Head guilty of fowl play

A principal sold his school's pool fence for $4600 on Trade Me to a woman who used it for a chicken coop has pleaded guilty to fraud and theft charges.

Barry Bloomfield, 56, former principal at Huntly West School, admitted he hired a phantom teacher and sold the steel pool fence to a woman who used it to enclose chickens and dogs on her rural property.

But Bloomfield claims he was a victim while at the school and has complained to the Human Rights Commission, saying he was harassed for being gay.

Chairman of the school's board Bob Tukiri refutes the harassment claim.

"He said we called him a poofter but it didn't even happen," Tukiri said. "He has even said he used to lock himself in his office because he feared us."

Tukiri said he had not even known Bloomfield was gay while they worked together. He was angry Bloomfield was trying to make the school look bad after admitting the fraud and theft charges in court.

"He took a lot of money that could have been spent on the children, on computers, sports equipment or trips. He denied us that," said Tukiri.

Bloomfield pleaded guilty to two counts of fraud and two charges of theft when he appeared in the Hamilton District Court in May. He was due to be sentenced on July 31 but he has since disputed some of the facts. A hearing has been set down for October 22.

It is understood the theft charges relate to the employment of a relief teacher, a man who was living in Hong Kong at the time. The Education Ministry paid $17,416 into a bank account for the man but Bloomfield had used the bank card attached to that account. The bogus teacher has since returned to New Zealand and has pleaded guilty to a charge of using a document to obtain pecuniary advantage.

Bloomfield also sold the pool fence on Trade Me for $4600 but told staff there had been no interested buyers so he had got rid of it for $80.

Janet Milne, the Martinborough teacher who bought the fence off Bloomfield early last year, described Bloomfield as a ratbag.

Milne said she had been dragged into the court case to testify against Bloomfield. She could not believe a principal had done such a thing.

"I was horrified, I would have thought a principal would have been a sound person to deal with," she said.

Bloomfield was fired from the school after pleading guilty and the Teachers' Council has launched an investigation into his conduct while principal at Huntly West School.

School Trustees Association employment relations adviser Peter Murphy said Bloomfield had received a salary of more than $100,000 for the 18 months he was suspended as principal. The school had been unable to carry out an employment-related investigation until after the criminal proceedings.

Bloomfield could not be reached for comment. His lawyer Mark Hammond and a spokesperson for the Human Rights Commission declined to comment. The Ministry of Education did not return the Herald on Sunday's call.