Paraparaumu
Paraparaumu | |
|---|---|
Town | |
 Interactive map of Paraparaumu | |
| Coordinates: 40°54′52″S 175°00′20″E / 40.91444°S 175.00556°E | |
| Country | New Zealand |
| Region | Wellington Region |
| Territorial authority | Kāpiti Coast District |
| Ward |
|
| Community |
|
| Electorates | |
| Government | |
| • Territorial Authority | Kāpiti Coast District Council |
| • Regional council | Greater Wellington Regional Council |
| • Kāpiti Coast Mayor | Janet Holborow[1] |
| • Ōtaki MP/Mana MP | Tim Costley[2]/Barbara Edmonds[3] |
| • Te Tai Hauāuru MP | Debbie Ngarewa-Packer[4] |
| Area | |
• Total | 28.38 km2 (10.96 sq mi) |
| Population (June 2025)[6] | |
• Total | 29,900 |
| • Density | 1,050/km2 (2,730/sq mi) |
| Postcode(s) | 5032 |
| Area code | 04 |
Paraparaumu[a] is a town in the south-western North Island of New Zealand. It lies on the Kāpiti Coast, 51 kilometres (32 mi) north of the nation's capital city, Wellington. It is also known to residents as Pram or Paraparam.[b]
Like other towns in the area, it has a partner settlement at the coast called Paraparaumu Beach, which is directly opposite Kapiti Island. The two towns form part of the Kāpiti Coast District. Together with nearby Raumati Beach and Raumati South, Paraparaumu serves in part as a commuter town for people working in Wellington City and the wider Wellington metropolitan area. Inland behind Paraparaumu is the Maungakotukutuku area.
The village of Lindale is just north of the Paraparaumu town centre. It began as a tourist and agricultural centre, but later gained a reputation for cheese and the Lindale Barnyard petting farm.[8][9][10]
The old State Highway 1 and the Kāpiti Line section of the North Island Main Trunk railway both pass through Lindale. The railway line was formerly owned by the Wellington and Manawatu Railway Company, and construction of the line was completed when the ends from Wellington and Longburn (Palmerston North) met near Lindale in Otaihanga in 1886. There were proposals to extend the commuter train service operated by Transdev Wellington to a new station at Lindale, subject to Wellington Regional Council funding, but these were dropped when electrification for the commuter service was extended from Paraparaumu to Waikanae.[11]
The majority of shops are located close to the town centre in the Coastlands Mall, close to the train station.
Name and etymology
[edit]Paraparaumu is a Māori-language name meaning "scraps from an earth oven"; parapara means "dirt" or "scraps", and umu means "oven".[12] The name comes from an 1819–1820 expedition of Ngāpuhi and Ngāti Toa, who travelled down the west coast of the North Island from Kāwhia to Cook Strait. As they arrived in the Kāpiti Coast, they found no useful resources.[13]
Paraparaumu is sometimes known by the names "Pram", "Paraparam" or "Pram-Pram".[13]
History
[edit]In August 1936, a train derailed in Paraparaumu as it approached a land slide in rainy weather.[14]
Climate
[edit]Paraparaumu has an oceanic climate typical of New Zealand, with moderately warm summers and mild winters. It has a quite high rainfall frequency year round, although it is drier than many other coastal areas in the country.
