Ruawai facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Ruawai
Ruawai Location in Northland Region
Country	New Zealand
Region	Northland Region
District	Kaipara District
Population  (2018)
• Total	471

Ruawai is a small town located 30 km south of Dargaville in Northland, New Zealand.

The name literally translated from Maori means 'two waters' referring to the nearby Northern Wairoa River and Kaipara Harbour. The township primarily serves the outlying farming area which consists mainly of cattle farming and kumara growing and the town declared itself as the Kumara capital of the world.

The local Naumai Marae and Ngā Uri o te Kotahitanga meeting house is a traditional meeting place for Ngāti Whātua and Te Uri o Hau.

Demographics

The statistical area of Ruawai-Matakohe, which at 530 square kilometres is much larger than this town, had a population of 2,436 at the 2018 New Zealand census, an increase of 147 people (6.4%) since the 2013 census, and an increase of 201 people (9.0%) since the 2006 census. There were 948 households. There were 1,281 males and 1,152 females, giving a sex ratio of 1.11 males per female. Of the total population, 447 people (18.3%) were aged up to 15 years, 345 (14.2%) were 15 to 29, 1,164 (47.8%) were 30 to 64, and 480 (19.7%) were 65 or older. Figures may not add up to the total due to rounding.

Ethnicities were 85.8% European/Pākehā, 26.2% Māori, 2.5% Pacific peoples, 1.0% Asian, and 1.7% other ethnicities. People may identify with more than one ethnicity.

The percentage of people born overseas was 9.2, compared with 27.1% nationally.

Although some people objected to giving their religion, 53.9% had no religion, 28.9% were Christian, and 5.8% had other religions.

Of those at least 15 years old, 177 (8.9%) people had a bachelor or higher degree, and 594 (29.9%) people had no formal qualifications. The median income was $23,600. The employment status of those at least 15 was that 852 (42.8%) people were employed full-time, 309 (15.5%) were part-time, and 81 (4.1%) were unemployed.

Ruawai town had a population of 471 at the 2018 census, an increase of 39 since 2013. There were 240 males and 231 females. 79.6% identified as European/Pākehā, and 37.6% as Māori.

Education

Ruawai College is a secondary (years 7-13) school with a roll of 141 students as of April 2023. Ruawai District High School was established in 1929. In December 1995, Ruawai College installed a 128kbit/s DDS leased line connection that delivered internet services and offered dialup internet with IGRIN billing the service (IGRIN has since purchased by Orcon). The arrangement delivered internet to the rural community where the nearest dialup internet services were a toll call away, as well as giving the school low cost internet. At the time, only a handful of schools nationally had a campus-wide, hard wired internet service.

Ruawai School is a contributing primary (years 1-6) school with a roll of 116 students as of April 2023.

Both schools are coeducational.

Notable people

• Lockwood Smith, politician.
• Roy Billing OAM, noted NZ actor, now domiciled in Australia, was brought up in Ruawai where he attended Ruawai High School
• Grace Gooder