Far North school under fire for 'easy go' response to pupil who pulled knife on eight-year-old student

The 8-year-old boy told his parents he was too scared to go to school after he was threatened by a classmate. Photo / NZME

A Far North parent hopes no family has to endure the experience they went through when a classmate threatened their eight-year-old son with a pocket knife at school.

The boy's father has hit out at the school for its response to such a serious incident, saying they had to get the Board of Trustees (BoT) and police involved before it was "properly" dealt with.

"Yes, it has taken a long time to be resolved and I still feel like they should have done better to begin with. But I am hopeful that there will be more done in the future so that no other students or parents have to go through this," he said.

This month the boy told his father another pupil – only nine or 10 himself – pulled the knife out and started to ask if he wanted to "get jumped".

The boy was moved to a different class for the rest of his day while the school principal contacted his parents to inform them of what had unfolded.

He returned to school the following day only to phone home and ask if he could be picked up early "because he was scared".

"[My son] was petrified at the thought of returning to school and scared of what the student might do next," the boy's father said.

The day after the incident occurred the father met with the principal, who suggested his son stay at home until he felt more comfortable and while he addressed the other student's behaviour. The Advocate has chosen not to name the school.

The father said the principal told them he would let them know the outcome.

Over the next seven days, they waited to find out what the next steps would be so that their son, too afraid to go to school, could safely return to the classroom.

"We had no offers of support whatsoever – not even any homework," the father said.

Fed up, the parents went to confront the principal with their concerns about how the situation was being handled. They were told the student had been placed on a daily report.

To which they responded: "Is that it?"

"From there [the principal] seemed to have almost switched off to further questions," the father said.

"[We're] frustrated with the easy-go attitude, treating it as though it was a very little thing that had happened and [are] disappointed knowing that the principal of all staff was basically saying, with his lack of action, that bullying and threatening other people is acceptable."

The boy's parents expected the student to be stood down until the school was able to ensure everyone's safety.

Instead, they said, his actions meant their son missed out on a full week of school, which was "complete nonsense".

"We will probably send him to live with his grandparents (elsewhere in Northland) to attend school at the beginning of next year."

The principal has since apologised profusely to the family for his response to the situation and had assigned staff to review the process for this type of behaviour and make necessary changes.

The principal told the Advocate he and the BoT take behavioural issues and any raised concerns "very seriously".

He referred to the school's robust policies around dealing with any issues that occurred that included contacting the New Zealand School Trustees Association and/or Ministry of Education, if necessary, to ensure best practice was followed.

"We also have strong relationships with other agencies or support organisations and make contact whenever this is needed," he said.

"We recognise that our students come from a range of backgrounds and some come to school carrying more burden than others."

The principal said the school worked hard to address issues and reduce inequities to provide students with high-quality education and "the tools they need to lead fulfilling lives" post-school.