Pupil disgusted by vandalism

I am disgusted with the vandals who have been smashing windows at our school, Titahi Bay Primary. Over the last year our school has experienced huge amounts of vandalism and disrespect to school property, including people destroying our rubbish bins, graffiti, and, most of all, smashing our windows.

It eats into the school’s budget and forces us to spend valuable money on windows and other repairs, when it could otherwise

be spent on school equipment and other investments.

Mrs Delaney, the school principal, says that already this year we have spent $4500 on repairs, and now that we need to replace another 21 windows it could be another $4000 wasted.

It is also unfair on the teachers, whose classrooms became hazards because of all the broken glass.

Micah Wratt, a year 6 pupil at our school, says it makes her feel angry and annoyed.

She also says: ‘‘I think it is silly that they do it, and they keep doing it.’’ I totally agree with her.

The vandalism can make pupils feel insecure and anxious when they walk into their classroom and find all the windows have been smashed.

‘‘All the children had to be moved to another space,’’ said Mrs Delaney.

This means that the children’s learning is disrupted and that they have to be crammed into smaller places, such as the school library, so that they have somewhere to work.

Vandalism doesn’t just affect the school. It affects the whole community.

The main question which everyone is asking is: How should the council help with this?

Two possible options are that we could install more security cameras to deter vandals from damaging our school property, or we could lock up the school grounds after 5pm.

The problem with this is that it’s unfair to the people who treat our school with respect.

Should the council pay for the damage to our school?

My opinion is the council should pay for it.

After all, it isn’t the school’s fault that it is being targeted and they have paid for enough repairs already don’t you think?