MORE LAND FOR SCHOOL

Press, Volume C, Issue 29421, 25 January 1961, Page 15

MORE LAND FOR SCHOOL

Mairehau Request Deelined Additional land for the new Mairehau High School will not be purchased by the Education Department in the foreseeable future. A letter from the department received at yesterday’s meeting of the school board declined a request by the board to purchase an additional 5J acres adjoining the school. The school had claimed that the land would be necessary in the future when a greater number of pupils were likely to be in attendance.

“The matter has been fully investigated and it is debatable whether the school will grow as large as suggested,” said Mr T. M. Archer, superintendent of the department in Christchurch. “The sports facilities provided should be ample for the roll which is likely to develop within the foreseeable future.

“Even though some postprimary schools will be permitted to grow to a size much larger than was previously thought desirable, it is not intended to provide larger sites for these schools as it is considered that the present standards are quite generous," said Mr Archer. An extended assembly hall will not be built at the new Mairehau High School although the school roll may ultimately exceed 800.

This information was received in a letter from the Department of Education declining a request by the school board for a larger hall.