HEATING OF SCHOOLS.

Press, Volume LXI, Issue 18413, 20 June 1925, Page 8

HEATING OF SCHOOLS.

EDUCATION BOARD DISCUSSION.

The Canterbury Education Board a; its meeting yesterday, decided to send a protest to the Government against its present allocation of the cost of installing heating systems in schools, viz., one-third, the committees (oncerned Iming to find the other twothirds, and tho Board expressed the opinion that no commit tee .should have to iir.d mure than one-third of such cost.

Ju moving this motion, Mr K. U. Andrews said that if an up-to-date steam heating :-ystem were installed ir. a large school, the cost of it might run into :<:Gimj, which meant that the comJiiittoe was expected to tind rt: 400, a position v.hicli was grossly unfair. 'At one time the Government used to find halt' the cusi of such a system, but bv the way matters were sha'ping it would not be surprising if, before Jong, committees were expected to find tho whole amount. The ,>ame Government which allowed children to attend schools so inadequately heated would proceed against factory-owners who did not. have their premises properly heated. Mr J. G. Gow seconded the motion. Mr W. A. Banks: We protested two' or three months ago. Mr Andrews: Weli, wc have to keep on protesting. Mr Banks said that some of the heating systems installed in school buildings had been a failure.

Andrews: Steam heating systems.' Mr Banks: Yes. Mr Andrews: Xot if they are properly put in. Mr Banks said it was time that the Board found out what, the position was regarding the heating systems in different schools. Something must be wrong with some of the systems installed. It was not right "that; children should have to sit in a room with a temperature of about .'JOdeg. Mr Gow said the steam heating system had been a success all along'in some South Canterbury schools. If such heating systems were properly put in, there was no reason why they should not bo a success in any school. At tho same time ho desired to endorse Mr Andrews's remarks. When he saw how much was being spent by the Government on public "buildings liko the Public Trust Oflice, while children had to sit. in rooms which were, not properly heated, it made him wild.

Mr AViusor expressed the opinion that the committees should supply a report on the value of the systems installed in their respective schools. In the Sydenham school the temperature in one room inspected recently was found to bo f>Odog., whiles at the open-air school at Fendalton the temperature registered by the thermometer was 33 dog* At Someriield there was a steam heating system, which gave the committee every satisfaction. Tho reason that such a system was not a success in some old schools was that the engineers at. that, time were .only experimenting with it. With regard to the success of the system in South Canterbury schools, the position was that tho engineers had been fortunate in installing it correctly at the outset.

It was decided to ask school committees to supply a report as to the value of the systems installed in their schools.