The ethnic group data is 'total response', which means that each student is counted under each ethnic group they identify with. International fee-paying students are considered a separate ethnic group.
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.
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.
From the dataset School Roll Returns: Time Series Data for Trend Analysis 2025, this data was extracted:
Sheet: Ethnic Group Total Response
Range: B4:T32
Provided: 342 data points
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.