Learn more on the donations scheme or fees and charges at school, both on education.govt.nz.
Equity Index
The Ministry publishes this figure as a bare number — KuraData shows it against the directory-wide average, so you can see where Kings High School (Dunedin) actually sits, not just the number on its own.
The Equity Index estimates the socio-economic barriers students face, on average, and is used to inform government funding and support. It is not a measure of school quality or academic performance.
Higher values indicate a higher level of estimated socio-economic barriers; lower values indicate fewer. Learn how the Equity Index is calculated →
Student ethnicity
The Ministry publishes this as a raw table — here it's visualised directly against Kings High School (Dunedin)'s own roll, so the shape of it is clear at a glance.
- European — 631 students (71.4%)
- Asian — 114 students (12.9%)
- Pacific — 78 students (8.8%)
- Māori — 170 students (19.2%)
- MELAA — 45 students (5.1%)
- Other — 5 students (0.6%)
- International — 22 students (2.5%)
Percentages may sum to more than 100% because students can identify with more than one ethnic group.
Education pathway
Nearby schools serving the next or previous year levels are shown as potential pathway options. They do not indicate formal enrolment pathways or actual student transfers.
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St Clair School Contributing · Years 1–6 · 590 m
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Tahuna Normal Intermediate Intermediate · Years 7–8 · 1.8 km
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Concord School Contributing · Years 1–6 · 3.1 km
Further education in Dunedin
Explore tertiary providers based in Dunedin — not necessarily where Kings High School (Dunedin)'s own students go on to study.
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University of Otago Universities
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Otago Polytechnic Institutes of Technology & Polytechnics
Location
- Street address270 Bay View Road
- CityDunedin
- Local authorityDunedin City
Official contact details
- ContactNick McIvor
- Phone+64 3 455 7547
- Emailrectors-ea@kingshigh.school.nz
- Websitewww.kingshigh.school.nz
Nearby schools
Schools physically closest to Kings High School (Dunedin), regardless of year level.
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Queen's High School Secondary · Years 9–15 · 251 m
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St Clair School Contributing · Years 1–6 · 590 m
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Tahuna Normal Intermediate Intermediate · Years 7–8 · 1.8 km
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Bayfield High School Secondary · Years 9–15 · 2.4 km
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Otago Girls' High School Secondary · Years 9–15 · 3.1 km
Explore schools in Dunedin
Browse Dunedin schools by type, including primary, intermediate, secondary, composite and other schools.
Student Support and Pastoral Care Services
Kings High School provides the following named student support and pastoral care services:
- Counselling Service — Three counsellors (James Howey, Carolyn England, and Holger Korth) offer confidential counselling. Students can be referred by a teacher, submit a referral via an online form, or leave a note at the Student Support Centre. The service is not an emergency service.
- Te Mana o te Raiona — Student Support Centre — Located near the bottom of the steps in the main block, this centre serves as the access point for student support referrals.
- Public Health Nurse — Rebecca Young holds a walk-in clinic on Wednesdays from 1:25–2:00 PM, provided through the Southern DHB.
- Year Level Deans — Deans are involved in attendance monitoring, acknowledging high attendance, and escalating pastoral concerns. They also conduct welcome hui with whānau for Year 9 students at the start of the year.
- Pastoral Care Team — Meets on Thursday period 2 to review attendance data and identify students with ongoing absence concerns.
- Group Teachers — Provide students and parents with weekly attendance updates and make initial contact with families when absence thresholds are reached.
Frequently asked
These aren't generic answers — each one is built directly from Kings High School (Dunedin)'s own official Ministry of Education data already shown on this page, so what you read here always matches the figures above.
Sources & methodology
Every fact on this page traces back to one of the rows below — official Ministry of Education data, or Kings High School (Dunedin)'s own published information, reviewed before publication. Nothing here is inferred or estimated beyond what its source actually states.
| Data | Source | Data period | Last checked |
|---|---|---|---|
| School characteristics | Ministry of Education | — | 7 September 2026 |
| Student roll | Ministry of Education / Education Counts | August 2026 | 7 September 2026 |
| Equity Index | Education Counts | — | 7 September 2026 |
| Address & coordinates | Ministry of Education | — | 7 September 2026 |
| Contact details | NZ Schools Directory | Current | 7 September 2026 |
| School information (AI-curated, human-reviewed) | Kings High School (Dunedin)'s official website | Current | 21 September 2026 |