Key facts
- School number2980
- School typeFull Primary · Years 1–8
- AuthorityState
- GenderCo-Educational
- BoardingNo
- Language of instructionEnglish medium / other settings
- Established1 October 1929
About Te Kura o Tawatawa - Ridgway School
Te Kura o Tawatawa - Ridgway School is a full primary school in Wellington, catering to students in Years 1–8. As a full primary, it covers the years that would otherwise be split between a contributing primary and a separate intermediate school.
The school hosts Wellington's only French bilingual programme, through which students develop bilingual communication in French and English within a multicultural setting.
The Year 7 and 8 programme incorporates technology, digital media, design, hard materials, garden-to-table learning, and leadership activities alongside academic study.
School donations
The Ministry of Education profile states that: "Donations may be requested".
With an Equity Index of 380, Te Kura o Tawatawa - Ridgway School is below the 432 threshold newly required to opt into the donations scheme, though a school already receiving this funding from an earlier year may continue to do so. Outside the scheme, a school can still ask families for donations, but cannot compel or enforce payment.
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 Te Kura o Tawatawa - Ridgway School 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 Te Kura o Tawatawa - Ridgway School's own roll, so the shape of it is clear at a glance.
- European — 178 students (79.8%)
- Asian — 38 students (17%)
- Pacific — 11 students (4.9%)
- Māori — 19 students (8.5%)
- MELAA — 12 students (5.4%)
- Other — 2 students (0.9%)
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.
-
South Wellington Intermediate Intermediate · Years 7–8 · 1.3 km
-
Evans Bay Intermediate Intermediate · Years 7–8 · 2.7 km
-
Tawa Intermediate Intermediate · Years 7–8 · 17.8 km
-
Wainuiomata High School Secondary · Years 9–15 · 16 km
Location
- Street addressMornington Road
- SuburbBrooklyn
- CityWellington
- Local authorityWellington City
Official contact details
- ContactSarah Patterson
- Phone+64 4 939 8771
- Emailoffice@ridgway.school.nz
- Websitewww.ridgway.school.nz/
Nearby schools
Schools physically closest to Te Kura o Tawatawa - Ridgway School, regardless of year level.
-
Berhampore School Contributing · Years 1–6 · 964 m
-
South Wellington Intermediate Intermediate · Years 7–8 · 1.3 km
-
Newtown School Contributing · Years 1–6 · 1.4 km
-
St Mark's Church School (Mt Victoria) Full Primary · Years 1–8 · 2.2 km
-
Mt Cook School (Wellington) Full Primary · Years 1–8 · 2.3 km
Explore schools in Wellington
Browse Wellington schools by type, including primary, intermediate, secondary, composite and other schools.
Enrolment
Te Kura o Tawatawa - Ridgway School uses cohort entry for new entrants. Rather than starting on their fifth birthday, children begin school either on the first day of a term or at the midpoint of a term. Children transferring from another school or from overseas may start immediately.
Mainstream enrolment
The school's home zone covers Kingston, Mornington, most of Vogeltown, and the southern end of Brooklyn. In-zone families are welcomed to enrol. A limited number of out-of-zone places are available in the junior school (up to Year 4).
The mainstream enrolment process follows these steps:
- Attend a Walk 'n' Talk session with a member of the senior leadership team — held every second Tuesday during term time, 9:30–10am. Booking is made by emailing the office.
- After the Walk 'n' Talk, the school sends an enrolment form to complete.
- Once enrolled, families may arrange a one-on-one meeting with the principal, Sarah.
- Children nearing their start date are encouraged to attend three pre-school visits: a Friday visit (8:30–9:30), a Thursday visit (8:30–10:30), and a Tuesday visit (8:30–11:30). Visits are booked after the enrolment form is received.
French Bilingual Unit — Ruru La Chouette
The school operates a French bilingual unit (Ruru La Chouette), described as the only such unit at a Wellington school. The programme has limited spaces and is intended for families who already have some level of spoken French, so they can support their child's learning at home. In-zone children are given first priority, but the school states that a large majority of enrolments into Ruru come from out of zone.
The bilingual unit enrolment process differs from mainstream in several respects:
- Families attend a Walk 'n' Talk session held every second Thursday during term time, 2:00–2:30pm. Attendance does not guarantee a place.
- When a space becomes available, the child is invited in for a language assessment.
- A place is confirmed following the assessment.
- The office then provides an enrolment form to complete.
- Once enrolled, families may arrange a meeting with Julia Llorca, the team leader for Ruru La Chouette.
- Three pre-school visits follow the same schedule as mainstream: Friday (8:30–9:30), Thursday (8:30–10:30), and Tuesday (8:30–11:30), booked after the enrolment form is received.
Co-curricular Activities and Sports
The following named sports and clubs are associated with Te Kura o Tawatawa - Ridgway School:
- Netball — school team; Years 1–4 in Terms 1 and 4, Years 5–8 in Terms 2 and 3
- Basketball — school team; Years 3–8 in Terms 2 and 3
- Athletics — school sport event
- Cross Country — school sport event; held on Thursday 29 April
- Swimming — swimming lessons held in Term 2
- Brooklyn Northern United Junior Football Club — local club
- Wellington Olympic Junior Football (Island Bay) — local club
- Poneke Rugby — local club
- Marist St Pats Rugby — local club
Student Support and Pastoral Care
The following named support structure is described in the school's published information.
- Kaitiaki teacher — each student has a kaitiaki teacher who holds Goal Setting Conferences in Term 1 to discuss the student's goals for the year and to get to know the student better, and Learning Conferences at the end of Term 2 to discuss the student's learning progress.
Frequently asked
These aren't generic answers — each one is built directly from Te Kura o Tawatawa - Ridgway School'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 Te Kura o Tawatawa - Ridgway School'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 | — | 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) | Te Kura o Tawatawa - Ridgway School's official website | Current | 12 October 2026 |