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Riversdale School

Full Primary · Years 1–8 · Co-Educational · Riversdale

A state full primary school in the Riversdale township of Southland, New Zealand, catering for children in Years 0–8 (ages 5–13). It serves a rural community spanning several surrounding districts, including Wendon, Kaweku, Mandeville, and Waipounamu.

Last checked 23 October 2026 · Roll data from September 2026

Jump to: About · Enrolment · Extracurricular

At a glance

TypeFull Primary · Years 1–8
LocationRiversdale
RegionSouthland Region
School number4007
144
Students
as at September 2026
441
Equity Index
Yes
Enrolment scheme
Open
School status

Key facts

  • School number4007
  • School typeFull Primary · Years 1–8
  • AuthorityState
  • GenderCo-Educational
  • BoardingNo
  • Language of instructionEnglish medium / other settings
  • Established17 November 1858
See NZ school term dates & holidays →

About Riversdale School

Riversdale School is a state full primary school located at 28 Rutland Street, Riversdale, Southland, catering for students in Years 0–8 (ages 5 to 13). It serves families from the Riversdale, Wendon, Wendonside, Kaweku, Mandeville, Waipounamu, and Waimea communities. From January 2026, the school operates under a Ministry of Education enrolment zone.

The school's stated vision is Inspiring Excellence, with a mission of "Today's learners, tomorrow's leaders." Its three core values — Respectful (Whakaute), Responsible (Kawenga), and Resilient (Manawaroa) — are referred to collectively as the 3 R's.

Riversdale School operates as a Positive Behaviour for Learning (PB4L) school, using restorative practices to maintain relationships across the school community. It also participates in the Pause, Breathe, and Smile programme, which involves daily 5–10 minute sessions focused on mindfulness, emotional regulation, and concentration. Participation in this programme requires opt-in consent from parents. The school additionally identifies as a Play Is The Way school.

The school's rural setting places it approximately 20 minutes from Gore, with Te Anau, Queenstown, and Wanaka within one to three hours' drive. The school grounds include play equipment, a school hall, and a swimming pool shared with the wider community.

School donations

The Ministry of Education profile states that: "Donations should not be requested, unless for a school camp".

With an Equity Index of 441, Riversdale School 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 Riversdale School actually sits, not just the number on its own.

OFFICIAL DATA
441
Scale: 344–569
Band: Below Average (2026)
WHAT IT MEANS

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 →

EQI scale (344–569)
Directory avg 445
Riversdale School 441

Student ethnicity

The Ministry publishes this as a raw table — here it's visualised directly against Riversdale School's own roll, so the shape of it is clear at a glance.

  • European — 117 students (81.3%)
  • Asian — 17 students (11.8%)
  • Pacific — 2 students (1.4%)
  • Māori — 20 students (13.9%)
  • Other — 1 students (0.7%)

Percentages may sum to more than 100% because students can identify with more than one ethnic group.

Location

View larger map on OpenStreetMap
  • Street addressRutland Street
  • CityRiversdale
  • Local authoritySouthland District

Official contact details

Nearby schools

Schools physically closest to Riversdale School, regardless of year level.

Explore schools in Riversdale

Browse Riversdale schools by type, including primary, intermediate, secondary, composite and other schools.

Full Primary schools (1) All schools in Riversdale →

Enrolment

Riversdale School uses Hero (by Linc-Ed) as its student management system and primary communication channel between school and home. Families set up a Hero account by downloading the app or accessing it via browser, entering their email address, and registering as a new user to access the parent portal.

The school asks prospective families to contact the office to arrange a visit before enrolling. No specific required documents are listed in the school's published information.

The Ministry of Education has declared an enrolment scheme for Riversdale School, taking effect from the beginning of 2026. A zone map and written description of the zone are available on the Ministry of Education's enrolment scheme details page for Riversdale School. From 1 December 2025, the school will not accept enrolments from out-of-zone students for the remainder of the 2025 school year, in anticipation of the scheme coming into force. Out-of-zone applications for 2026 have closed and applicants have been notified of outcomes. The school's board has a published procedure governing any ballot for out-of-zone places.

Enrolment enquiries can be directed to the school at 28 Rutland Street, Riversdale, Southland, by phone on (03) 202 5814, by text on 027 555 3534, or by email at office@riversdale.school.nz.

Sports and Co-curricular Activities

Riversdale School competes in a cluster against Waikaia and Balfour, with students who perform well going on to represent the school at Northern and Southland level. Friday afternoons during Term 2 are dedicated to sport for all students.

Named sports offered include:

  • Hockey
  • Football
  • Netball — coached by community members and staff
  • Rugby — coached by community members and staff
  • Tennis (summer)
  • Cricket (summer)
  • Touch rugby (summer)
  • Tee-ball (summer)
  • Softball (summer)

Frequently asked

These aren't generic answers — each one is built directly from Riversdale School's own official Ministry of Education data already shown on this page, so what you read here always matches the figures above.

Riversdale School is classified as a Full Primary school serving Years 1–8.

It's a state school in the Southland region. New Zealand domestic students are generally entitled to free enrolment and education at state schools.

Yes. It's a co-educational school, enrolling both boys and girls.

144 students, according to the September 2026 roll data.

It reflects the estimated socio-economic barriers Riversdale School's students face, on average. The Ministry uses the Equity Index to help target funding and support. It is not a measure of school quality or academic performance.

Sources & methodology

Every fact on this page traces back to one of the rows below — official Ministry of Education data, or Riversdale School's own published information, reviewed before publication. Nothing here is inferred or estimated beyond what its source actually states.

DataSourceData periodLast checked
School characteristics Ministry of Education — 15 October 2026
Student roll Ministry of Education / Education Counts September 2026 15 October 2026
Equity Index Education Counts — 15 October 2026
Address & coordinates Ministry of Education — 15 October 2026
Contact details NZ Schools Directory Current 15 October 2026
School information (AI-curated, human-reviewed) Riversdale School's official website Current 23 October 2026