Last updated November 2026
Sacred Heart School is a state-integrated, co-educational full primary school for Years 1 to 8 at 54 Heaton Street, Timaru. It opened in 1885 and had 232 students on its roll at 1 October 2026.
It has no home zone, so any student can apply. The school works with Holy Family Parish and every student takes part in Religious Education. Its prospectus describes daily fitness, basketball teams in South Canterbury competitions, camps for Years 4 to 8, and weekly technology classes at the Timaru Technology Centre for Years 7 and 8.
At a glance
- Principal
- David Armstrong
- Address
- 54 Heaton Street, Timaru
- Phone
- 03 688 8188
Home zone
No home zone: any student can apply to enrol. If more students apply than there are places, the school decides how places are offered.
Who goes here
Share of the 232 students who identify with each group. Students can name more than one, so these add up to more than 100%.
MELAA: Middle Eastern, Latin American and African.
What ERO found
The Education Review Office’s latest report on the school is a School Evaluation Report from September 2024. ERO found students engaged in their learning and feeling they belong, with most making sound progress.
Most reach the expected curriculum level in reading and maths, Māori students’ results are consistently ahead of other groups across reading, writing and maths, and the majority attend regularly enough to meet the Ministry’s attendance target.
ERO also pointed to thoughtful, research-based leadership, teaching that responds to each child, a curriculum shaped by the school’s special character and local setting, and close ties with the community.
Writing is still the area to lift for some students. The agreed next steps are to build more structured, deliberate teaching in writing, keep developing a local curriculum that reflects the area, its people and the school’s Catholic character, and hold regular attendance at its current level.
Read the ERO reports for Sacred Heart School (Timaru)
Enrolling
Sacred Heart has no home zone. As a state-integrated Catholic school it enrols preference students, children with a Catholic connection through baptism or a Catholic family member, up to its maximum roll.
A small number of non-preference places can go to other families who fully support the school’s Catholic values. The school says these places only come up from time to time, so it is worth asking whether one is available.
Families can enrol online or with a form from the school, and are invited to book a time to meet the principal and look around. The school’s prospectus says the parish invoices attendance dues each term.
Schools nearby
Where students go next
Based on home zones around the school’s own address. Families can apply to any school, and your own address decides which zones you are in.
In Parkside Timaru
Sacred Heart School (Timaru) is in Parkside Timaru. Our suburb guide covers what it is like to live there, with parks, places and local businesses.
Read our Parkside Timaru guide →Questions parents ask
Is Sacred Heart School (Timaru) zoned?
No. It has no home zone, so any student can apply to enrol.
What years does it teach?
Years 1 to 8.
How many students go there?
232 at 1 Oct 2026.
Does it ask for donations?
No. It is in the donation scheme, so it only asks for donations for school camps.
What is its Equity Index?
438. The Ministry of Education’s Equity Index estimates the socio-economic barriers a school’s students face, from 344 (fewest) to 569 (most). It is used to share out funding, not as a measure of quality.
Updated automatically when the Ministry publishes new data.
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Sources and data notes 1
- School facts: School details and roll: Ministry of Education school directory, 7 Nov 2026 (CC BY 4.0). NCEA results, roll history and stand-downs: Education Counts, school leavers 2023 to 2025, stand-downs 2025, rolls 2021 to 2025 (CC BY 4.0).