| Climate data for Paraparaumu (Kapiti Coast Airport) (1991–2020 normals, extremes 1953–present) | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
| Record high °C (°F) | 29.0 (84.2) |
30.0 (86.0) |
30.0 (86.0) |
26.3 (79.3) |
23.2 (73.8) |
20.0 (68.0) |
19.2 (66.6) |
21.0 (69.8) |
21.8 (71.2) |
25.6 (78.1) |
26.2 (79.2) |
29.3 (84.7) |
30.0 (86.0) |
| Mean maximum °C (°F) | 25.3 (77.5) |
25.3 (77.5) |
24.5 (76.1) |
21.7 (71.1) |
19.3 (66.7) |
17.3 (63.1) |
16.0 (60.8) |
16.5 (61.7) |
17.9 (64.2) |
19.4 (66.9) |
21.3 (70.3) |
23.9 (75.0) |
26.5 (79.7) |
| Mean daily maximum °C (°F) | 21.3 (70.3) |
21.7 (71.1) |
20.3 (68.5) |
17.9 (64.2) |
15.9 (60.6) |
13.7 (56.7) |
12.9 (55.2) |
13.5 (56.3) |
14.7 (58.5) |
16.0 (60.8) |
17.6 (63.7) |
19.7 (67.5) |
17.1 (62.8) |
| Daily mean °C (°F) | 17.4 (63.3) |
17.6 (63.7) |
16.1 (61.0) |
13.8 (56.8) |
12.0 (53.6) |
9.9 (49.8) |
9.0 (48.2) |
9.6 (49.3) |
11.1 (52.0) |
12.6 (54.7) |
13.9 (57.0) |
16.1 (61.0) |
13.3 (55.9) |
| Mean daily minimum °C (°F) | 13.5 (56.3) |
13.5 (56.3) |
11.8 (53.2) |
9.6 (49.3) |
8.2 (46.8) |
6.2 (43.2) |
5.0 (41.0) |
5.8 (42.4) |
7.5 (45.5) |
9.1 (48.4) |
10.3 (50.5) |
12.4 (54.3) |
9.4 (48.9) |
| Mean minimum °C (°F) | 6.1 (43.0) |
5.8 (42.4) |
4.3 (39.7) |
2.1 (35.8) |
0.2 (32.4) |
−1.5 (29.3) |
−2.2 (28.0) |
−1.4 (29.5) |
−0.4 (31.3) |
1.0 (33.8) |
2.6 (36.7) |
5.5 (41.9) |
−3.0 (26.6) |
| Record low °C (°F) | 2.8 (37.0) |
2.9 (37.2) |
0.8 (33.4) |
−0.5 (31.1) |
−3.3 (26.1) |
−4.4 (24.1) |
−4.8 (23.4) |
−4.1 (24.6) |
−3.8 (25.2) |
−1.7 (28.9) |
−0.4 (31.3) |
1.7 (35.1) |
−4.8 (23.4) |
| Average rainfall mm (inches) | 59.7 (2.35) |
67.6 (2.66) |
66.7 (2.63) |
80.5 (3.17) |
97.1 (3.82) |
108.6 (4.28) |
103.7 (4.08) |
95.5 (3.76) |
90.2 (3.55) |
107.8 (4.24) |
80.9 (3.19) |
88.8 (3.50) |
1,047.1 (41.23) |
| Mean monthly sunshine hours | 234.4 | 212.6 | 202.5 | 158.7 | 134.5 | 104.0 | 123.0 | 153.9 | 151.9 | 178.3 | 204.5 | 206.2 | 2,064.5 |
| Source: NIWA[15][16] | |||||||||||||
Paraparaumu is one of four places in New Zealand where weather balloons are regularly launched for MetService.[17]
Demographics
[edit]Paraparaumu is described by Stats NZ as a medium urban area, which covers 28.38 km2 (10.96 sq mi),[5] which includes Otaihanga, Paraparaumu Beach, Raumati Beach and Raumati South. It had an estimated population of 29,900 as of June 2025, with a population density of 1,054 people per km2.
| Year | Pop. | ±% p.a. |
|---|---|---|
| 2006 | 25,260 | — |
| 2013 | 26,838 | +0.87% |
| 2018 | 28,701 | +1.35% |
| 2023 | 28,938 | +0.16% |
| The 2006 population is for a larger area of 28.61 km2. Source: [18][19] | ||
Paraparaumu had a population of 28,938 in the 2023 New Zealand census, an increase of 237 people (0.8%) since the 2018 census, and an increase of 2,100 people (7.8%) since the 2013 census. There were 13,749 males, 15,063 females, and 123 people of other genders in 11,661 dwellings.[20] 3.6% of people identified as LGBTIQ+. The median age was 46.4 years (compared with 38.1 years nationally). There were 4,890 people (16.9%) aged under 15 years, 4,215 (14.6%) aged 15 to 29, 12,828 (44.3%) aged 30 to 64, and 7,005 (24.2%) aged 65 or older.[18]
People could identify as more than one ethnicity. The results were 87.5% European (Pākehā); 13.5% Māori; 3.9% Pasifika; 7.3% Asian; 1.1% Middle Eastern, Latin American and African New Zealanders (MELAA); and 2.7% other, which includes people giving their ethnicity as "New Zealander". English was spoken by 97.6%, Māori by 2.6%, Samoan by 0.5%, and other languages by 10.7%. No language could be spoken by 1.7% (e.g. too young to talk). New Zealand Sign Language was known by 0.7%. The percentage of people born overseas was 24.7, compared with 28.8% nationally.[18]
Religious affiliations were 30.9% Christian, 1.1% Hindu, 0.3% Islam, 0.4% Māori religious beliefs, 0.6% Buddhist, 0.6% New Age, 0.1% Jewish, and 1.3% other religions. People who answered that they had no religion were 58.2%, and 6.6% of people did not answer the census question.[18]
