Rangiora’s new primary school now has a fitting new name!

The following We are pleased to share with the community our new school name –

“Te Matauru Primary”

The following is an excerpt from today’s Northern Outlook which explains more about the origins and aspirations of our name.

“Rangiora’s new school now has a fitting new name, replacing the interim name of Rangiora West School.

The new school’s establishment board of trustees approached local rūnanga Ngāi Tūāhuriri with a view to them gifting a name which would have more significance for the school.

Principal Danny Nicholls said he was grateful to Ngāi Tūāhuriri for their careful consideration, and he was thrilled with the name they came back with: Te Matauru, meaning the eye to the west.

The name is broken into mata (face or eye) and uru (west). Mata is also short for taumata, which means summit, top of hill or resting place.

The school is situated in west Rangiora, and when built will look out to the west. While the school site is near a Māori reserve, it was not a place of major settlement.

The rūnanga also gifted a vision statement to the school: Ekea Ka Taumata Ki Te Uru, meaning ‘look to the peaks of the alps and ascend to great heights’.

Nicholls said the establishment board had accepted the gifted name and the Ministry of Education has confirmed that the school name shall be named Te Matauru Primary.”