Schools cautioned on push to search pupils

It is inevitable that a pupil will take a school to court for being searched for weapons or drugs, the Education Ministry is advising principals.

New Zealand's biggest secondary principals union is pleading with Education Minister Anne Tolley and the ministry to urgently develop a policy giving schools the power to search pupils.

Mrs Tolley has instructed the ministry to do some "urgent work" on the matter.

However, the privacy commissioner says that pupils should not be searched unless consent has been given.

Secondary Principals Association president Patrick Walsh's concerns follow growing levels of violence in classrooms, including two stabbings of teachers.

Mr Walsh said the ministry had provided schools with some guidelines, but was worried the advice left schools open to court action under the Bill of Rights.

The section of the ministry's guidelines that concerned him says: "In the absence of a court ruling, schools find themselves in the uncertain position of leaving themselves open to a claim ... It is inevitable that at some point, a student will bring an action in the court."

An incident on May 9 at Te Puke High School in which a teacher was stabbed three times in the neck and shoulder by a 13-year-old boy and drug searches at other schools highlighted the "uncertainty of the law", Mr Walsh said.

"Legal opinion is divided on whether schools have the power of search and if so, under what conditions. There is no specific law which permits schools to conduct searches."

A section of the Bill of Rights protected pupils from unreasonable search and seizure, he said. "It is accepted that the [ministry] cannot give a definitive answer.

"It would be useful, however, if their legal division could develop a generic school policy and undertake to provide support to the unfortunate school who lands up in court as the test case."

Although the number of pupils taking weapons and drugs into schools was a minority, it was hard for schools to prove this without having the power to search.

Privacy Commissioner Marie Shroff said if there was a threat to safety, schools should call police, rather than search pupils.

"I am sure that principals will approach this potentially controversial issue with real caution. They will already know that there are many potential pitfalls for schools in carrying out searches of students.

"Students should not normally be subject to body searches unless they or their parents have given consent."

She has offered to help the ministry prepare guidelines for schools.

Mrs Tolley said she had spoken to Mr Walsh about his concerns and was happy to talk to him again.

Ministry spokesman Rawiri Brell said there were no specific powers for schools to search pupils. Instead schools had to ensure their policies conformed with the Bill of Rights.

"First there must be reasonable grounds to commence a search and ... the search must be done in a reasonable way."

- © Fairfax NZ News