Last updated October 2026
Western Heights High School is a state, co-educational secondary school for Years 9 to 13 at 70 Old Quarry Road, Rotorua Central, Rotorua. It opened in 1961 and had 1,185 students on its roll at 1 September 2026.
Its home zone includes 24 suburbs in full and parts of 8 more, among them Kapenga, Hamurana, Matipo Heights, Fordlands, Ohinemutu and Whakarewarewa; the zone map below shows the full boundary.
All Year 9 and 10 students study English, mathematics, physical education, science and social studies, plus options. The school offers a wide range of sports and co-curricular activities, from volleyball and rugby league to waka ama and mountain biking, and takes international students.
At a glance
- Principal
- James Bracefield
- Address
- 70 Old Quarry Road, Rotorua Central, Rotorua
- Phone
- 07 349 5940
Home zone
Suburbs in the zone: all of Utuhina Rotorua, Fairy Springs, Matipo Heights, Mamaku Rotorua, Springfield Rotorua, Hillcrest Rotorua, Mangakakahi Rotorua, Western Heights Rotorua, Ngongotahā Valley, Fordlands, Tihiotonga Rotorua, Pomare Rotorua, Sunnybrook Rotorua, Selwyn Heights Rotorua, Pukehangi Rotorua, Kapenga, Hamurana, Ngongotahā Rotorua, Horohoro, Kawaha Point Rotorua, Koutu Rotorua, Rotorua Central, Whakarewarewa and Ohinemutu.
Parts of Glenholme Rotorua, Victoria, Ngakuru Rotorua, Tumunui, Ngawaro near Rotorua, Okere Falls Rotorua, Waikite Valley and Kinleith near Rotorua: check your street.
Zone boundaries are set by the school’s enrolment scheme and can change. Confirm your address with the school before you rely on it.
NCEA results
School leavers with NCEA Level 2 or above, compared with all New Zealand school leavers.
This school New Zealand
School leavers are students who left school that year, whatever year level they left from.
Who goes here
Share of the 1,184 students who identify with each group. Students can name more than one, so these add up to more than 100%.
20 international students
MELAA: Middle Eastern, Latin American and African.
Stand-downs and suspensions
Cases per 1,000 students in 2025, adjusted for the ages of the school’s students, compared with all New Zealand schools.
These measure how a school responds to behaviour, and schools set their own thresholds, so they are not a measure of how students behave.
What ERO found
The Education Review Office’s latest report on the school is a School Profile Report from September 2023, which sets out the school’s improvement focus. ERO and the school are evaluating how well data is used to plan the curriculum and lift outcomes.
Strengths ERO identified include systems for gathering a range of data, clear direction from the board and senior leaders, partnerships that open up many learning opportunities, an inclusive climate that supports wellbeing, and teachers with specialist subject knowledge.
Next, the school planned to run the Rongohia te Hau observation and survey cycle and use the results to shape curriculum and staff learning, use professional learning groups to target teaching for particular students, and use internal evaluation to find out which approaches are working.
Read the ERO reports for Western Heights High School
Enrolling
Students who live in the home zone have the right to enrol. Any out-of-zone places are offered under the school’s enrolment scheme, by ballot when there are more applicants than places.
The school takes enrolment enquiries all year, and every student has an interview before enrolling. Its enrolment page links to the zone description and zone map, and the enrolment team visits Year 8 students at local schools in Term 3.
Schools nearby
In Western Heights Rotorua
Western Heights High School is in Western Heights Rotorua. Our suburb guide covers what it is like to live there, with parks, places and local businesses.
Read our Western Heights Rotorua guide →Questions parents ask
Is Western Heights High School zoned?
It has a home zone covering all of Utuhina Rotorua, Fairy Springs, Matipo Heights, Mamaku Rotorua, Springfield Rotorua, Hillcrest Rotorua, Mangakakahi Rotorua, Western Heights Rotorua, Ngongotahā Valley, Fordlands, Tihiotonga Rotorua, Pomare Rotorua, Sunnybrook Rotorua, Selwyn Heights Rotorua, Pukehangi Rotorua, Kapenga, Hamurana, Ngongotahā Rotorua, Horohoro, Kawaha Point Rotorua, Koutu Rotorua, Rotorua Central, Whakarewarewa and Ohinemutu and parts of Glenholme Rotorua, Victoria, Ngakuru Rotorua, Tumunui, Ngawaro near Rotorua, Okere Falls Rotorua, Waikite Valley and Kinleith near Rotorua.
What years does it teach?
Years 9 to 13.
How many students go there?
1,184 at 1 Sep 2026.
Does it ask for donations?
No. It is in the donation scheme, so it only asks for donations for school camps.
What is its Equity Index?
499. The Ministry of Education’s Equity Index estimates the socio-economic barriers a school’s students face, from 344 (fewest) to 569 (most). It is used to share out funding, not as a measure of quality.
How did its school leavers do in NCEA?
In 2025, 72% of its school leavers had NCEA Level 2 or above, compared with 77.8% of all New Zealand school leavers.
School details and roll: Ministry of Education school directory, 24 Oct 2026 (CC BY 4.0). Home zone: Ministry of Education enrolment zones (CC BY 4.0). NCEA results, roll history and stand-downs: Education Counts, school leavers 2023 to 2025, stand-downs 2025, rolls 2021 to 2025 (CC BY 4.0). Updated automatically when the Ministry publishes new data.
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