Matahui School is a small, rural independent school south of Katikati.
Matahui School is a small, rural independent school south of Katikati.
Matahui School’s applications to become a charter or state-sponsored school were declined, threatening closure.
The school, which focuses on holistic education and has many neurodiverse students, remains open due to donations.
Principal Mary Woods emphasises the need for reform in funding for neurodiverse children’s education.
An independent primary school near Katikati is fighting for its survival after its applications to become either a charter school or a state-sponsored school was declined.
According to board member Craig McCullough, Matahui School has stayed open for another year thanks to donations from parents and grandparents.
“Now we’re working on those long-term goals,” McCullough said.
Principal Mary Woods said the school had 49 students and four teachers.
It focused on holistic education grounded in the educational theory of multiple intelligences.
“Everybody comes with a strength and an area they need to work on. At Matahui School, we individualise learning around each child,” Woods said.
Principal Mary Woods with a Matahui School student taking part in a forest programme.
About 75% of the students were neurodiverse, although the school also catered to neurotypical learners.
“Most of our children have learning disabilities that fall under neurodiversity,” Woods said. “Dyslexia, dysgraphia, dyscalculia and dyspraxia are common.
Despite its $13,000 annual tuition, parent Jeff Brown said the school was often misperceived as a profit-driven institution.
“It’s not,” he said. “It’s all about values, not money.”
After returning from the UK, Brown initially hesitated to enrol his daughter at Matahui School. But after visiting, he changed his mind.
“It was beautiful to see how passionate the people and teachers were at Matahui School,” he said.
About 75% of the school’s roll is comprised of neurodiverse students.
In 2024, the school applied to become a charter school, but was declined in a letter from the Charter School Authorisation Board.
“Private schools are already provided with flexibility, can innovate, and generally perform strongly on national assessments such as NCEA,” the letter read.
Woods said in her view, the board misunderstood Matahui’s unique role.
“We’re not a private school making money – we’re a not-for-profit,” she said.
After the Charter School Authorisation Board rejected Matahui School’s application, it explored becoming a state school. But McCullough said that model also proved a poor fit, especially given the lack of state resources for neurodiverse learners.
Woods argued that the current funding model for these children needed reform.
There is high-needs funding and in-class support funding that can be quite restrictive, Woods said.
“We’ve got one child always funded, and another in the pipeline [to receive funding].”
However, Woods said it could be challenging to obtain any more funding, despite her belief that the school having neurodiverse children saved the government money.
Matahui School.
The school also supported several gifted students who worked beyond their age level.
Charter School Authorisation Board chairperson Justine Mahon told NZME a charter school could be established in two ways: either by a sponsor applying to develop a new school or a state or state-integrated school converting to charter status.
“Under the legislation, private schools can’t convert to a charter school,” Mahon said.
This means an independent school like Matahui would first have to close before a sponsor could apply to open a new charter school in its place.
Given limited funding, the authorisation board prioritised applications that were practical, cost-effective and supported the long-term success of the charter school system, Mahon said.
Mahon added that while the invitation to apply went out before the board was fully formed, the selection criteria were developed with financial sustainability and diversity in mind.
“Fully funding independent schools at the same level as state schools would create a significant financial burden for the government and is unlikely to improve student achievement,” Mahon said.
Matahui School is funded through tuition fees and may also charge mandatory fees, said Ministry of Education, acting Hautū (deputy secretary) Te Tai Whenua (Central) Tracey Turner.
The school also explored becoming a state-integrated school, Turner said.
Turner noted that all state and state-integrated schools received inclusion funding to support neurodiverse learners and could access additional resources based on student needs.
Support roles within the education system – including learning support specialists, learning and behaviour resource teachers, and learning support coordinators – helped schools and families.
“There are also professional development opportunities, assistive technologies and tools that support neurodiverse learners’ access to the curriculum,” Turner said.
