Northland's first new charter school Te Rito, Te Kura Taiao to open in January

Associate Education Minister David Seymour has announced a new charter school for Northland. Photo / Mark Mitchell

The first new charter school in Northland since a change in regime has been announced by the Government.

Te Rito, Te Kura Taiao, set on a 22-hectare property in Doubtless Bay in the Far North, will open in January for the start of the school year.

It would be run by Kaitāia-based Te Rito Ltd, which already has three early childhood education centres in the area.

Primary-aged pupils attending the school will be instructed using te reo Māori.

According to the Ministry of Education, the school aimed to provide Kaitāia families with an option for education immersion in reo Māori.

The school land, at the foot of the Taumarumaru Scenic Reserve, will act as the science classroom, aiding the teaching of skills in exploration, species identification, guardianship and research.

The land is home to three historical pā, which the ministry said connected kids to the whenua and its legacy.

A description of the school provided by the Government said it created a natural progression from three early childhood education centres owned and operated by Te Rito Ltd.

Te Rito, Te Kura Taiao was also said to “fulfil aspirations of a kaupapa Māori pathway" into the kura system, which focuses on connecting pupils to their culture.

Four other charter schools based in Auckland and Christchurch were announced alongside Te Rito, Te Kura Taiao.

They varied between wanting to offer barrier-free, individualised education; provide meaningful employment opportunities or an “authentic” French education; and a creative arts education for students “who may or may not be” neuro-diverse.

Associate Education Minister David Seymour said the new schools were good examples of how charter schools made New Zealand’s education system more flexible and responsive to family and student needs.

Charter schools are a type of state-funded school that operate with greater autonomy than normal public schools.

They have more flexibility in choosing their curriculum, governance style and ways of operating.

Labour education spokeswoman Jan Tinetti has said charter schools promote a “privatised, competitive education system” and divert resources away from the state system.

The schools announced on Thursday join Mastery Schools New Zealand - Arapaki, a Christchurch partner of a group of Australian schools that would open next year.

The Charter School Agency and independent authorisation board oversaw a process that included 78 applications in its first round.

The board said there would be a further application round next year and those that were unsuccessful in the first round could be reconsidered.