Of those at least 15 years old, 6,114 (25.4%) people had a bachelor's or higher degree, 12,876 (53.5%) had a post-high school certificate or diploma, and 5,055 (21.0%) people exclusively held high school qualifications. The median income was $40,100, compared with $41,500 nationally. 3,468 people (14.4%) earned over $100,000 compared to 12.1% nationally. The employment status of those at least 15 was 11,175 (46.5%) full-time, 3,354 (13.9%) part-time, and 591 (2.5%) unemployed.[18]
| Name | Area (km2) |
Population | Density (per km2) |
Dwellings | Median age | Median income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Paraparaumu Beach | 5.12 | 9,213 | 1,799 | 3,765 | 47.9 years | $40,100[21] |
| Paraparaumu (further breakdown below) | 14.67 | 10,689 | 729 | 4,284 | 45.7 years | $38,100[22] |
| Raumati Beach and Raumati South | 8.59 | 9,036 | 1,052 | 3,612 | 45.7 years | $43,100[23] |
| New Zealand | 38.1 years | $41,500 |
| Name | Area (km2) |
Population | Density (per km2) |
Dwellings | Median age | Median income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Otaihanga | 4.16 | 855 | 206 | 309 | 44.9 years | $44,700[24] |
| Paraparaumu North | 3.53 | 3,576 | 1,013 | 1,431 | 48.6 years | $40,500[25] |
| Paraparaumu Central | 4.46 | 3,966 | 889 | 1,713 | 44.5 years | $36,300[26] |
| Paraparaumu East | 2.51 | 2,295 | 914 | 828 | 42.6 years | $35,900[27] |
| New Zealand | 38.1 years | $41,500 |
Economy
[edit]Retail
[edit]Coastlands Shopping Centre opened in Paraparaumu in 1969.[28] It has 1400 carparks and 94 shops, including Pak'nSave, The Warehouse, Farmers and Woolworths.[29]
Sport
[edit]Paraparaumu was formerly represented in soccer/football by Paraparaumu United. They merged with the Raumati Hearts in 2003 to create Kapiti Coast United, which is based at Weka Park in Raumati.
The local athletics club is Paraparaumu Track and Field Club, which has both junior and senior members in conjunction with Athletics Wellington and Athletics New Zealand age grades. The club is based at the Paraparaumu Domain.[30]
Paraparaumu Beach also has a golf course. It has hosted the New Zealand Open a total of 12 times, a record unsurpassed by any other course.[31]
Transport
[edit]Airport
[edit]Kapiti Coast Airport has a few scheduled commercial flights and is a popular recreational airfield, hosting the Kapiti Aero Club. Air Chathams will have daily flights between the airport and Auckland from 20 August 2018,[32] and Sounds Air operate to Blenheim and Nelson. Now defunct, locally based Air2there used operate to Blenheim and Nelson also. Prior to the mid 2010s Air New Zealand used to have scheduled services to Kapiti Coast Airport with their ATR-42s and Q-400/ DHC-8s. This was then cancelled in the mid 2010s.
Public transport
[edit]Paraparaumu is located on the North Island Main Trunk Railway (NIMT), on the Kāpiti Line of Wellington's commuter railway network operated by Transdev under the Metlink brand. Electrified commuter services were extended to Waikanae on 20 February 2011. Korean built by Hyundai Rotem, FP/FT class electric multiple units operate the commuter trains.
Beyond Waikanae, KiwiRail's Great Journeys New Zealand division operates two diesel-hauled long distance passenger services: the Capital Connection between Palmerston North and Wellington, and the Northern Explorer between Auckland and Wellington.
There are also feeder and local commuter bus service operated by Metlink.
Education
[edit]Primary schools
[edit]Paraparaumu School is a state primary school for Year 1 to 8 Students with a roll of 330[33] It opened in a building "on skids" in 1889 and moved to a new building on the current site in 1890. A fire in 2014 caused extensive damage to the school.[34]
Kapiti School is a state primary school for Year 1 to 8 students,[35][36] with a roll of 92.[37] The school was open by 1973.[38]
Our Lady of Kapiti School is a state-integrated Catholic primary school for Year 1 to 8 students,[39][40] with a roll of 295[41] It is named after a large statue of the Virgin Mary located near by.[42] The school opened in 2017, replacing St Patrick's School, which had opened in 1954.[43]
All these schools are co-educational. Rolls are as of October 2025.[44]
Paraparaumu Beach and Kenakena Schools are covered at Paraparaumu Beach#Education. Raumati Beach School is covered at Raumati Beach#Education. Raumati South and Te Rā Schools are covered at Raumati South#Education.
