Growth in areas losing schools

and

●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●● ● Principals of closing Christchurch schools pleaded for more time to prove what the census has now shown – that more than half the communities losing schools have grown in population.

Detailed 2013 census results reveal that population has grown in the areas where four of the seven schools facing closure by the Ministry of Education are located.

Growth ranges from less than 1 per cent, around Manning Intermediate, up to a 75 per cent increase, around Glenmoor School.

Damage and the ‘‘ongoing impact of people movement’’ following the 2010 and 2011 earthquakes were given as an overall rationale for why the school network could not be restored to the way it was.

The ministry said it followed trends in yet-to-be released school age population data from Statistics New Zealand to guide its planning.

Principals who disagreed with claims that their rolls were dropping say the ministry acted before their populations had a chance to recover.

The area around Phillipstown School has experienced an 8.4 per cent rise in population, which principal Tony Simpson said the ministry ‘‘rolled completely over and ignored’’. ‘‘We said our roll has gone up and [the ministry] disregarded that.’’

The school is waiting for Education Minister Hekia Parata’s response to a judicial review finding that her consultation around the school’s closure and merger with Woolston was unlawful.

‘‘We pleaded for more time to allow for the population to recover. There was evidence-based data that should’ve been on the table before they started consulting with the community on changes,’’ Simpson said.

Closing Branston Intermediate principal Jennifer O’Leary said she provided the ministry with a detailed map of where population was growing in Hornby and suggested any changes wait five years. It was like ‘‘beating our heads against a brick wall’’, she said. ‘‘Everybody knew that people were shifting out here. We knew Everybody knew that people were shifting out here. We knew that there were huge subdivisions. But [the ministry] used the stats to suit themselves.

Jennifer O’Leary Principal of Branston Intermediate, which is closing that there were huge subdivisions. But [the ministry] used the stats to suit themselves.’’

Canterbury Primary Principals’ Association president Rob Callaghan felt school rolls were returning to pre-quake levels, most noticeably within primary schools. He questioned where the ministry got its child distribution figures, but even data from six months ago was ‘‘well out of date now’’.

Education Ministry head of regional operations Katrina Casey said it was important to relate Christchurch’s school changes to the 5000 free desks in schools across greater Christchurch before the quakes, and 9300 extra places after.

Population change was only one factor in deciding where the Government was best to invest its $1 billion in Christchurch’s schools, along with schools’ capacity, and damage to buildings.

‘‘Our decisions are based on long-term trends, not the results of one census.’’

Population was never static, and growth may be mitigated by existing under-capacity in that area, Casey said.

Once Christchurch’s population settled down post-quake, any schools seeing more enrolments were likely to have more facilities funded alongside earthquake remediation work.

New schools were earmarked where growth has been identified in Rolleston, Lincoln, Halswell, Belfast and Rangiora.