Piopio, New Zealand

Piopio is a small town in the Waitomo District. It is situated on approximately 23 km from Te Kūiti.

Demographics
Statistics New Zealand describes Piopio as a rural settlement, which covers 2.01 km2 and had an estimated population of as of  with a population density of  people per km2. The settlement is part of the larger Aria statistical area.

Piopio had a population of 465 at the 2018 New Zealand census, an increase of 69 people (17.4%) since the 2013 census, and a decrease of 3 people (−0.6%) since the 2006 census. There were 171 households, comprising 234 males and 234 females, giving a sex ratio of 1.0 males per female, with 120 people (25.8%) aged under 15 years, 93 (20.0%) aged 15 to 29, 177 (38.1%) aged 30 to 64, and 78 (16.8%) aged 65 or older.

Ethnicities were 69.0% European/Pākehā, 49.0% Māori, 1.3% Pacific peoples, and 1.3% Asian. People may identify with more than one ethnicity.

Although some people chose not to answer the census's question about religious affiliation, 56.8% had no religion, 23.9% were Christian, 5.2% had Māori religious beliefs, 1.3% were Buddhist and 2.6% had other religions.

Of those at least 15 years old, 33 (9.6%) people had a bachelor's or higher degree, and 99 (28.7%) people had no formal qualifications. 30 people (8.7%) earned over $70,000 compared to 17.2% nationally. The employment status of those at least 15 was that 153 (44.3%) people were employed full-time, 72 (20.9%) were part-time, and 18 (5.2%) were unemployed.

Marae
There are marae in the area, affiliated with the hapū of Ngāti Maniapoto:
 * Mōkau Kohunui Marae and Ko Tama Tāne meeting house are affiliated with Apakura, Ngāti Kinohaku and Waiora
 * Napinapi Marae and Parekahoki meeting house are affiliated with Ngāti Matakore and Pare te Kawa
 * Te Paemate Marae and meeting house are affiliated with Paemate
 * Mangarama Mara and Rongorongo meeting house are affiliated with Apakura.

Education
Piopio College provides high school education for Year 7 to 13 students, with a roll of

Piopio School provides primary education for new entrants and Year 1 to 6 students, with a roll of.

Both schools are coeducational. Rolls are as of

Notable people

 * Hannah Osborne (born 1994), Olympic rower
 * Merv Smith (1933–2018), broadcaster
 * Cortez Ratima (born 2001), rugby union player