Students enrolled in primary and secondary schools in New Zealand
As at July 1997–2025
| Year as at 1 July | Number of students |
|---|---|
| 1997 | 711,848 |
| 1998 | 724,579 |
| 1999 | 727,298 |
| 2000 | 729,689 |
| 2001 | 733,807 |
| 2002 | 747,910 |
| 2003 | 761,709 |
| 2004 | 764,654 |
| 2005 | 762,790 |
| 2006 | 760,745 |
| 2007 | 759,878 |
| 2008 | 758,094 |
| 2009 | 760,859 |
| 2010 | 764,398 |
| 2011 | 762,682 |
| 2012 | 759,960 |
| 2013 | 762,400 |
| 2014 | 767,263 |
| 2015 | 776,815 |
| 2016 | 787,960 |
| 2017 | 800,334 |
| 2018 | 808,439 |
| 2019 | 816,632 |
| 2020 | 826,347 |
| 2021 | 826,572 |
| 2022 | 815,151 |
| 2023 | 831,038 |
| 2024 | 850,999 |
| 2025 | 856,412 |
Notes
Two schools are not assigned to any specific region: OneSchool Global ('Not applicable') and Te Aho o Te Kura Pounamu ('Correspondence School').
Limitations of the data
Schools can and do make amendments to their roll data outside of a collection period if they notice mistakes that affect their funding entitlements, often brought about by audit visits. These changes will not be reflected in the roll data that has been published.
Inclusions
Included school types are: Full Primary, Secondary, Intermediate, Composite, Restricted Composite, Correspondence School, Special School, Contributing, Teen Parent Unit.
Changes to data collection/processing
Decile was replaced with the Equity Index for funding purposes in 2023. 2022 is the last year when Decile is used for reporting purposes.
Data provided by
Dataset name
School Roll Returns: Time Series Data for Trend Analysis 2025
Webpage:
https://www.educationcounts.govt.nz/statistics/school-rolls
How to find the data
At URL download Excel spreadsheet titled 'Time series: Data for trend analysis 1996-2025' under 'Time series data' headline.
Figure.NZ edited the file for processing purposes.
Import & extraction details
File as imported: School Roll Returns: Time Series Data for Trend Analysis 2025
From the dataset School Roll Returns: Time Series Data for Trend Analysis 2025, this data was extracted:
- Sheet: Regional Council
- Range:
B4:AE22 - Provided: 570 data points
This data forms the table Schooling - Student roll by region 1996–2025.
Dataset originally released on:
November 2025
About this dataset
The Ministry of Education carries out statistical collections (roll returns) from New Zealand schools at different times during the year.
The data reported here is based on the 1 July roll returns since it provides detailed information on age and ethnicity for trend analysis.
Purpose of collection
The Ministry uses the collected data in a number of ways: to fund and staff schools; to support policy analysis, development and decision making; to monitor the outcomes of the New Zealand education system; and for national and international reporting purposes.