Aranui Primary School - Whanganui

Aranui Primary School - Whanganui Aranui School is a beautiful, rural feel, primary school in the seaside suburb of Castlecliff We are 7 kilometres away from the city centre.

Aranui School is a Decile 1 Primary in the seaside suburb of Castlecliff in Whanganui. The school was established on 24 May 1965 and officially opened by the Mayor, Mr R.P. Andrews on 26 June 1965 and was first known as the Castlecliff Side School. Our school was built to take the extra children from new housing at the end of Castlecliff. Since then, we have grown and changed with the community an

d educational needs of the children attending. Our children come mainly from the Golf Course (northern) end of “The Cliff” but others come from outside the area. We are a city school, but have that special country feel with cows, horses and paddocks around three sides. We have extensive native garden plantings and a “Skink Reserve”. As well as the country feel, we are also close to Castlecliff Beach and the Whanganui River Mouth. On the distant horizon, Mount Ruapehu and Mount Taranaki are visible. Aranui School has, for a long time, been known as a Family School, where families are welcomed, and encouraged to share in their child’s education. Our school develops academic progress, sporting, cultural and life skills to prepare children for a successful and healthy future. Aranui School has very experienced and professional teachers who focus on providing quality learning programmes. Children benefit from and are motivated with a variety of learning situations in all curriculum areas with a main focus on Literacy and Mathematics. During the year, we participate in a variety of sporting and cultural events at our school and at interschool level so that it provides the opportunity for children to interact and compete with children of similar ages from different schools. The teachers are supported by dedicated and enthusiastic Support Staff – an Executive Officer, Teacher Aides, Caretaker and Cleaners. We are a very well resourced school with a dedicated Library, Community Hall, large permanent shade structure, large playgrounds and field, court and concrete areas, an Arts Room, sporting equipment and up to date teaching and learning resources. A wonderful aspect of our large playground and field is that we encourage children to get active and to explore play. We focus on being a supportive, caring learning environment and the development of positive relationships between teachers, the children and their peers. The children and their parents value meaningful learning opportunities that progress and extend the children.

01/09/2026
Wahoo! Watch out for details about the formal launch!
01/09/2026

Wahoo! Watch out for details about the formal launch!

🥁 Drum roll please! 🥁 After careful consideration from our judges, we're proud to announce Aranui Primary School - Whanganui as our 2026 AA Lollipop Legends North Island winners! 🏆

Aranui Primary School plan to build a bike and scooter track that includes replica intersections, crossings and road signs. The track will help students to develop valuable road safety skills they can take beyond the school gates 🚲🛴 Later this term, we'll be joining Aranui Primary School for a special celebration, where they'll receive a $10,000 grant from the AA to help bring this idea to life.

We'd like to thank everyone who entered the AA’s Lollipop Legends competition. We were blown away by the response, receiving more than 400 entries from schools across Aotearoa, sharing their safety ideas and celebrating our Kiwi road patrol heroes aa.co.nz/lollipop-legends/

13/08/2026

Nau mai, haere mai - we warmly welcome you to our kura.

Starting intermediate is an exciting new chapter, and we would love to welcome you and your whānau to Rutherford Intermediate Open Evening on Wednesday 2nd September, from 6:00 pm – 7:30 pm.

Come along, meet our friendly staff and students, explore our school, and discover the many opportunities waiting for your child at Rutherford Intermediate. It’s a great chance to experience our school community, ask questions, and see how we can support your child to learn, grow and thrive.

We look forward to welcoming you and your whānau to Rutherford Intermediate!

Next week is BOOK WEEK 📚An exciting week of sharing a love for stories! 🩷A National read along story time 💜Stories every...
11/08/2026

Next week is BOOK WEEK 📚
An exciting week of sharing a love for stories!

🩷A National read along story time
💜Stories every afternoon
💛An awesome art activity
💙A visiting story teller
💚A school wide art completion
🧡Dress up day - Friday 21st August!

♥️ Kind Hearts School ♥️As a Kind Hearts School we work hard to show kindness to ourselves, others, our school and commu...
05/08/2026

♥️ Kind Hearts School ♥️
As a Kind Hearts School we work hard to show kindness to ourselves, others, our school and community.
We have a group of children attending the Kind Hearts Movement Regional Event in Palmerston North. The children will hear from a line up of speakers and take part in some activities about showing kindness.

A free clinic, if you need to get checked out or get free help.
02/07/2026

A free clinic, if you need to get checked out or get free help.

This term we were lucky enough to visit Pukenamu Queens Park on a full school trip! Visiting the Whanganui Regional Muse...
25/06/2026

This term we were lucky enough to visit Pukenamu Queens Park on a full school trip!

Visiting the Whanganui Regional Museum, Te Whare O Rehua Sarjeant Gallery & the Whanganui District Library
A fun filled day with lots of learning and beautiful art work.

Did you know you can review our School Policies online? We value your contributions and it is easy to do!Visit the websi...
25/06/2026

Did you know you can review our School Policies online?
We value your contributions and it is easy to do!

Visit the website:
https://aranui-primary.schooldocs.co.nz

Username: aranui-primary
Password: care

School Policy Review - Education outside the classroom (EOTC) Policies.
Our Term 2 Review is open for you to provide feedback and comment on our current Policies.

Address

14/16 Aranui Avenue, Castlecliff
Whanganui
4501

Opening Hours

Monday 8am - 5pm
Tuesday 8am - 5pm
Wednesday 8am - 5pm
Thursday 8am - 5pm
Friday 8am - 5pm

Telephone

06 - 344 6183

Website

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