Collins said Bethlehem has approval from the Ministry of Education to enter negotiations to build a new Year 1–8 school in Ōmokoroa, has land in Te Puke for a possible future school, and is expanding its Bethlehem College Chapman campus in Rotorua.
NZ Catholic Education Office (NZCEO) chief executive Kevin Shore said many Catholic schools in high-growth areas have reached their maximum roll – and have remained there for some time.
He said the pressure is being felt by families who would traditionally have had priority access to those schools, similar to what’s being seen at Bethlehem College.
“I’m hearing – and that’s more of a worry to me – that some of our preference students who are active in the life of the church and in the parishes are struggling to actually get enrolled in some of our Catholic schools.
“And that’s particularly an issue in a place like Auckland.”
Catholic schools can enrol a small proportion of students without a religious affiliation, but preference students generally receive priority.
NZCEO data shows non-preference students make up about 7% of Catholic primary school rolls and 6% of secondary school rolls.
The Ministry of Education said it’s also seeing increasing demand for places at state-integrated schools, particularly in Auckland, Waikato/Bay of Plenty and parts of Canterbury.
General manager of school network Vincent Fallon said the Government has responded by establishing a $30 million State Integration Growth Initiative to fund additional teaching spaces in areas where demand is growing.
While there is no national research explaining the increase in demand, Shore believed families are increasingly attracted to Catholic education because of its special character, faith and sense of community.
“The parents who come to us are buying into that. They’re saying these are the values that we want our children to be educated under.”
Shore said Catholic schools also have a strong reputation for academic achievement, which he attributed to the culture built within those schools.
Dunedin’s Trinity Catholic College is one of the country’s 235 Catholic schools – and is seeing some of the fastest growth.
Principal Kate Nicholson said the school’s roll has grown by around 200 students in three years to more than 770 and is expected to be close to its maximum roll by the beginning of 2027.
She said the school consistently receives more applications and inquiries than it has places available, while the proportion of Catholic primary students transitioning directly to Trinity has increased by between 15 and 20% since 2020.
But state-integrated schools cannot simply expand to meet demand.
Schools can apply to increase their maximum roll with the ministry.
Fallon said it considers several factors when assessing applications, including evidence of demand, population growth projections, school capacity and the impact on surrounding schools.
The ministry received 15 applications from state-integrated schools seeking to increase their maximum rolls last year – almost double the eight applications received in 2022.
Shore said the maximum roll system is designed to protect the wider school network and ensure growth in one school does not leave neighbouring schools with unused classrooms.
“What they don’t want is a whole lot of state schools with empty classrooms, because that’s a waste of resources.”
He said schools can also face financial limits when building new classrooms, as state-integrated schools fund property projects through attendance dues and proprietor contributions rather than direct Government funding.
“Our proprietors do get frustrated sometimes that they want to grow and they can’t grow, but the current Government has been more open to choice.
“We’ve seen significant numbers of maximum roll applications going through and being accepted, so that’s been a positive move.”
Jaime Cunningham is a Christchurch-based reporter with a focus on education and general news. She joined Newstalk ZB in 2023 after working as a sports reporter at the Christchurch Star.