LYALL BAY SCHOOL

Dominion, Volume 21, Issue 290, 7 September 1928, Page 12

LYALL BAY SCHOOL

WORK OF REMODELLING ‘‘IT WILL BE DONE” ASSURANCE FROM MINISTER Au undertaking that the Lyall Bay school would be remodelled was given by the Minister of Education (Hon. R. A. Wright) to a deputation, which waited upon him yesterday urging that increased acconunodation be provided to meet the growing needs of the district. Mr. T. Forsyth, M.P., who introduced the deputation, reminded the Minister of the pressing need for increased accommodation at the Lyall Bay School, and said the main request was that the two class-rooms be remodelled into three. It was estimated that the cost would be about £3OO, but, in his opinion, the money would be' well spent. The accommodation problem at Lyall Bay was so acute that fifty-eight children were being taught in St. Jude’s Hall, which had been hired for the purpose. A new school was urgently required to meet the growing needs of the district. Effect of New School. Mr. J. C. Riddell, chairman of the Lyall Bay School Committee, did not agree that the Lyall Bay School had reached the limit in point of numbers. So far as he knew, the Education Board had not ascertained the effect a new. school would have on Lyall Bay. The Minister: Would it not be better to build a new* school? Mr. Riddell: We consider that even if a new school were built iu the district, we would still require further accommodation. The Minister: Not if it were big enough. If five rooms were not sufficient, we would have to build ten. Mr. Riddell maintained that additional, accommodation would have to be provided whether a new school was erected or not. The Minister: Certain boundaries would be defined and the children would have to attend the new school. Mr. Riddell: Of course, we have to look at the facts. The new school is in the air. The Minister: It is no more in the air than the question of providing additional accommodation. Mr. F. J. Evans said that as time went on a -new school in Tirangi Road was becoming more and more necessary. It would be two years before it was erected, and in the meantime the accommodation problem at Lyall Bay was becoming more acute. The Minister : How long do you think it would take to erect the new school? Mr. Evans: Two years. It takes us a year to get a single room. The Minister: You know as well as I do that you should not add to the rooms. Mr. Evans: Yet it is done. The Minister: If a decision is come to, it will not take two years to erect the new school. Mr. Evans: We hope not. If by using the term two years, it helps to hurry along the Department, then we can excuse ourselves for the little exaggeration. ‘‘Beyond Description.” Mrs. H. Bruce, president of the Parents’ Association, said that St. Jude’s Hall was most unsuitable for a class-room, while the sanitary conditions were* beyond description. There was no doubt that the health of the children was being impaired. The parents would, indeed, be grateful to the Minister if he would assure them that it was proposed to provide additional accommodation at the Lyall Bay School. r .. The Minister: I want to be quite candid. I think you have a big enough school now. What you want is a new school. “I want to appeal to you in the name of humanity,” said the next speaker, Mr. H. M. Harris. Mere words, he said, could not describe the sanitary conditions at St. Jude’s. The Minister: If they are so terrible, why was not the matter brought under the notice of the board? Mr. Harris said that the board had been written to recently. There were fifty-eight children of both sexes at St! Jude’s, and only one convenience, which was in a disgraceful state. It was no wonder that there were so many retardate children in New Zealand when such conditions were allowed to exist.

The Minister: How do you account for the fact that there are retardate children all over the world? Mr. Harris: I don’t know about that. The Minister: You have just made a definite statement, yet you say you don’t know.

Mr. Harris: That may be so. All I can say is that the educational system throughout the world must be in a very bad state. If an epidemic broke out in three months’ time the consequences would be very serious. The Minister observed that the children would be on holidays in three months’ time.

Mr. Harris: “Well, in four months’ time. It is all the same.” The roof of the school needed repairing badly, and he suggested that it be replaced with iron. He contended that a new school in Tirangi Road would not relieve the congestion to any great extent.

