Whangārei fight involving large number of secondary school students leaves one injured

Students from Whangārei Boys' High School and Whangārei Girls' High School were among those involved in a fight. Photo / Tania Whyte

Students from two prominent high schools in Whangārei were among those involved in a pre-arranged fight during school hours that left one person injured.

A police spokesperson confirmed officers attended “various disorder and wilful damage incidents involving a large group of youths” on Cross and Manse Streets in Regent about 2.30pm on Tuesday.

“Police’s Youth Aid Service will be engaging with the two schools involved,” the spokesperson said.

Hato Hone St John confirmed an ambulance attended the scene and transported one person with moderate injuries to Northland Base Hospital.

Whangārei Boys’ High School principal Karen Gilbert-Smith said there was a pre-arranged fight which students from the school attended, along with students from nearby Whangārei Girls’ High School and some young people not attending any school.

“There was a fight which we are following up from a discipline point of view.”

Gilbert-Smith went to the scene of the fight with other staff members and they managed to get most of the students back to school. There was a large police presence there after a call from staff at a nearby kindergarten who were concerned, she said.

Students leaving school premises during the day was an ongoing issue and the school had emailed parents, asking them to ensure their children were prepared to stay at school all day, Gilbert-Smith said.

The school has also asked nearby businesses, including McDonald’s and the supermarkets, not to serve their students during school hours, as they are not allowed to leave school during the day.

There was another problem with young people who did not attend a school which caused problems in Whangārei, Gilbert-Smith said.

“We don’t have the resources to be out patrolling the streets, as I’m sure any teacher who is out striking at the moment would say... We are struggling to deal with the students who are simply choosing not to be here.”

The school is meeting with agencies such as the Ministry of Education and CitySafe to work on the issue, she added.

The majority of young people in Whangārei were “doing the right thing” and going to school, Gilbert-Smith said.

She was unaware of an ambulance attending or any injuries that resulted from Tuesday’s fight.