The school moved from its original site in Princes Street to a new base in Camberwell Road two years later.

The school had a roll of around 400 by the outbreak of World War II.

The roll continued to grow in the post-war years, reaching a peak of over 1000 in the early 1970s.

In late 2021, it was announced that Hāwera High School and Hāwera Intermediate would close, and a new, Years 7–13, school would open in 2023.

[5] The new school was named Te Paepae o Aotea, a name gifted by local iwi Ngāti Ruanui and Ngāruahine.