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Message from our Tumuaki
Message from our Tumuaki
Nau mai haere mai, nau mai hoki mai.
Welcome back to Term 4 - the final stretch of what has been another busy and rewarding year at Napier Girls' High School. This term is always a precious one, filled with a sense of both completion and anticipation.
For our seniors, these weeks are especially significant. They are completing their courses of study, preparing for NCEA examinations, and finalising the goals they have been working toward throughout their time here. We know this period can feel intense, and we wish every one of our senior students all the very best as they demonstrate their learning and commitment to their studies in the upcoming examinations, which commence Tuesday 4 November. Classes conclude for our students in 3 weeks time - Thursday 30 October. At the same time, Term 4 is a season of reflection and celebration. From our Pō Whakanui, Fia Fia Night, and Pūhoro Academy Awards, to end-of-year events like our Prizegiving, it is a chance to acknowledge the successes of 2025 and the contributions of students, staff, and whānau alike.
Looking ahead, we are also beginning preparations for 2026. Planning is already underway to ensure that the coming year brings fresh opportunities, strong connections, and continued excellence. As we close one chapter and prepare for the next, we are reminded of the whakataukī:
"Ka hinga atu he tētēkura, ka hara mai he tētēkura"
(As one fern frond dies, another rises to take its place).
It is a gentle reminder that every ending is also the beginning of something new, full of fresh opportunities and growth.
As always, we thank our staff, whānau, and wider community for your ongoing support. Together, let's make this final term of the year a memorable one.
Ngā mihi nui,
Mrs Dawn Ackroyd
Phone: 06 835 1069 Web: www.nghs.school.nz Main Office email: nghs@nghs.school.nz Principal's PA Email: dmcpherson@nghs.school.nz
Important Dates Coming Up
Important Dates Coming Up
OCTOBER
Monday 13: Solo Singing Competition
Wednesday 15: Scholarship Music Evening, 5.30pm in school hall
Wednesday 15: Year 11 Drama Performance, 6.00-7.30pm in N9
Thursday 16: Guitar Evening, 5.30pm, N1
Thursday 17: Level 3 Visual Art due
Thursday 17: Senior Japanese Quiz Night
Monday 20: PTA Meeting, 7.00pm in staffroom, all welcome
Monday 20: Senior Art Exhibition, 3.00 - 6.00pm
Tuesday 21: Enviro Prefects Opshop
Wednesday 22: Pō Whakanui, 5.30 - 7.00pm
Friday 24: School & Hostel closed, Hawke's Bay Anniversary
Monday 27: School & Hostel closed, Labour Day
Thursday 30: Study leave starts for all Year 11 - Year 13 students, end of P4
NOVEMBER
Tuesday 4: NCEA examinations begin
Tuesday 4: Year 8 Interviews, 3.00 - 6.00pm
Wednesday 5: Year 8 Interviews, 3.00 - 6.00pm
Thursday 6: Duke of Edinburgh Information Evening, 6.00 - 7.00pm
Torchbearer
Remember to pre-purchase your copy of 2025's "Torchbearer" school magazine through Kindo Shop before Oct 22 2025.
Study Leave for Senior Students Commences Friday 31 October
2025 NZQA Examinations commence Tuesday 4 November (Level 2 & 3) and Monday 10 November (Level 1). You can access the NZQA Exam Timetable here.
Lessons for senior students continue until the end of period 3 on Thursday 30th October. All students sitting NZQA examinations must attend the exam briefing on Thursday 30th October at 12.15pm. It is important that all students attend this meeting as rules, instructions and the derived grade process for all candidates will be explained and admission slips issued. Students in Year 11-13 will be dismissed from school at about 1pm
Please note that for students in Year 9-10, this is a normal school day with a 3pm finish and therefore buses will depart at their usual time. The library will be available for any senior students who need to remain in school.
From Friday 31st October until Friday 5th December students in Years 11-13 only need to attend school for their external exams. All students are required in school for week 10 (Monday 8th - Friday 12th December).
Digital NZQA Exams
Most of our students will be sitting digital exams. Please ensure your student’s personal device is working properly. Whilst a limited number of loan devices are available, these cannot be guaranteed on the day, and our ICT team will be very busy during the exam period. Please check devices well in advance to avoid any issues.
