Support for high school

Press, 9 June 1980, Page 6

Support for high school

Strong support for a secondary school in : Halswell has been shown in a survey made by tire Halswell. High School Action Committee. The survey results were released yesterday sby the committee, which took,, it among 1008 households -in the district in April and May last year. ' , Only, householders and their children of school And pre-school age were covered. The projected number of children in the high school age group' in the next' five years is 379, 397, 441,- 479, and 482.

The committee’s, chairman (Mr M. Thorman) said it was noticeable that the number of children ’.;, .dropped sharply from 103 aged 12 to 61 aged 13. . 'This bears : out the - impressions received by; interviewers that a significant number'of. families werq so dissatisfied with the existing provision of secondary education, that they were planning to move out of the area as their children reached high school age.” i Parents were asked which I

high school they intended their'children .to attend, and whether ■ they would send them to a, .Halswell High School if- there was one.

than 85 per cent said ’they would send their children to- a Halswell high '

"It is noteworthy that 82 children whose parents at present intend to send them to schools other than Lincoln ,'or.. Hillmorton high schools would be sent to -a Halswell. high school,” Mr Thorman-said. It was clear, he said, that there, was considerable • dissatisfaction among Halswell residents oyer., secondary schooling for children in the area. -

Many; families had settled in 'the area on the. understanding that 'a high school would be built in" the immediate‘future. . "The survey shows . that there are, and will be for the fprseeable future, sufficient numbers of children in die area to make a viable proposition .of at least a Form I to Form 7 high school/ Mr Thorman said.