Select committee to debate Ōmokoroa high school petition

Whakamarama mum Jo Linthwaite started the petition in September. File photo /George Novak

A select committee will today grill Ministry of Education officials over a Whakamaramara mum's petition for a high school in or near Ōmokoroa.

Jo Linthwaite's petition for the Ministry to build a high school northwest of the Wairoa River in the Western Bay of Plenty received hundreds of signatures from locals.

It was referred to the education and workforce select committee, and she recently presented it to its members in Auckland.

This morning Ministry of Education officials were expected to present the findings of their investigation into the idea to the committee in Wellington.

Bay of Plenty MP Todd Muller, who will sit on the committee for the discussion, said committee members would be able to question and "cross-examine" the officials on their findings.

While the committee could not direct funding, it could make a recommendation on the matter, he said.

He hoped the parties would see the school as important and that any recommendation would be to support moving it forward sooner rather than later.

Linthwaite said she was excited to see the petition reach this stage.

She said the need for a high school was even greater now than it was when she started her petition in September.

Her hope was that the committee and the Ministry would agree that the need was pressing and expedite any future plans for a school to have it built as soon as possible.

She hoped to see building start within the next two years.

In her petition, she said Tauranga was rapidly expanding and young people living on the outskirts of the city had to travel long distances to attend over-crowded high schools, contributing to traffic congestion throughout the city and leaving students with little time for homework, family engagement and extracurricular activities.