BOARD OF EDUCATION.

Kumara Times, Issue 2663, 20 March 1885, Page 2

BOARD OF EDUCATION.

A special meeting of the Westlaud Board of Education was held in the County Couucil Chambers, Hokitika, on Tuesday evening last for the purpose of apportioning the building grant for the year ending 31st March, amounting to £1126. There were present Messrs Seddon (chairman), Jack, M'Whirter, Dale, Rae, Rose, and Mueller. The various School Committees had sent in schedules of requirements, amounting to nearly £2OOO, under the headings detailed below. The following letter from J. Hislop, Esq., Secretary for Education, was read : The Secretary Education Board, Hokitika. I have the honour by directiou of the Minister of Education to press upon the consideration of Education Boards the representations made by the Minister in his sixth aunual report with reference to the provisions of the Act of 1877, sec. 43, to the effect that P».),,,d.s sh;.l!, out of the ordinary Board ['mid, make payments for the piirchanii.g or r-ntin.j. *..,- of #>r ec tin«», fitting up and improving school bwPwga, just as much as fgj the payment

of teachers' salaries and the Board's departmental or other expenditure. As yon are aware Boards have been informed on several occasious that the Government cannot undertake to defray out of the special volo the entire cost of providing and repairing school buildings, and that it is incumbent on Boards, in conformity with what are clearly the letter and spirit of the Education Act, to devote as large a proportion as possible of their ordinary capitation grants to this object, and to regard the special vote out of loan as merely supplementary. lam further to refer to sec. 42 (subsection 5) and to sec. 80 (subsection 2) of the Education Act, which clearly show that the Legislature contemplated the Board Fund and School Committee Fund being made up to some exteut from donations and subscriptions; and also to point out the great advisability of effect being given to the practice that obtained very generally in former years of the Board making it an essential condition of the obtaining of a grant by a school committee (more especially for painting, fencing, or repairs), that the residents and those interested in the school should contribute a fixed proportion of the cost. The Government expect that the Boards' contribution towards such expenditure (which strictly speaking is to be regarded as current expenditure) shall be defrayed out of the Board's Ordinary Fund; and that the special grants out of loan shall be devoted solely to their legitimate purpose of providing new school buildings and enlarging existing oneß. (Signed) John Hislop. Education Department, Wellington, sth March, 1885. The Board sat till a late hour', and eventually agreed to the following distribution : FURNITURE.

Leaving a balance of £7B 17k 6d for expenses in carrying out the foregoing. The Times reports :—" The Board ■will insist on the specifications for the painting of the schools being complied ■with. The Kanieri School has not been painted for six or seven years, and the whoh* of the <.ehonls limvo been §0 neglected by the late 13>.ard that the

present one had considerable difficulty in arriving at a conclusion as to what works ware the most urgent and pressing. All the work now to be done except the erection of new buildings, will be handed over to the committees, to see properly carried out. It should be stated that the whole sum at first apportioned to the Westland Board out of the building vote was only £6OO, but through the representations made by Messrs Seddon, M'Whirter, and Rae, to Mr Stout, on his recent visit here, the Minister increased the grant to the amount above stated."

£ s. d. Kumara 6 7 0 Wairnea ... 10 0 0 Stafford 8 5 0 Ross 1 0 0 Gillespie's 5 0 0 Total £30 12 0 FENCING AND IMPROVING SCHOOL GROUNDS. Kumara 39 7 0 Waimea ... 35 0 0 Stafford 2 0 0 Arahura 7 0 0 Hokitika 4 10 0 „ teacher's house... 7 10 0 Woodstock 2 10 0 Donoghues 2 10 0 Total £100 7 0 REPAIRS. Kumara 10 12 6 „ teacher's house ... 10 6 0 Waimea ... 20 0 0 Stafford 2 0 0 Arahura 17 0 0 Hokitika 40 0 0 „ teacher's house ... 15 0 0 Blue Spur 6 10 0 Kanieri ... 8 10 0 Ross 2 5 0 Donoghues 5 0 0 Total £137 3 6 PAINTING. Kumara... 80 0 0 „ teacher's house ... 20 0 0 Arahura 20 0 0 Hokitika teacher's house... 15 0 0 Kanieri ... 45 0 0 Ross 50 0 0 Donoghues 25 0 0 Total £255 0 0 NEW BUILDINGS. Stafford 170 0 0 Upper Crossing 100 0 0 Ross, teacher's house ... 50 0 0 Gillespies 150 0 0 Jackson's Bay ... 54 0 0 Total £524 0 0 The following shows the apportionment for the several purposes makin» up the total amount:— £ s. d. Furniture 30 12 0 Fencing and improving - school gronnds anc teachers' house 100 7 0 Repairs to schools anc teachers' residences ... 137 3 G Painting schools anc teachers' houses 255 0 0 Erection of new buildings, 524 0 0 £1047 2 G