The Minister: You apparently don’t want your school to be relieved. Mr. Harris: We are not worrying about Tirangi Road. It will not relieve the congestion. The Minister: It will if wc insist on the 'children attending the Tirangi Road "School. Mr. A. C. Blake, a former headmaster, said that Lyall Bay had an extraordinarily large infant department. The children could not be expected to come long distances to school. So. far as St. Jude’s was concerned, bethought that the sooner the children were removed the better. No' Great Belief. Mr. J. J. Clarke thought that a new school in Tirangi Road would, not relieve the congestion as much as they expected. He hoped that the Minister would take a broad view of the matter. The sanitary conditions at St. Jude’s were deplorable. It was fortunate that the corporation had not done its duty. The Minister: Is it not the board’s business to look after them? Mr. Clarke: “I don’t know. Being a member of tho board, I might be inclined to say that it was the Department.” It would have been better to have erected temporary accommodation than have to pay for the hire of the hall. The problem, however, would be solved if a new school were built. It was no good tinkering with the present building. He suggested that a two-story brick building be erected. The roof of the present building was ill a very bad state and during the recent bad weather the children could have played boats inside the school.

.Mr. Forsyth said be would like to make it clear that the board had gone fully into the effect a new school in Tirangi Road would have on the Lyall Bay School. It was considered that a readjustment of the boundaries would overcome many of the difficulties. £le was not aware that conditions at St. Jude’s were as bad as had been stated. He would have to take the blame along with the members of the board. The Broad Outlook. “If we woke up some morning and found that by an act of Providence the school had disappeared,” said Mr. Forsyth, “then I would suggest that a brick building be erected. Although this is electiou year, I am afraid I am not in favour of the erection of a new school just now. We have to take a broad outlook. There are other schools badly needed in various parts of the Dominion. If the Lyall Bay School is remodelled I think that will meet requirements.” Minister's Reply. “It is a curious thing,” said 'the Minister, in replying, “that from one end of New Zealand to the other I have had similar requests from parents and school committees. I am just wonder-ing-whether the fact that this is election year has anything to do with it ”. Mr. Clarke: Don’t you get these requests every year? “Not the same number as I have had this year,” replied the Minister, who went on to say that if conditions at St. Jude’s were as bad as they had been made out to be, it was rather surprising that some action had not been taken before. A Member: The board has been written to. ' The Minister: “Well, it doesn’t seem to have had any effect on them.” It was the duty of the boards to look after the buildings, but the question of adding further rooms could not be considered by the department. The reason was that it was thought that from 700 to 800 children was a sufficient number for one headmaster to control. “The question of remodelling the school is another issue,” continued the Minister. “I think it should be done, and it will be done.” (Applause.) It was the intention of the department to remodel quite a number of schools this year. The erection of a new school in Tirangi Road .would relieve the congestion at the Lyall Bay School. “It will have to, and that is all there is to it,” he declared. “If the parents don’t like to send their children there, that has nothing to do with me. I provide the accommodation; they cannot expect to have a school alongside their house. Somebody must walk. In tlie country they have to walk sometimes two and three miles.” Proceeding, the Minister said that there were no more retarded children in New Zealand than in any other country. The United States had just as many in proportion to population. Unsanitary conditions had nothing to do with the question. The Minister thought that the suggestion by Mr. Clarke that' a brick school should be erected was intended to be more or less humorous. Mr. Clarke: No, it wasn’t. It has to come. The Minister: If we did that we would have to do the same thing all over New Zealand. Mr. Clarke: My suggestion was that the building should be replaced gradually. I was thinking more of the future. Brick Buildings not Favoured. The Minister said a brick school would last for a hundred years, but in twenty-live years’ time public opinion might have changed as to the type of building that should be erected. What wouli. they do with the brick schools then? Mr. Clarke: You won't be blamed. (Laughter.) The Minister: No. The policy of the department is not to build big schools A Member: Would 'here be any objection to having two head masters? The Minister: Yes. They would squabble 1 ( Laughter.)