Schools in Palmerston North

School openings and closures in Palmerston North

1 school is scheduled to open later, according to the Ministry of Education's school changes record.

Scheduled to open

Te Ohanui (Palmerston North Specialist School) · Palmerston North Central — 19 Jul 2027

From the Ministry's school closures, mergers and new schools record (since 2025). Dates are the Ministry's effective dates and can change. All school changes in New Zealand →

Browse Palmerston North schools by type

See how Palmerston North's school system breaks down by level, from Contributing and Full Primary through to Secondary and Composite — each links to its own filtered list.

Contributing schools 5

Full Primary schools 3

Intermediate schools 2

Schools by location

The suburbs with the most schools on record in Palmerston North, in our directory.

Hokowhitu · 2 Takaro · 1 Kelvin Grove · 1

Equity Index in Palmerston North

The Equity Index estimates the socio-economic barriers students face, on average. Higher values indicate higher estimated barriers — it is not a measure of school quality. Full methodology →

438

Average

410

Lowest

506

Highest

EQI statistics exclude schools without a current published EQI.

Fewest 0 schools (0%)

Few 6 schools (66.7%)

Below Average 1 schools (11.1%)

Average 0 schools (0%)

Above Average 1 schools (11.1%)

Many 1 schools (11.1%)

Most 0 schools (0%)

Find a school in Palmerston North

Search, sort and narrow down every published school in Palmerston North by type, authority or enrolment scheme.

Filter schools — type · authority · enrolment scheme · suburb

School	Suburb	Type	Roll	Equity Index	Enrolment scheme	Authority
Carncot Independent School Co-Educational	—	Full Primary · Years 1–8	128	—	No scheme listed	Private
Palmerston North Adventist Christian School Co-Educational	—	Contributing · Years 1–6	103	433	No scheme listed	State : Integrated
Palmerston North Intermediate Co-Educational	—	Intermediate · Years 7–8	751	426	Zoned	State
Ross Intermediate Co-Educational	—	Intermediate · Years 7–8	444	473	Zoned	State
Russell Street School Co-Educational	—	Contributing · Years 1–6	334	429	Zoned	State
Whakarongo School Co-Educational	—	Full Primary · Years 1–8	490	424	Zoned	State
St James' Catholic School Te Kura Katorika o Hato Heemi Co-Educational	Hokowhitu	Contributing · Years 1–6	143	410	No scheme listed	State : Integrated
Winchester School (P North) Co-Educational	Hokowhitu	Contributing · Years 1–6	342	420	Zoned	State
TKKM o Manawatu Co-Educational	Kelvin Grove	Full Primary · Years 1–8	119	506	No scheme listed	State
Our Lady of Lourdes School (P North) Co-Educational	Takaro	Contributing · Years 1–6	161	422	No scheme listed	State : Integrated

What "enrolment scheme" means

What a "Yes" or "No" in the enrolment scheme column actually determines for a family applying to a school in Palmerston North.

A school with an enrolment scheme (a home zone) must enrol every child who lives inside it.
A school with no scheme listed can generally accept enrolments from anywhere.

Reading the Equity Index

Two quick things worth remembering when comparing EQI numbers across the table above.

A higher number means more estimated socio-economic barriers, not a "better" or "worse" school.
Private schools don't receive an Equity Index.

Planning around term dates?

Once you've found a school in Palmerston North, check when term actually starts and finishes — most state schools across New Zealand follow the same national term structure, with only small regional variations.

When are the next school holidays? →

Data source

SourceNZ Schools Directory — Ministry of Education / Education Counts
Ministry data last checked15 October 2026