Toi Whakaari - Performing Arts
Toi Whakaari - Performing Arts
School Production 2026
We are excited to announce that our 2026 school musical will be High School Musical!
There is a lot of enthusiasm building for what promises to be a fun and high-energy production.
We are also pleased to confirm that performances will take place on Wednesday 29th April, Thursday 30th April, and Friday 1st May 2026.
An audition information meeting will be held on Monday 13th October, during interval in the school hall. This meeting is for all students interested in auditioning for the production.
At the meeting, we will go over important details such as audition dates, available roles, and what will be expected of students during the audition process.
We’re looking forward to another fantastic show and can’t wait to get started!
NGHS Shines on Stage and Behind the Scenes!
As part of the Hawke's Bay Arts Festival this year, SCENA is a thrilling presentation of operatic scenes performed by the talented young voices of Project Prima Volta (PPV). Drawn from iconic works are vibrant excerpts from Bizet’s Carmen, Chueca’s El barberillo de Lavapiés, and Mozart’s Le nozze di Figaro, that showcased the vocal power, emotional depth, and stage presence of some of Aotearoa’s most promising emerging singers.
Napier Girls’ High School was proudly represented by both current and past students in this spectacular production.
Gabriella Brownlie (Year 10) captivated the audience as an emerging soloist with her confident stage presence and expressive performance in The Marriage of Figaro, while Liza Kogtenko brought energy and artistry to her role within the talented ensemble. Both young musicians show great promise - the future of opera is certainly bright!
Working tirelessly behind the curtain were Eva Aparicio-Pirard and Lola Brown, whose professionalism and calm direction as backstage managers ensured everything ran seamlessly.
Former student Monique Alexander (Year 13, 2024) gave a stunning performance as the Countess, delivering her aria from The Marriage of Figaro with poise, depth, and vocal beauty.
Ms Tess Tobin - HoLA Performing Arts
Hākinakina - Sports
Hākinakina - Sports
SUMMER SPORTS TERM 4
Mondays:
Tennis A Grade
Futsal
Tuesdays:
Social Volleyball (lunchtimes)
Volleyball (at PGA)
Hastings Athletics (6pm)
Tennis B Grade
Wednesdays:
Social Badminton (lunchtimes)
Touch Rugby
Indoor Cricket
Napier Athletics (night)
Thursdays:
Canoe Polo Spring League
Fridays:
Kī o Rahi
U16 Rugby 7s
Tennis lessons are available lunchtimes Monday, Tuesday & Thursday
Hawke's Bay Sport Awards
Congratulations to Lucy Angland who was named as a finalist for the 2025 Hawke’s Bay Secondary Schools' Sports Awards:
Female All-Rounder of the Year - Lucy Angland (Hockey and Life Saving).
ECNI Road Race
11 NGHS runners participated in Road Race Champs around Frimley Park on Thursday. Congratulations to Paige Dobson who won the senior girls' race, breaking the record with a time of 14.15 (old record held by Sophia Lumbreras at 14.18). Sophie Dunnett- Welch was 3rd and Aimee Hooper 4th. Together they won the fastest senior team 3 person team.
Sophia Morris was 4th in thejJunior girls' race. The junior girls team comprising of Sophia, Alyssa Palmer amd Honor Tosswill and placed 2nd in the 3 person team event.
In the year 9 girls' event, Isobel Hodgkinson placed 2nd and Isabel Gutter 3rd.
These results along with Kaia Ranston's 5th place meant they also won the 3 person team event. Ka rawe!
NISS Ski and Snowboarding Championships
The North Island Secondary Schools Ski and Snowboard Championships were held at the Turoa ski field on Mt Ruapehu from September 15-17. Olivia and Ruby Lilburn, Lexi Pollock and Francesca York competed in Giant Slalom events against challenging weather conditions. Well done to all our competitors and big thanks to Bruce Lilburn for chaperoning this trip.
NZ Short Course Swimming Champs
During the holidays, 4 students attended the 2025 NZ Short Course Swimming Champs in Auckland.
Breeze van Veldhuizen achieved 4 personal bests and broke 3 HBPB 17yr female records (200m backstroke, 100m backstroke, 200m individual medley).
Lola Nichols was one of Breeze's team mates in the women's open 4x50m free relay that placed 3rd in the country.
Holly Stanford broke the HBPB record in the 200m backstroke 18yr female.
Zoe Ennor also attended the championships and achieved PB's.
