School zones: Where are they needed in Whanganui?

St John's Hill School principal Darren Torrie can only admit 30 out-of-zone students next year. Photo / NZME

School zones could be on the way for more Whanganui schools but the needs of the community are ever-changing.

Laurel Stowell reports.

Of the 39 schools in the Whanganui District only eight - St John's Hill, Durie Hill, Gonville, Kaitoke, Kai Iwi, Mosston, Westmere and Whanganui Collegiate - have zones.

But more could be on the way.

Ministry of Education sector enablement and support deputy secretary Helen Hurst said schools that may soon need enrolment schemes include Upokongaro, Fordell, Te Kura o Kokohuia and Faith City School.

Pupils within a school zone can enrol at any time. Pupils outside it must enrol by a fixed date - this year it was September 29 for all Whanganui's zoned schools, with a ballot for places on October 20.

The zones are a major factor for some parents when they buy a house, Property Brokers Whanganui manager Ritesh Verma says.

When he started selling houses in Whanganui 16 years ago, everyone wanted a house inside the Whanganui High School zone.

The school stopped having a zone in 2018 and these days the St John's Hill and Durie Hill zones are the ones people ask about most.

"We don't recommend any schools. We just work with what the parents have guided us with," Verma said.

St John's Hill School has had an enrolment zone since at least 2003 and it's heading for 420 to 430 pupils when 2022 begins.

The school's zone takes in St John's Hill and parts of Springvale. For 2022 it can take 30 out-of-zone students, but only as new entrants, principal Darren Torrie said.

Torrie wouldn't say how many children the school will be unable to accommodate next year.

"We aren't saying we are better than anyone else. The only reason we have a zone is to ensure that the school isn't overcrowded."

Durie Hill School principal Geoff Simes has to decline applications from out-of-zone students. Photo / Bevan Conley

Durie Hill School has had a scheme since 2007. It was set after consulting with neighbouring schools and with the recommendation and approval of the Ministry of Education.

Every year 10 or 20 families will miss out on places there - and saying "no" is not something principal Geoff Simes enjoys.

Any child living in the zone has a right to enrol at any time, and because people move in and out it's difficult to know how many places are available to out-of-zone students, Simes said.

Faith City School is a state-integrated school with special character.

"We take kids whose parents are Christian. They have to have a pastor or minister sign off that they're functioning in their church," principal Marty Bullock said.

The school's roll is 150.

It's full, has a waiting list and is consulting the ministry on whether it can take in more children.

The result is likely to depend on whether there are places in nearby state schools, Bullock said.

A possible need for an enrolment scheme was news to Upokongaro principal Warren Brown.

He said the school's roll has been stable at around 140 for six to eight years. Enrolment schemes were a "sensitive area", he said.

Carlton and Whanganui Intermediate schools dropped their zones in 2020.

Whanganui High School abandoned its zone in 2018, something principal Martin McAllen is proud of.

When he started there he was immediately concerned that students who lived in some streets close to the school were not in its zone, while others more distant were.

He said it seemed unfair.

He consulted fellow principals about dropping the zone, and none thought it would affect them adversely.

All of Whanganui's secondary schools have strengths and points of difference, McAllen said, and their principals communicate and meet regularly.

When the scheme was implemented in 1999 Whanganui High School's roll was coasting toward 1750.

Now it's back down around 1400, and McAllen said there is enough space for everyone.

No new buildings have been needed, the roll is not capped and the average class size is 23.

Having such a big school is great, he said, because it allows for teaching a wide range of specialist subjects and skills.

Enrolment zones ensure children can go to their local school and that the school is not overcrowded, Hurst said.

The schools with zones agree on annual cut-off dates for enrolment. This year the date was September 29.

Parents are free to enrol their children at a number of zoned schools, and the cut-off means they can't enrol at their second choice if they miss out on their first choice.

The Education Ministry develops school enrolment schemes, in consultation with the school and other nearby schools. It sets a "home zone", from which any child can go to the school.

If there are others that want to attend they are prioritised, over such things as siblings who attend already. If there are others who want a place but don't have priority, they are chosen in a ballot.

Those who miss out go on a waiting list in the order they were chosen on the ballot.

Until the 1970s enrolment schemes ensured new schools got enough pupils, Hurst said.

In the 1980s when rolls declined the schemes shared the available pupils around.

In the 1990s Tomorrow's Schools removed most school zones from state schools, but they returned with the Education Amendment Act 2000.