School in denial over bullying: father

Michaela Blaauw. Photo / Supplied

The father of a schoolgirl sent to South Africa after she was bullied at Howick College says the school is in denial if it thinks hers is an isolated case.

De Wet Blaauw met principal Iva Ropati and board of trustees chairman Wayne Johnson yesterday to discuss the case of his daughter Michaela, whose story ran in yesterday's Herald.

He says he had no option but to send his daughter to live with his parents after she was so badly bullied this year that she didn't want to go to school.

Mr Blaauw said the meeting hadn't really resolved anything and was "a bit disappointing".

"The school is of the opinion that they don't actually have a problem and that this is an isolated incident."

Mr Ropati had a different view of the meeting, saying it was very productive and gave the college a chance to reinforce its commitment to "providing a safe environment for all students".

He said further inquiries were being made and the school would report back to Mr Blaauw this week.

After yesterday's report other parents contacted the Herald with complaints about bullying at the decile-10 school.

One mother said her Year 10 son was set upon by five bigger boys this year. He was chased through the school and beaten to the ground after being thrown into the side of a car.

"When on the ground, he was beaten in the back of the head so hard that the attacker broke bones in his hands."

Both her son and the attacker were stood down for one day but she has been waiting for more than four months to hear back from the principal after an initial meeting to discuss it.

The mother said the severity of the bullying was extremely upsetting and one of the bullies had tried to intimidate her while she waited in the car for her son after school.

"The school is not interested. I would have thought that, considering Mr Ropati's 'proactive' approach to former schools, the school would have a zero-bullying mentality and would have taken steps to stamp out this sort of violence."

Another mother said her daughter spent a traumatic year at Howick in 2008 before leaving early last year.

"We were told we may as well remove her from the school, as there was nothing they could do ... I was very disappointed that nothing could be done.

"The bullying was too widespread and it would have been too difficult to contain it.

"Our only option was to send her to a private school, which breaks the bank monthly, but you can't put a price on your child's education or happiness."

Mr Blaauw said he had spoken to several people in the community who had also had problems with Howick College and something more needed to be done.

Mr Ropati said it was difficult to comment about the other claims without full details but he would be happy to follow up on them if contacted by the parents.

He said Howick was a large school that worked hard to provide a safe environment for students and staff.

"We do not tolerate bullying at school and will address any evidence of bullying appropriately. We are actively involved in a number of initiatives that promote healthy relationships within the college."

One of the school's main priorities was to adopt a restorative justice practice that emphasised respect and care.

"We continue to strengthen this area of our school each year and as a consequence have reduced the level of recidivist anti-social behaviour."

The Education Review Office has just completed a review of Howick, which found the school's roll has decreased and there was a pattern of decline in some areas of student achievement.

While there is no specific mention of bullying the report said a continued commitment to restorative approaches was having a positive impact on the school culture.