Auckland Grammar headmaster defends policy of zero tolerance

Auckland Grammar's approach to zone-dodging students is one of the strictest interpretations of enrolment law principals call a "grey area" and tricky to work with.

The school has cancelled the enrolments of 51 students who ran foul of its policy, leaving many to find new schools to finish the year.

A further nine are still under review by the school board.

Headmaster John Morris said 14 senior students whose enrolments were annulled this week could remain until the end of the year, as could any discovered in future.

However, 37 others who were advised of the annulments earlier in the year would still have to leave unless their appeals to the Ministry of Education succeeded.

The ministry had turned down the appeals of three students, and 18 others were yet to be decided.

Mr Morris acknowledged the school was applying enrolment laws strictly, but said it had no choice and the guidelines needed to be clearer.

"For us, if you move out of the zone, you can expect to move school. That's our reading of the act. There is only limited discretion. I can think of one case where a boy had to leave the zone because of family violence. So there is always some discretion, but otherwise it's black and white."

Ministry of Education northern regional manager Bruce Adin said most schools took a more lenient approach or decided case by case.

"To be fair to Grammar, they are facing a set of pressures that are more acute than other places, largely because they are in a heavily congested area of the central city and because they are the only boys' school."

He said the ministry was reviewing the Grammar students' appeals and could direct a school to keep a pupil in some cases. It took into account the fairness of the decision, the strength of the school's case and the impact on the student's education.

"For example, if a student was in a senior class in a critical period of assessment, for them to have to leave the school would mean more of a disruption than it would for a year-nine student in their first year."

Policies between schools vary widely.

Rangitoto College principal David Hodge said if students had been at the school for two or three years before the family moved, the child could usually stay.

Epsom Girls' Grammar School principal Annette Sharp said the school had some discretion, depending on the reasons for the move and the stage the student was at.

"It is a grey area and it's left to schools to try and interpret it. Often at the time of enrolment the intent was to stay in zone for five years. But we can't look into the future and see what will happen along the way.

"It can be tricky and it's not an easy area to work with."

Mr Morris said the legislation was vaguely worded.

"For instance, what does 'temporary residence' mean? And 'guardianship'. What does that mean? People can give the address of their aunt, who lives in the zone, and say she is a guardian. All those sorts of things need to be explained."

He said Auckland Grammar did not have the space to be more lenient.

National Party spokesman Bill English said the rigidity of the zoning system was forcing parents to extremes and schools were left to take the flak.

"Everyone loses when this happens, particularly the students who are forced out of their school."