Ōakura

Ōakura School is a co-educational school catering for students from Years 1-8, while nearby Green School New Zealand offers an alternative learning environment for students from Years 1-13. A wider range of secondary schooling options is available in New Plymouth.

Ōakura has a strong sporting and recreational community, with rugby, tennis and golf clubs, a skate park, parks and reserves, and plenty of opportunities to enjoy the outdoors. The Ōakura Surf Life Saving Club is a popular and active part of the community, reflecting the township’s strong connection with the coast.

Ōakura is best known for its north facing black sand beach, popular year round for swimming, surfing, camping and other water activities. Nearby Lucy’s Gully and the Kaitake Ranges offer walking and outdoor recreation, while Koru Pā, approximately 3km southeast of the township, is an important historic reserve and significant early Māori settlement site.

The village also has a strong hospitality and live music culture, with Butlers Reef well known for hosting major New Zealand and international performers.

History: The Ōakura River (and therefore Ōakura township itself) was named after the female ancestor Akura-matapū of the Kurahaupō waka. Ōakura-matapū was the original name of the river, and it literally means “Belonging to Akura-matapū”.

Akura was married to Okorotua. Ngāti Tairi hapū holds mana whenua in Ōakura. Ngāti Tairi belongs to the larger descent group of Ngā Mahanga a Tairi. Ngāti Tairi and Ngā Mahanga a Tairi are part of the Taranaki iwi. Ngāti Tairi retain their take ahi-kā (rights of ownership) through Ōakura Pā beside the southern side of the Ōakura River. People have been living in the Ōakura area for hundreds of years.

When war broke out in 1860, Ngāti Tairi, as part of Ngā Mahanga and Taranaki, joined in the offensives against the British. The nearby Tapuae Ridge, north of Ōakura, was a continual site of conflict. On 4 May 1863, a party of about 40 Māori warriors ambushed a small military party on a coastal road west of the town, killing nine of the ten soldiers. The revenge attack on the military party escorting a British defaulter to New Plymouth for trial reignited hostilities in the Taranaki War.