Secondary schools
[edit]Three secondary schools are located near the Paraparaumu township: Paraparaumu College in Paraparaumu Beach,[45] Kāpiti College in Raumati Beach[46] and Ōtaki College in Ōtaki.[47]
Notable residents
[edit]- James Ashcroft – film director
- Christian Cullen – rugby union footballer
- Stephen Kearney – rugby league footballer and coach
- Wayne McIndoe – field hockey player
- Drew Ne'emia – former television presenter
- Andrew Niccol – film director
Educated in Paraparaumu
[edit]- Peter Jackson at Kāpiti College – film director[citation needed]
- Dane Coles at Paraparaumu College – All Blacks player[48]
- Karl Kippenberger at Kāpiti College – bass player in Shihad[citation needed]
Notes
[edit]- ^ "Final election results". Kāpiti Coast District Council. Retrieved 18 October 2025.
- ^ "Ōtaki – Official Result". Electoral Commission. Retrieved 9 January 2026.
- ^ "Mana - Official Result". New Zealand Electoral Commission. Retrieved 15 January 2026.
- ^ "Te Tai Hauāuru - Official Result". Retrieved 20 April 2025.
- ^ a b "Stats NZ Geographic Data Service". Urban Rural 2023 (generalised). Retrieved 12 January 2026.
- ^ "Subnational population estimates - Aotearoa Data Explorer". Statistics New Zealand. Retrieved 29 October 2025.
- ^ "Māori Phonology". Archived from the original on 21 July 2011. Retrieved 8 October 2007.
- ^ "Weblog NZ feature, April 2003". Archived from the original on 20 December 2016. Retrieved 23 November 2018.
- ^ OSNZ – Breeding biology of little shags (Phalacrocorax melanoleucos) at Lindale
- ^ "Lindale Village". Archived from the original on 23 November 2018. Retrieved 23 November 2018.
- ^ "Scoop – Lindale Bridge nearly finished, October 2004". Archived from the original on 29 October 2004. Retrieved 23 November 2018.
- ^ "Chris Maclean, "Wellington Places – Kapiti Coast", Te Ara". Archived from the original on 27 April 2008. Retrieved 20 June 2008.
- ^ a b Justine, Murray (20 September 2022). "Nau Mai Town – Episode 2: Paraparaumu". RNZ. Retrieved 17 May 2024.
- ^ "Landslide-related fatalities in New Zealand" (PDF). Te Ara: The Encyclopedia of New Zealand. Archived (PDF) from the original on 27 September 2023. Retrieved 18 October 2023.
- ^ "CliFlo – National Climate Database : Paraparaumu Aero". NIWA. Retrieved 20 May 2024.
- ^ "CliFlo -The National Climate Database (Agent numbers: 3145, 3147, 3316, 8567, 12442)". NIWA. Retrieved 20 July 2024.
- ^ "Weather balloons". MetService. 29 December 2014. Retrieved 2 February 2025.
- ^ a b c d e "Totals by topic for individuals, (RC, TALB, UR, SA3, SA2, Ward, Health), 2013, 2018, and 2023 Censuses". Stats NZ – Tatauranga Aotearoa – Aotearoa Data Explorer. Paraparaumu (1391). Retrieved 3 October 2024.
- ^ "Statistical area 1 dataset for 2018 Census". Statistics New Zealand. March 2020. Paraparaumu Beach North (237000), Paraparaumu Beach West (237100), Paraparaumu Beach East (237300), Otaihanga (237400), Paraparaumu North (237500), Paraparaumu Central (237800), Raumati Beach West (238000), Raumati Beach East (238300), Paraparaumu East (238400) and Raumati South (238500).
- ^ "Totals by topic for dwellings, (RC, TALB, UR, SA3, SA2, Ward, Health), 2013, 2018, and 2023 Censuses". Stats NZ – Tatauranga Aotearoa – Aotearoa Data Explorer. Retrieved 3 October 2024.
- ^ "Totals by topic for individuals, (RC, TALB, UR, SA3, SA2, Ward, Health), 2013, 2018, and 2023 Censuses". Stats NZ - Tatauranga Aotearoa - Aotearoa Data Explorer. Paraparaumu Beach. Retrieved 3 October 2024.
- ^ "Totals by topic for individuals, (RC, TALB, UR, SA3, SA2, Ward, Health), 2013, 2018, and 2023 Censuses". Stats NZ - Tatauranga Aotearoa - Aotearoa Data Explorer. Paraparaumu. Retrieved 3 October 2024.
