A coroner is repeating calls for urgent laws to control cyber bullying in light of a teen taking her life after she set up a Facebook page targeting herself.

The teenager who stole an 82-year-old's car has been sentenced to five months' home detention.

Putting out the welcome mat for Chinese tourists has set up Rotorua's Agrodome for what it hopes will be a record year of growth.

Supporters sobbed as a Rotorua man of "good character" was sent to prison for indecently assaulting a teenager.

Mauled by a dog one year ago, a Rotorua primary school pupil says she is still wary of canines.

A Rotorua man who shot dead his hunting partner and friend James Dodds - after mistaking him for a stag - has been sentenced to six months' home detention.

A man has been charged with assault after a 9-month-old boy was seriously injured in Rotorua two weeks ago.

Principals and support staff across the country have been forced back to school early to deal with the ongoing Novopay debacle.

The memory of Rotorua murder victim Michelle Hoffman-Tamm has been honoured by her neighbours with the unveiling of a park bench and a time capsule.

After almost being knocked unconscious, James Tauariki turned up to the Rerewhakaaitu Rodeo on Sunday ready to compete again in the same event.

A Rotorua man who treated a young girl like a "sex slave'' has been jailed for more than 13 years.

A Tongan overstayer who raped a 17-year-old stranger in a Rotorua park has been jailed for more than eight years.

The head of the company behind the Novopay payroll system has apologised to school staff left unpaid but says he's "bamboozled'' anyone would be in that position.

A 10-year-old boy was seen playing on a rock wall moments before slipping into a thermal pool and suffering fatal burns, a coroner's inquest has heard.

Coroner Wallace Bain is calling for action over the "frightening" number of butane sniffing deaths, warning that even one huff can kill.

A salesman who fell foul of his boss over a blow-up alien doll has been denied compensation.