NEW SCHOOLS

Evening Post, Volume CVI, Issue 105, 31 October 1923, Page 8

NEW SCHOOLS

A SILVERSTREAM REQUEST

MINISTER AND CONSOLIDATION

POLICY.

.For some years there has. been agitation on the part of the residents o{ Silverstream for the erection of a school in their district, and yesterday afternoon the Minister of Education (the Hon; C: J. Parr), accompanied by the member for the district, Mr. W. H. I. Field, visited Silverstream, and was met by a large deputation of parents in the public hall. Mr. F. Castle presided. The Minister was informed by the chairman that at present some fifty children had to travel daily from Silverstream to the school at Upper Hutt, but the time-table was extremely; unsuitable; The children, it was stated, had to leave at 8 o'clock in the morning, spend thirteen minutes in the train, and then wait about for nearly an hour in the playground for the school to open. This entailed special hardship on the pupils in the primer classes. Some of the parents raised objections to the children having to travel by train to and from school. As the district had become firmly established, it was . confidently predicted that close on a hundred pupils would be available for a new school. Tile Minister stated that the Education Board had placed the request of the Silverstream district ninth on the list of urgent works, therefore it appeared that the board did not look on the' matter as being extremely urgent. Moreover, the Department took the view that while there was accommodation ' at the Upper Hutt School, and a railway service hanay, a new school at Silverstream .was not immediately necessary although he himself, looking ahead had a few months ago authorised the purchase of a site at Silverstream. , To this statement of the Minister, the deputation made reply that the Upper Hutt School was already overcrowded, and a new' school would be required there, if not at Silverstream. Mr. Parr said that he- would visit Upper Hutt himself, and he did so Subsequently, he said- he thought that bUverstream had reached a stage when its claim for an independent school would have to be . considered. He mentioned that a suggestion had been made to him ■that to build a. school at Silverstream would be opposed to the policy of consolidation of country schools. He pointed out, however, that what he was aiming at in the 'matter of consolidating schools was to close the small one-teacher schools in the country and transport the pupils by motor to well-equipped central schools. The growing suburbs of the cities must eventually be provided with schools of their own, notwithstanding the fact, that a y railway'might connect the different districts. Discussing the matter of consolidation of country schools with a "Post" reporter I this morning, the Minister stated that the Jsew Zealand Education'lnstitute-had communicated with him opposing . the erection ot » new school at Silverstream on the ground that such a step would I laad to disintegration rather than consolidation. .

As a suburb grows, however," said J'i'j r> <aud there are 10<> or 200 children available for a school, the district is naturally ambitious to have its own school, especially if there is an ex-' tremely inconvenient railway service, and the ambition should b e satisfied where the condition of the public finances'permits of this being done. I am now awaitmg an expression of opinion from wl?^ UCrf" d Education Board as To winch of two districts, Piopio or Otoro^ han-a should be selected for the first constated school in Auckland In either caS6 it will mean-that seven or eight one-room schools will-ie closed, and the children brought by motor t^Ttll a '^^-central schtol to which there will also be attached a district high school affording the op^U tumty of secondary education " w ii- a _,lar g > ely-attehded meeting of the low t n3t°n ters> fo|! ouT? *Th^T s. carri<>d.' unanimously— lhat tlie of EdticaHnn