Te Awa

For the shopping mall, see The Base (shopping centre).

Te Awa is a suburb of the city of Napier, in the Hawke's Bay region of New Zealand's eastern North Island.

Te Awa
Suburb
Interactive map of Te Awa
Coordinates: 39.515°S 176.917°E / -39.515; 176.917
Country	New Zealand
City	Napier
Local authority	Napier City Council
Electoral ward	Nelson Park
Area
• Land	134 ha (330 acres)
Population  (June 2025)
• Total	2,540
• Density	1,900/km2 (4,910/sq mi)

Napier South	Central Napier
Marewa	Napier South	(Hawke Bay)
Meeanee

The suburb consists of a mix of 1920s small railway workers' houses which survived the 1931 Hawke's Bay earthquake, Art Deco homes built during the 1960s and 1970s, and twenty-first century subdivisions.

Etymology

The name of the suburb comes from the main road — Te Awa Avenue. Te Awa is a shortened form of Te Awatoto (lit. a stream where the canoes are hauled).

Demographics

The statistical area of McLean Park, which corresponds to Te Awa, covers 1.34 km² (0.52 sq mi) and had an estimated population of 2,540 as of June 2025, with a population density of 1,896 people per km².

Historical population

Year	Pop.	±% p.a.
2006	2,478	—
2013	2,406	−0.42%
2018	2,550	+1.17%
2023	2,484	−0.52%
Source:

McLean Park had a population of 2,484 in the 2023 New Zealand census, a decrease of 66 people (−2.6%) since the 2018 census, and an increase of 78 people (3.2%) since the 2013 census. There were 1,191 males, 1,287 females, and 6 people of other genders in 1,032 dwellings. 3.5% of people identified as LGBTIQ+. The median age was 40.9 years (compared with 38.1 years nationally). There were 408 people (16.4%) aged under 15 years, 486 (19.6%) aged 15 to 29, 1,155 (46.5%) aged 30 to 64, and 438 (17.6%) aged 65 or older.

People could identify as more than one ethnicity. The results were 85.5% European (Pākehā); 22.5% Māori; 3.3% Pasifika; 5.0% Asian; 0.6% Middle Eastern, Latin American and African New Zealanders (MELAA); and 3.0% other, which includes people giving their ethnicity as "New Zealander". English was spoken by 97.1%, Māori by 4.8%, Samoan by 0.4%, and other languages by 7.7%. No language could be spoken by 2.3% (e.g. too young to talk). New Zealand Sign Language was known by 0.6%. The percentage of people born overseas was 15.8, compared with 28.8% nationally.

Religious affiliations were 26.3% Christian, 0.8% Hindu, 0.4% Islam, 0.7% Māori religious beliefs, 0.7% Buddhist, 0.6% New Age, 0.1% Jewish, and 2.1% other religions. People who answered that they had no religion were 61.7%, and 6.5% of people did not answer the census question.

Of those at least 15 years old, 468 (22.5%) people had a bachelor's or higher degree, 1,170 (56.4%) had a post-high school certificate or diploma, and 438 (21.1%) people exclusively held high school qualifications. The median income was $40,900, compared with $41,500 nationally. 177 people (8.5%) earned over $100,000 compared to 12.1% nationally. The employment status of those at least 15 was 1,089 (52.5%) full-time, 276 (13.3%) part-time, and 48 (2.3%) unemployed.

Education

Te Awa has two schools:

• Te Awa School, a co-educational Year 1–6 state primary school, with a roll of 164 as of March 2026. It opened in 1925.
• Napier Boys' High School, a single-sex state school, with a roll of 1,328. It opened in 1872.

Residents also use two other schools:

• Napier Intermediate, a co-educational state intermediate school, with a roll of 363, provides intermediate education.
• Napier Girls' High School is single-sex state high school, with a roll of 1,056 as of March 2026.