- ^ "Totals by topic for individuals, (RC, TALB, UR, SA3, SA2, Ward, Health), 2013, 2018, and 2023 Censuses". Stats NZ - Tatauranga Aotearoa - Aotearoa Data Explorer. Raumati. Retrieved 3 October 2024.
- ^ "Totals by topic for individuals, (RC, TALB, UR, SA3, SA2, Ward, Health), 2013, 2018, and 2023 Censuses". Stats NZ - Tatauranga Aotearoa - Aotearoa Data Explorer. Otaihanga. Retrieved 3 October 2024.
- ^ "Totals by topic for individuals, (RC, TALB, UR, SA3, SA2, Ward, Health), 2013, 2018, and 2023 Censuses". Stats NZ - Tatauranga Aotearoa - Aotearoa Data Explorer. Paraparaumu North. Retrieved 3 October 2024.
- ^ "Totals by topic for individuals, (RC, TALB, UR, SA3, SA2, Ward, Health), 2013, 2018, and 2023 Censuses". Stats NZ - Tatauranga Aotearoa - Aotearoa Data Explorer. Paraparaumu Central. Retrieved 3 October 2024.
- ^ "Totals by topic for individuals, (RC, TALB, UR, SA3, SA2, Ward, Health), 2013, 2018, and 2023 Censuses". Stats NZ - Tatauranga Aotearoa - Aotearoa Data Explorer. Paraparaumu East. Retrieved 3 October 2024.
- ^ "Coastlands History". coastlands.co.nz. Coastlands Shoppingtown Ltd. Archived from the original on 23 October 2020. Retrieved 22 October 2020.
- ^ "Coastlands – Stores". coastlands.co.nz. Coastlands Shoppingtown. Archived from the original on 23 October 2020. Retrieved 22 October 2020.
- ^ "Paraparaumu Track & Field Club". Archived from the original on 16 April 2022. Retrieved 19 January 2021.
- ^ "Discover – Paraparaumu Beach Golf Club". Archived from the original on 16 April 2022. Retrieved 9 April 2022.
- ^ "Air Chathams will pick up Paraparaumu to Auckland flight route". The New Zealand Herald. Archived from the original on 4 April 2023. Retrieved 2 July 2018.
- ^ "Paraparaumu School - Education Counts". www.educationcounts.govt.nz.
- ^ "School History". Paraparaumu School. Retrieved 12 January 2026.
- ^ "Kapiti School Official School Website". kapiti.school.nz. Archived from the original on 5 June 2020. Retrieved 5 June 2020.
- ^ "Kapiti School Ministry of Education School Profile". educationcounts.govt.nz. Ministry of Education. Archived from the original on 5 June 2020. Retrieved 5 June 2020.
- ^ "Kapiti School Education Review Office Report". ero.govt.nz. Education Review Office. Archived from the original on 6 May 2023. Retrieved 6 May 2023.
- ^ "Untitled" (PDF). Genealogy New Zealand. p. 64.
- ^ "Our Lady of Kapiti School Official School Website". stpatspara.school.nz. Archived from the original on 5 May 2017. Retrieved 5 June 2020.
- ^ "Our Lady of Kapiti School Ministry of Education School Profile". educationcounts.govt.nz. Ministry of Education. Archived from the original on 5 June 2020. Retrieved 5 June 2020.
- ^ "Our Lady of Kapiti School Education Review Office Report". ero.govt.nz. Education Review Office. Archived from the original on 6 May 2023. Retrieved 6 May 2023.
- ^ "New Our Lady of Kāpiti church and centre opened". NZ Catholic Newspaper. 25 June 2020. Retrieved 24 August 2023.
- ^ Scullion, Annette (April 2017). "New school opens for Our Lady of Kāpiti Parish". Catholic Archdiocese of Wellington.
- ^ "New Zealand Schools Directory". New Zealand Ministry of Education. Retrieved 1 October 2025.
- ^ "Paraparaumu College - Education Counts". www.educationcounts.govt.nz.
- ^ "Kāpiti College - Education Counts". www.educationcounts.govt.nz.
- ^ "Ōtaki College - Education Counts". www.educationcounts.govt.nz.
- ^ "Coles gives prized All Blacks jersey to Paraparaumu College". The New Zealand Herald. 31 May 2016. Retrieved 10 November 2023.
- ^ /ˌpærəpəˈraʊmuː/, thouɡh typically pronounced /ˌpærəˌpærəˈuːmuː/. In Māori vowels are run together (even when they are brought together by the creation of compound words), as in [ˌpaɾapaˈɾaʉmʉ] ⓘ.[7]
- ^ /ˈpræm/ and /ˌpærəˌpəˈræm/, respectively
| International | |
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| National | |
| Other | |
