Mairehau
Suburb of Christchurch, New Zealand
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Mairehau (Māori pronunciation: [maiɾɛːhau]) is a suburb of Christchurch, New Zealand. It is located 4 kilometres (2.5 miles) north of the city centre, close to the edge of the urbanised central city area. Much new development is being carried out on the northern edge of Mairehau.
Mairehau | |
|---|---|
Mairehau High School | |
 Interactive map of Mairehau | |
| Coordinates: 43.498884°S 172.640324°E | |
| Country | New Zealand |
| City | Christchurch |
| Local authority | Christchurch City Council |
| Electoral ward |
|
| Community board | Waipapa Papanui-Innes-Central |
| Area | |
| • Land | 348 ha (860 acres) |
| Population (June 2025)[2] | |
• Total | 7,100 |
| • Density | 2,000/km2 (5,300/sq mi) |
| Redwood | Marshland | Prestons |
| Northcote |
  Mairehau  |
Shirley |
| St Albans | Edgeware | Richmond |
The suburb was named after Rose Mairehau (Maire) Hutton (née Rhodes), daughter of Arthur Rhodes, who in turn was Mayor of Christchurch in 1901–1902 and a major local property owner.[3][4]
Demographics
Mairehau, comprising the statistical areas of Mairehau North and Mairehau South, covers 3.48 km2 (1.34 sq mi).[1] It had an estimated population of 7,100 as of June 2025, with a population density of 2,040 people per km2.
| Year | Pop. | ±% p.a. |
|---|---|---|
| 2006 | 5,781 | — |
| 2013 | 6,510 | +1.71% |
| 2018 | 6,870 | +1.08% |
| Source: [5] | ||
Before the 2023 census, Mairehau had a larger boundary, covering 3.61 km2 (1.39 sq mi).[1] Using that boundary, Mairehau had a population of 6,870 at the 2018 New Zealand census, an increase of 360 people (5.5%) since the 2013 census, and an increase of 1,089 people (18.8%) since the 2006 census. There were 2,547 households, comprising 3,321 males and 3,549 females, giving a sex ratio of 0.94 males per female, with 1,335 people (19.4%) aged under 15 years, 1,350 (19.7%) aged 15 to 29, 2,976 (43.3%) aged 30 to 64, and 1,206 (17.6%) aged 65 or older.
Ethnicities were 84.7% European/Pākehā, 10.3% Māori, 4.0% Pasifika, 8.4% Asian, and 2.9% other ethnicities. People may identify with more than one ethnicity.
The percentage of people born overseas was 20.0, compared with 27.1% nationally.
Although some people chose not to answer the census's question about religious affiliation, 51.4% had no religion, 38.0% were Christian, 0.3% had Māori religious beliefs, 0.9% were Hindu, 1.0% were Muslim, 0.5% were Buddhist and 2.1% had other religions.
Of those at least 15 years old, 1,167 (21.1%) people had a bachelor's or higher degree, and 966 (17.5%) people had no formal qualifications. 894 people (16.2%) earned over $70,000 compared to 17.2% nationally. The employment status of those at least 15 was that 2,781 (50.2%) people were employed full-time, 738 (13.3%) were part-time, and 186 (3.4%) were unemployed.[5]
Education
Mairehau High School is a secondary school for years 9 to 13.[8] It has a roll of 418. The school opened in 1961.[9]
Mairehau School is a full primary school catering for years 1 to 8.[10] It has a roll of 359. The school opened in 1953.[11] Birch Grove School closed and merged with Mairehau School in 2004.[12] Glenmoor School closed in 2014.[13]
St Francis of Assisi Catholic School is a state-integrated full primary school catering for years 1 to 8.[14] It has a roll of 463. The school opened in 2016[15] as the result of a merger between Our Lady of Fatima School and St Paul's School.[12]
All these schools are coeducational. Rolls are as of October 2025.[16]