Tolley looks at more child protection
Coroner’s recommendation to force disclosure being considered by minister
Aloophole in the law which could place children at risk is under scrutiny by Children’s Minister Anne Tolley after warnings from the coroner investigating the death of a 13-year-old.
Cabinet minister Anne Tolley said she was seeking advice over a coroner’s recommendations relating to the death of Reiha McLelland which urged a law change to compel more information for background checks.
At the moment, the law does not force people — such as teachers — to admit they had previously been registered by professional bodies and then rejected for wrong-doing.
The law came under the spotlight after Reiha took her life after the end of an intense relationship with her former teacher Sam Back, 43.
While no evidence of a sexual relationship was found, Back was banned from teaching after evidence of sleepovers at his home and the exchange of 4000 text messages in three months.
As the law stands, nothing forces Back to declare his teaching ban should he seek work with young people. It could mean his contact with Reiha would not be revealed.
Tolley said: “It’s always incredibly sad when a young person takes their own life, and my deepest sympathies go out to Reiha McLelland’s family and friends.”
She said she was seeking a briefing and “if there are recommendations that could help prevent tragic events like this happening again then I will consider them very seriously”.
Coroner Carla na Nagara said the loophole in the Vulnerable Children Act — passed in 2014 — was “troubling”. She said the law needed to be broadened so those wanting to work with children were forced to declare the organisations to which they previously belonged.
Her findings into Reiha’s death said Back was not the cause of the teenager’s death but the “most startling of the factual matrix preceding her death”. The loss of the relationship was a “primary stressor to Reiha in the last three months of her life”.
But na Nagara said Reiha had been suffering “low mood and emotional disregulation” through 2013.
She said Back should have encouraged her to speak with her family or seek professional help.
Reiha’s parents Bruce and Hinemoa McLelland told the Herald that Back betrayed their faith with the relationship he had built with their daughter, and they feared he would do it again.
Hinemoa McLelland said Back appeared to be unaware of crossing boundaries. “My fear is he will pick up a job somewhere like a church group. Those type of people tend to put themselves in a position where he’s around young people and because he’s white, middle class, he’ll get away with it.”
An email from Back and his part- ner Angie Mepham — who was cautioned by the Education Council for her own connection to Reiha — did not rule out Back seeking future contact with children.
Back said: “My relationship with Reiha was one of support. She reached out for support and I treated her as I would treat anyone: with respect, kindness and compassion.”