WAITARA SCHOOL.

Taranaki Daily News, 20 December 1918, Page 5

WAITARA SCHOOL.

REPORT BY BOARD'S OVERSEER. A LIVELY DISCUSSION. The Taranakj.Education Board, at a special meeting held yesterday afternoon, had befom it a report by its overseer as to the conditions of the sanitary arrangements at the Waitara School, about which considerable comment haß benn made since the report made Upon the condition of tlw> whole schbol by Dr. Walker was given to the Waitara Publie Health Committee, when it was proposed to use the buildings as a temporary hospital for Maoris in connection with the recent epidemic. . The report of tlie overseer was withheld from publication, but from the trend of the discussioh it was evident that it was an adverse comment on tfc« buildings. The outhouses were referred to in a manner which indicated a very unsatisfactory state of affairs- The school building itself was stated to bu in a very bad conditionMr. T. Buchanan (North Ward), w'.io said he did not speak from the standpoint of parochialism, said the builuing was rotten, and not fit for adults, much less tor children. The whole arrangement of the school,was bad. The central portion was most insanitary, being hidden right away from the sunlight and the free access .of fresh air. He said the overseer's report bore oft nfhat Dr Walker had said. ~ It would have been a fine thing if the Maoris had been put in there, as there would then have geen a better chance of getting a new school. He said it had been suggested that if the 'Maoris were accommodated in the school it would be burned down afterwards, and he wished th&t' might have been done. He moved that the board ask for a grant for the erection of a new school, in 'brick or concrete. He considered that if the Government had spent only two-thirds of the appropriations for school buildings last year, some of the balance could be well spent

in Taranaki. It was pointed out that though £40,000 of the £IOO,OOO voted appeared as insufficient at the end of the financial year, the commitments would probably have exhausted that amount before now. It was not always possible to spend the amount voted within the year. Continuing, Mr. Buchanan urged that the board (should take steps to force the Department's hand more than was being done. i Mr. Eaves seconded the motion. Mr. White regretted he had not been able to confer with his colleague for the North Ward prior to the matter coming up. He was not prepared to go quite; the length' of Urging the erection of a' new school while part of the auilding* was in comparatively good order. Mr. Trimble said he hoped the board' would not pass the motion in Its present form, because he did not think it would be justified in asking for so much, seeing that part of the building had been erected so late as in 1910, and the life of a school building w&9 iratraatctl at about 35 years. ■ ■Mr. Grayling: Not in 1910 timber. Continuing, Mr. Trimble said the board had applied in 1914 for a gnuit of £557 for the erection of additional classrooms for the infants, and this was to bo the beginning of a new school building, but the application had been refused. The Department' would refuse such an flpplicaJdw <m that wggwtqd,, ;

tion was passed it would plac9 th« board in a very invidious position, because it would not foe able to provide its snare . of the money required. lit ths matter of re-building large scnoola, . the board should go very charily 1 lie)' were at present engaged m ouch-work ri Normanby, and the Okaiawa school was to be done, and there might be otuers "that required re-building It was possible , to have too many on hand at onco, and it might be two or three years before they; could undertake any mora largo schools. If they n:ada any application, it should : bo in the direction of extending what was done in 1914. Mr. Grayling: What would be tlie position if the Health Department condemned the building? The chairman said that in theory the building would have to be- re-erecfcpd,* but in practice that was not done. The Central School had been, condemnhd - years ago. The matter was a difference between the two departments. Mr Smith said his sympathies woro always with the children, and ho dc-' tested the present system, which compelled children to attend school in insanitary buildings,, He thought the board should hot press for a grant for a now school when part of the present truild-' ing was still in a serviceable conditio*. Mr. Buchanan: The building haß fasten ■ condemned. . ■ ■' . ' Mr. Trimble said Dr. Walker was Oflly! talking to newspaper m«n when he mttdo; his report. It was not an official Ipe- ■ port. Personally, he was in favor of • building schools of the cheapest posilbl# • material. They could then bo bunted ■; down when out of date. It must not bo thought that all was known about ' schools at the present time, and those now being erected in ' concrete mi£ht be hopelessly out of date in 5l) years' time, and people then .might wish thoy had never been built. ■ Mr. Buchanan expressed great surprise' at thi sentiments of the chairman, with his long experience of educational matters. He was totally against the patch* ing-up policy, as it would only perpetuate the present state of "affairs. The situation of the new wing was the only' decent position on the site, and .ha was in favor; of a new school along that position. ■■■■•%&(!' The chairman said Mr Buchanan's ideas of a school building allfaeißg tbft sun had about as inuch ehaiico of being acceptfai by the Department as his own with regard to 'building in the cheapest material.

Mr. 1 Buchanan, continuing, said, in reference'to Dr. Walker's report, tliat it was not given to pressmen, but. to the Public Health Committee of Waitara, from whom toe newspaper men had got it. f Sir. Trimgle: Then t!io information we had was third-hand. 1 Mr. Bnchanan said whether that was so or not, they could not getaway fro in from tile fact that it had been condemned. 1 , Air. White favored asking for a grant to re-build the condemned portion, and Jhoved an amendment in that direction, which was seconded bv Mr. siith. After some further discussion, ihe motion and amendment were allowed to be withdrawn, and tho following motion was carried:—"That the overseer be instructed to prepare plans for the erection of a new school at Waitara, to re-> place the old portions, and that aft application be made to the Department for a grant." It was then decided that a copy of the overseer's report in reference to the sanitary arrangements at the Waitftra School be forwarded to the headmaster ,ior a report as to the actual practice adopted by him in exercising supervision over the sanitary conveniences, and further that a copy of the leport be sent to the committee for their remarks. It was decided to ask the Hospitdl .Board to take steps to have the Wai« tara Technical School building, which was recently used as a hospital ,'fpr Maoris, thoroughly disinfected before tho school resumes on February 4. Some discussion then followed on the conditions of the school residence at Waitara, and it was decided to ask tne overseer to report on the condition of bodrd at the neXt meotin 3 Vh«