Boys-only school says girls welcome

By REBECCA WALSH

St Kentigern College plans to open its doors to girls in the next two to three years.

The private boys school, which opened in 1953, has decided to educate girls at its Pakuranga campus.

It is one of a growing number of boys schools around the country to go co-educational.

Trust board general manager Miles Coney said the board believed in a broadly based education for boys and girls.

Initially, the school's trust deed did not allow it to educate girls but in 1995 an act of Parliament changed that.

"The desire to provide education for girls developed during the 1980s ... It was just a general societal change. The original trustees had been replaced by people with a different viewpoint on education."

Mr Coney said financial reasons were not the "main driver" in opening the school to girls, although increased income was a potential benefit.

The school would face further costs preparing for girls. It would have to employ new teachers, both male and female, and build classrooms.

Mr Coney said the school would only enrol day girls. The initial uptake was likely to be up to a couple of hundred.

"At this stage we haven't made up our minds at what age. They will probably be primary-age girls or intermediate/junior secondary girls ... We think that's where the demand is likely to be based on the inquiries we receive."

The school received many inquiries from parents in the eastern and southern suburbs asking when the school would open its doors to girls, he said.

"The simple facts of life are there are no independent girls schools in this part of Auckland."

It was likely co-educational classes would be run at the junior and senior levels while girls-only classes would be run for forms one to five.

Mr Coney said boys at the school knew about the general plan to enrol girls and their response was "neutral to favourable." Old boys surveyed supported the move.

He hoped the school would be able to offer places to girls in 2002 but it was more likely to be the following year.

King's College has enrolled sixth and seventh-form girls since 1980.

Mt Albert Grammar took girls in for the first time this year and has 134 third-formers.

Principal Greg Taylor said the move had worked even better than expected.

St Cuthbert's College principal Lynda Reid said her school, which has a waiting list, had no plans to enrol boys.

A survey of parents and the wider community in 1998 had emphatically rejected the idea.

"We believe girls thrive in an environment designed for them.

"We as a school would believe you can't graft boys onto an environment designed for girls."

Lynda Reid believed boys-only schools were still a popular choice, citing the demand for places at Auckland Grammar.