School Buildings.

Star (Christchurch), Issue 6654, 20 September 1889, Page 3

School Buildings.

JHE NOItTH CA.NTIiBBUE.Y BOARD'S GI?,IEVA.N(.:£. The Napier EJue*tion Board is not siuguiar in having troubltß with the Government in respect of bnilding granta. Our own Board of Norl h Canterbury baa had to furht its battles with, the Department in Wellington in the same cause, and has good reason to complain of unfair treatment. Iv order to ascertain how inatteru stood, one of our reporters waited on Mr J. Colbomo-Vbel, tho Secretary to the Board, and obtiiined from him the following information : — "Grants received for school buildings," said MrVeel, ' f are on a different", footing from grants for ordinary purposes of education. The latter grants are defrayed out of tho capitation allowance, at the rate of £3 15s per head ou the average attendance. The amount the Board receives under the capitation arningeuientisnomorethansuffieient for tbe maintenance of school work and incidental grants to Committees. Small repairs, such as would require the expenditure of only £1 or £2 can be provided ior out of tins fund, but nothing of any greater extent. Then for the new buildings, enlargement of buildings, and for any considerable repairs, we are dependent on the grant made from year to year. What has put un at present rather in difficulty ia the action of the G-"*eninient in withholding p«rt of' the grd t aade last year. That ia the great c:ri evince, we havo against the Government. In the session previous to that just concluded, Parliament voted .£30,000 for school buildings. The Government distributed .£24,000 among the various Education Boards by instalments, and we expected our share of the balance iv due course. We wrote to tho Government several tirneß about the matter, pressing that the balance of the grant should be given, without getting any reply. At last we found the Government's intention wai not to distribute the balance of the grant at all. Parliament met and Government took credit to themeelves for the Raving they had effected! The whole amount of tho grant to Canterbury was but small, and the loss of this part of it wa3 a eerious matter, and throws us behind-hand. The Board now haa overdrawn its building account by about We are writing to Government in much the same way as the Napier people, asking for the. ni( ney now voted as soon as possible, because v c are getting embarrassed for want of fuuds. TRUSSING BEQTJIRIMENTS. " There are several pressing matters, such, ns the Sydenham case and the over- i crowding at New Brighton. Sydenham has been a difficult matter to deal with some time in conEequence of increasing attendance. Wo have enlarged the school, and incdfi it as big as a school ought to be — in fact bigger. Still, that was not enough, and wo rented St Saviour's schoolroom. Now a new building is required, and it must be a large one, at least capable of accommodating a couple of hundred children. This will bo a large item in the expenditure of school buildings. Then we have the New Brighton people to deal with. We have at present a very sueceseful school carried on in the Wu'sluyan Chapel there. There are about fifty children in attendance, and the building is co over-crowded that the master does hoc know bow the school can be carried on iv the hotter weather. Some of the children are already fainting on account of the close atmosphere. The building | required here will be another expensive j item. In two or three outlying districts there is a great need, of accommodation, especially at Winchmore." OTHER FACTB. It is a fact that a great many of the wooden buildinga need frequent; expenditures for repairs. The list Mr Saunders rend ia the House of Representatives shows how these thingshad been goingon, but most of the cases he referred to had been attended to since. The Board was at present really without funds, and had authorised expendiure f up to .£ISOO, which amount would have to be financed till the grant came to haud. This was a very unpleasant position, arid one in -which the Board would not have boen placed if the balance of last year's grant had been distributed instead o£ being " saved." T'lio amount the Board expected from the Government this year wan not large, and if a proper building was erected at S/denham that would absorb tho major portion of it. There was an erroneous impression which Mr Veel wished to correct, viz., that the country districts were unfairly treated in the distribution of the money expended for buildings. Thiß matter, the Secretary said, he had carefully gone into, and found that such was not the case. There were in all 16,000 children in the district, of whom about 5000^ were in Christchurch and Sydenham, and the expenditure had not been unduly in favour of the town. *