The early years of last century had seen a deepening of district identity and the desire of each school to be known by the name of the district in which it was situated. In 1902 a petition signed by 13 settlers of Karapiro was presented to the Auckland Board of Education, to “respectfully request that you will change the name of the lower Taotaoroa School to Karapiro School.” But it was to be 1926 before this change was officially made, although the name Karapiro for the school was in general use many years previous to this.

In the first few years after becoming a full time school the average attendance varied between 18-22 but as the district became more closely settled the number of pupils grew. The school committee at a meeting on 12 February 1915, began officially to press for a new school. At this time, with the Taotaoroa No. 2 School closed, some of the pupils were coming from Whitehall.

In May 1919 the board noted, “The buildings are not worth removing to a new site as the timber is very much worm eaten.” A letter in October 1920 contained details of the proposed school – two rooms with accommodation for 72 children – but it was queried, with the roll at 40 and the average attendance 34, whether a two-roomed school was necessary. By August 1921 a one-roomed school was being positively suggested and that is what was finally built in 1922.

The building was described as follows:

The new schoolhouse is built on modern lines with special provision for light and ventilation. Hyloplates are attached to the walls at either end of the building and a stove is provided for heating purposes. There is a spacious lobby or porch at the side entrance. The contract price was £880 and the well-known local firm Messrs Speight, Pearce, Nicoll and Davys, has erected the building.

The continual delays and the financial stringency of the period now found the district with a one room school, 56 students on the roll, and two teachers: Mr J Haughey, headmaster and Miss L Reaks, assistant.

The school, set on a four-acre section had ample provision for the playground and paddocking for the children’s horses. The wish was expressed that a residence for the headmaster would be provided on the site in the near future, but many years were to pass before this wish became fact.

Depending on the rise and fall of roll numbers over the next years there was sometimes two and sometimes one teacher in this single room. When Taotaoroa opened in 1930 the situation was relieved for some years, until in 1940 when children from the Karapiro Hydro Village swelled the schoolroom beyond all expectations. Eleven-year-old Frank Bason, who was enrolled at the school on 5 July 1940, and whose previous school had been Kaikoura, was the first child from the Public Works Department, Karapiro. He was the first of the many in the next 14 months, who until 8 September 1941 filled the little school and over-flowed to fill the hall down the road.

After the Hydro School opened the district school settled back again to its quieter routine. In 1946 with the roll rising steadily Karapiro was again a two-teacher school; the classroom divided by a curtain for the two separate groups of pupils. In 1951 a much-needed second classroom was added and the same year a teacher’s residence was built adjacent to the school. Extensive remodeling and enlargement of the two rooms was undertaken in 1966. In 1970 the roll again increased with children coming from Taotaoroa and the Hydro Village, and in 1974 a relocatable classroom was provided; the school now had three teachers. The dental clinic, which had been at the school for some years, was in 1973 converted into an administration area.

The proximity of the headmaster’s residence to State Highway 1 with resultant noise level had long been a problem. For 12 years various committees and headmasters had endeavored to persuade the Education Board to give approval to move the house, but to no avail. However, in 1984, Mr Bruce Milne the principal sought the aid if the Health Department, who found the decibel readings extremely high, far above what is considered normal and acceptable for a dwelling. The decision was speedily made to move the house to the back of the school section and with the minimum of fuss this was achieved.

In 1984 a school library was established.

Today the school features four classrooms, a refurbished library and community room a modern administration block and an ICT suite.

The grounds have also been developed with a sports field, tennis courts, swimming pool, gardens and extensive covered decking.