Charter school under threat of closure

DEADLINE: The charter school Te Kura Hourua ki Whangaruru is dangerously close to being closed after it received a warning letter from the Ministry of Education. PHOTO/FILE

The deadline for a Northland charter school to sort its issues passed yesterday with a final decision on the kura's future expected next month.

Te Pumanawa o te Wairua was last month given 28 days by Minister of Education Hekia Parata to address significant problems with auditors going through the school over the next three weeks.

The kura - originally named Te Kura Hourua ki Whangaruru - was one of the first five charter schools to open last year.

Located on a 81ha farm about 65km north of Whangarei, it was set up as a secondary school particularly targeting Maori students on the margins of mainstream education.

Ms Parata cited the school's drop in roll and rate of truancy as reasons for the audit. However, last year the school also faced issues with bullying, drug abuse on campus, the resignation of a co-director and under-staffing.

A report from Ministry of Education head of sector enablement and support Katrina Casey to Ms Parata on February 5 outlined school leadership as the biggest issue: "The ongoing issues present at the school are directly attributed to the quality of the leadership and management running the school."

The school's backers have said they will sort out the leadership issues and a decision on the future of the school was expected sometime next month.

The rural Whangaruru school has two blocks of classrooms and a large shed that is used as a hall, recreation room and kitchen. The school was set up with more than $2.4 million of taxpayer money, including $620,000 that was used to buy the 81ha farm property which is in the name of the trust.

Charter schools were part of the confidence and supply arrangement the National Government made with the Act Party.