Netball
NZ Netball Representative
Huge congratulations to Arna Paewai on her selection to the 2025 New Zealand Secondary Schools Netball Squad! The NZSS squad of 24 will come together at Labour Weekend for final trials, where two teams will be named: the NZ Secondary Schools' Team and the NZSS A Team
They’ll then take the court in a 3-day Quad Tournament, facing off against top talent including a visiting team from Australia.
Netball Nationals
Our NGHS Senior A Netball team finished a commendable 12th at the NZSS Champs in Porirua this week.
They had a tough draw, facing both Howick College and MAGS — the two top Northern Regional teams who went on to meet in the final, with MAGS taking the win. It was a privilege to play against such strong competition, and our girls had some fantastic moments of play against the big guns.
A real highlight was seeing the talent of our younger players coming through, with four outstanding Year 10s doing us proud The girls represented the school with pride and spirit throughout the week.
Huge thanks to our amazing coaches, Miss Parsons and Jewels Falcon, who pour their heart and soul into this team — modeling our school values and fostering such a positive team culture through all the highs and lows of tournament sport and much appreciation to manager Mrs McDowall and Esther in the Sports Department for all their mahi behind the scenes.
Netball Central Zone Advanced Camp
A big congratulations to the following players who have been selected to attend the Central Zone Advanced Camp:
Emma Baker
Emily Crowther
Ruby Kaye
Ruby Lilburn
Arna Paewai
The camp will take place on the 11th and 12th October and will include testing, education and specialist coaching from Pulse Head Coach Anna Andrews-Tasola, Frances Solia and Waimarama Taumaunu!
Hawke's Bay Netball Awards
Congratulations to all our students who are finalists for the 2025 Hawke's Bay Netball Annual Awards which will be held on 17 October 2025.
Central Football National Youth League Squad
Congratulations to Georgia Cameron (year 12), who has been selected for the Central Football National Youth League Squad. Georgia travels to Palmerston North every Thursday afternoon for practice and is currently playing in the national league competition.
Equestrian
Congratulations to Hebe Truebridge, Tallulah Wynn, Britta Oliver and Addison Oliver, who were selected to represent Heretaunga Pony Club at the North Island Show Hunter Champs held during the holidays.
Special mention to Addison, who will also be heading to China in October with the New Zealand Pony Clubs Association in an international team's challenge.
Rugby
Allura Holt was selected for the NZ Barbarians U18s vs Ngā Māreikura U18s match played at the stadium in Pukekohe last week.
Congratulations to the following players who played for the HB U16 team that won the Hurricanes Region U16 tournament:
Haide Wilson
Madi Hunt
Zoe Reisma
Ashla Holt
Harmony Conrad
Amy Smith
Maia Nelson
Kota Mackie
Syvannah Mackie-Robinson
Poppy McPherson
Leyah Gerrard
Georgia Charmers
Paige Roe
Sailing
Our sailing team headed to Goolwa, just south of Adelaide, for the Australia–New Zealand Inter-dominion Team Sailing Championship. This event brings together the top 3 open and top 3 female school teams from each country every year – alternating between NZ and AUS. NGHS placed 6th in a strong international field of 11 teams and was overall a brilliant experience of top-tier competition in Southern Australia. Huge thanks to “camp mum” Helena Chan and all the parents who supported the team throughout this amazing adventure a ngā mihi nui to coach Mr Otto for all of his mahi and organisation.
Squash
Well done to Amy Smith (year 10, who participated in the Squash National team Super Champs F/J Grade tournament at the end of last term. She played for a Turangi team and out of more than 200 clubs in 11 regions in NZ, they placed top in their Central Region in the eliminations (22 clubs). Amy was a strong participant in their team – winning 4 out of her 5 games.
Sea Sisters Surf Club - Term 4
6 week beginner programme that costs students $240 ($40/session). All equipment is provided. Minimum of 4 and maximum of 14 girls per session.
When: Thursday Oct 30th - Dec 4th
Sign up with Kaitlin Cotter.
Girls' Surf Club Info Pack.pdfTrack & Field
The HB Secondary Schools 2025 Track and Field Championships will be held on 22nd October, at Mitre 10 Sports Park, Hastings, from 5.00-7.00pm. Keep an eye on the notices for more information or see Mr Roderick to register your interest. There are also Club night next week - contact bjasmithnz@gmail.com for more information.
