Taking Over Of School Buildings Strongly Opposed

Taranaki Daily News, 28 August 1942, Page 4

Taking Over Of School Buildings Strongly Opposed

Press Assn.

Scant consideration of children's needs alleged.

Wellington, Last Night.

Opposition to the contmuea ana frequent use of school buildings by the army and hospital authorities was forcibly expressed by a deputation of the executive of the New Zealand Educational Institute which met the Minister of Education, the Hon. H. G. R. Mason, to-day. While fully appreciating the present state of emergency, and realising all demands of the army to be paramount, the deputation considered ultimate victory would be of little value unless there was a citizenship worthy of meeting post-vvar conditions, such conditions depending upon work in schools now and for the duration of the war. The needs of the children were being given little consideration by certain sections of those in power, this being a distinct tendepcy on the part of military and hospital authorities, it was stated. Schools worthy of young folk had been built in recent years, and these were the very ones being taken over. Hospital boards, it was stated, were clearly making a wrong use of emergency regulations which had not been introduced for the purpose for which they were being used. In the opinion of the depution school buildings were being taken on very slender pretexts, and more for the purpose of saving ineonvenience than for meeting real emergencies. In reply, the Minister said he appreciated that the position was unsatisfactory. It was his intention to take the mattei up with the Department of Health.