Parents rally round school after sex allegations

Parents are supporting the school despite being in the dark about what allegedly went on. All say they're simply going by what is being spread on social media. Photo / Michael Craig

Parents of students at Opotiki College are supporting the school despite it being hauled into the spotlight over sexual allegations involving its students.

Police were not commenting any further on the investigation other than to say it was "ongoing", while interim principal Bruce Dale is not commenting.

Security guards that had been stationed outside the college to keep media out were gone yesterday.

The Herald called the mother of one of the students understood to have been involved, however she declined to comment.

Parents are supporting the school despite being in the dark about what allegedly went on. All say they're simply going by what is being spread on social media.

However, one was so shocked by the allegations she went to the school on Thursday to ask if her child was involved.

"They said no, she wasn't ... but [Thursday morning] I was going to pull my daughter out of school concerning all this stuff because my girl's got enough stuff without having to see the security guards outside. I don't really know what's going on, but it's been on the news, on the TV ... on Facebook. I don't know what's true any more."

The woman said Opotiki College was a good school and all her children had attended without any issues.

Another parent said she hadn't had any communication from the school directly, but she wasn't concerned and said it was a good college that had produced some high-achieving students.

One parent believed the story had got out of control.

"It doesn't make sense. If nothing happened at the school and no staff were involved why is the school being dragged into it?"

Opotiki Mayor John Forbes met police on Thursday morning who said the allegations were "minor".

Mr Forbes said it was a shame the school had been dragged into an incident that it had nothing to do with.

"It's not about the college, it's only a small number of our young people who just acted in a completely inappropriate way."

Board chairman Fred Cookson is overseas and unable to be reached for comment, while the school's limited statutory manager Hineihaea Murphy was out of town and also unable to be reached.

A spokeswoman for the Ministry of Education said it couldn't comment on the allegations as its role was to support the college to minimise disruption to the school and its students.