Aorangi School takes fight to court

BY TINA LAW

Christchurch's Aorangi School is taking its fight for survival to the High Court, after a decision to close it was confirmed yesterday.

"It's not over yet, not by a long shot," Aorangi School board of trustees chairman Greg Thompson said last night.

"We're feeling a bit down today, but we'll be back up fighting tomorrow."

Education Minister Anne Tolley announced yesterday she would close the decile 3 school in the city's northwest on January 27.

She could not justify spending more than $2 million to replace school buildings, she said.

"This has not been an easy decision to make, but after considering final submissions from the school and the Education Ministry, I believe it is the right one," Tolley said.

Prime Minister John Key is a former Aorangi pupil.

Thompson was upset that Tolley did not give the school enough time to inform staff, pupils and parents before the closure was announced publicly.

Tolley's decision was met with disbelief, anger and tears yesterday.

The school has 27 staff, including teachers, administrators and teacher aides, now facing unemployment.

Parent Sacha Toby, who was trying to comfort her crying 10-year-old daughter, Br'ee, said telling her two daughters that the school would close was like telling them someone had died.

Toby was worried about how her children would settle into a new school without a bilingual unit.

"I know what I'd like to say, but you can't publish that," Toby said.

Aorangi School principal Stephanie Thompson said the decision defied logic.

"It's always been about what is appropriate for the children. I do not see how this decision is in the best interests of the community and the children."

She said the decision sent a clear message that the National-led Government did not believe a low socio-economic, multicultural part of Christchurch was as important as other groups.

"We've just got to hope that natural justice will occur and that democracy will win over bureaucracy.

"Since when does bureaucracy get to rule over what the people say?

"I didn't think we lived in that society."

Board of trustees member Andrew Oh said the school would be instructing its lawyers to file an injunction in the High Court to delay the closure until 2011.

If it got the injunction, it would then file for a judicial review to overturn the decision and keep the school open.

There was too little time to transfer Aorangi's 88 pupils to other schools and re-establish the bilingual unit, he said.

Tolley said she was committed to ensuring there was bilingual education in the area.

Gaven Tucker, a teacher at Aorangi for seven years, said the school was his second home and he was gutted.

His pupils were going to be devastated and would find the news incredibly hard.

"We've been trying not to make it a focus. We've told the kids they will be fine, but they know this is the best place for them."

Greg Thompson and principal Stephanie Thompson were given the news by an Education Ministry official at a meeting at Christchurch International Airport about 4pm yesterday.

- © Fairfax NZ News