Alumnae
Huge congratulations to Old Girl Isla Cleall-Harding ️ who played in the OFC U-19 Women’s Championships and was part of the NZ team that made the final which meant they qualified for FIFA U-20 Women’s World Cup 2026!
Let Us Know Your Sports News!
We love to acknowledge our students’ sporting achievements outside of school. If you have any representative selections, results, information or photos from external sporting events that occurred over the holidays or during the term, please send them to sport@nghs.school.nz
This information may be placed in the school newsletter and on our celebration wall in the gym or held for future consideration for school sports badges and achievement awards.
Kimi Poi grew up north of Gisborne, in Tikitiki, moving to Hawke’s Bay with her family ahead of her high school years, which she completed at Napier Girls’ High School.
It was fantastic to have the Silver Ferns play in Hawke’s Bay, their first game since 2017, back at the courts Kimi grew up playing at for Napier Girls High School
“Just being back here feels like I’m coming home and it will be cool to see everyone in the crowd as well.”
MJ Durkin - HoLA Sport
The Duke of Edinburgh Hillary Award
The Duke of Edinburgh Hillary Award
Term 4 is always a busy and exciting time for our Duke of Edinburgh Award participants. Students are working hard to complete their final sections, get everything signed off, and register for the next level of the award.
Over September 12-14th, two groups of Duke of Edinburgh students tramped into the spectacular Lake Waikaremoana, nestled in the mighty Te Urewera forest. The Gold group of 14 students completed their practice tramp, starting at Onepoto and finishing at Hopuruahine, while the 14 Silver trampers completed their course in reverse, qualifying them for the Silver award. They covered 48kms over 3 days and walked through rain, sun, wind, mist and mud. They all should be incredibly proud of their efforts and will have made life long memories. Thanks to our parent helper Chris Wylie, teachers Mr Poulgrain and Mrs Raggett, and the Makahika instructors.
Our Bronze participants are preparing for their final qualifying tramps, taking place on 8–9 November and 22–23 November. Both trips are overnight adventures, and students have already signed up and begun organising their gear and preparations.
We’re also looking forward to our Duke of Edinburgh Information Evening on Wednesday 6 November, held in the school library from 5.30–6.30pm. This evening is specifically for Year 9 students and their whānau who would like to learn more about the Duke of Edinburgh Award and how the programme is run here at Napier Girls’ High School. There’s also a new video you can watch to learn about the Award.
A special mention goes to our Gold Award participants, who will be completing their final qualifying tramps after their exams - a truly rewarding way to finish their year and their Duke of Ed journey.
If any students have questions or concerns about their award progress, please come along to the library at lunchtime on Tuesdays for support and guidance.
Well done to all our participants for your commitment, organisation, and enthusiasm - your perseverance truly reflects the spirit of the Duke of Edinburgh’s Award.
Mrs Louise Bassett-Foss - TiC Duke of Edinburgh
Umanga - Careers
Umanga - Careers
Studylink Applications are open - apply by 16 December 2025
If students are studying in 2026 - 16 December 2025 is a very important date.
Students need to apply for their student allowance or loan before 16 December 2025 to give themselves the best chance of having everything ready for the start of their course. We have Studylink coming into school for support sessions in Week 1 and 2 of this term.
Application information can be found here:
https://www.studylink.govt.nz/online-services/apply/first-time/index.html
Mrs Caroline Johnson & Mrs Debra Verhoeven - Careers Advisors
Brain Bee Success – Internship Opportunity
Brain Bee Success – Internship Opportunity
Congratulations to Mikayla Davies and Lily Hicks, who recently participated in the Brain Bee competition run by the University of Auckland. As part of this competition, both students were awarded prestigious internships at the Neurological Foundation Centre for Brain Research. During the September/October school holidays, they spent a day at the Centre gaining first-hand experience of what neuroscientists do in their daily work. This internship recognises students who have shown enormous potential in the field of neuroscience and provides an inspiring opportunity to explore future pathways in brain research. We are very proud of Mikayla and Lily for their outstanding achievement.
Mrs Vanessa Fraser - Assistant HoLA Science
Phone: 06 835 1069 Web: www.nghs.school.nz Main Office email: nghs@nghs.school.nz Principal's PA Email: dmcpherson@nghs.school.nz
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