E.—2.

WELLINGTON. (Chairman, Mr. W. V. Dyer.) Training College.—Plans have been prepared for a new and up-to-date training college, and the Board's application for a grant, is now before the Department. The Board trusts that the Hon. the Minister will make available sufficient funds to enable the new building to be proceeded with at an early date. There is no doubt that the work of the staff and students is hampered owing to the overcrowded conditions that at present obtain. Children's Sports. —Organized sports gatherings have been conducted at various centres throughout the district, and the efforts of the teachers concerned are largely responsible for the success achieved. The teaching of swimming was pursued with great enthusiasm. Conveyance and Board. —Following were the numbers of children conveyed to and from school or boarded away from home to enable them to attend school during 1938 : Conveyed by individual arrangement, 358; conveyed by contract, 1,327; conveyed to special classes, 40: Total, 1,725. Receiving board allowance, 91. Cost for year, £15,014 16s. 9d. School Libraries. —The Wellington public libraries supplied 46,485 issues to thirty-three city and suburban schools and four colleges. A total of 38,110 supplementary readers was issued in 1938, as against 28,631 the previous year. The City Librarian, in that part of his annual report dealing with the distribution of books to the schools under the Board's jurisdiction, says : — " Supplementary Readers : Thirty-one primary schools in the Wellington District make use of these books housed at Newtown Library. During 1938, readers have been very much in demand, showing an issue of 38,056, which is an increase of 9,425 over the 1937 issue. Sets of plays are in great demand, and also material relating to New Zealand and the Maoris. The younger classes, Primers to Standard 111, seem to make more use of this service than do Standards IY to VI. All readers have been recatalogued, and a large number of books are now on order. " School Library Books : In 1938, 12,458 volumes were sent to the schools and colleges. Issues showed 46,685, an increase of 6,312 over the previous year's issue. The majority of these books are old and are out of date. Many new ones will have to be added and the stock brought up to date this year if the system is to function as it should. " A combined catalogue and accession system is now being prepared, and this should greatly simplify the keeping of records as this service expands. " The whole future of this schools' system has been under review during the year. The Libraries' Committee of the City Council through its Chairman, in conjunction with the representatives of the various educational bodies concerned, is at present occupied in working out a satisfactory method for the finance of these systems in the future." Board's New Offices. —The Board desires to thank the Minister and express appreciation of his action in making available the necessary finance for the construction of new offices in Abel Smith Street. A modern reinforced-concrete building is now in course of construction, and will be ready for occupation early in 1940.

NELSON. (Chairman, Hon. W. H. Mclntyre.) Consolidation. —The schools at . Churchill, Waimea West, and Warwick Junction were closed during the year and the pupils transported to Dovedale, Brightwater, and Maruia respectively. There are now twelve school bus services operating in the district. For the coming year there are at least three proposals that are likely to be put into operation, one of which will result m the closing of nine small schools. Board and Conveyance of Children.—With more schools being consolidated the cost of conveyance showed an advance, and the total amount expended in this direction throughout the year was £3,140 6s. 9d., the number of children carried being 577. Twenty contracts were in operation at the end of the year. The sum of £534 19s. 6d. was paid by way of allowance towards the board of a total of forty-seven children living away from home. School-grounds. —The standard of environment continues to be maintained, and new certificates were awarded at the end of the year as follows : First class, 2 ; second class, 1 ; third class, 5. In addition, nine first-class, eleven second-class, and thirty-one third-class certificates were endorsed. The number of schools holding certificates was 59. The Championship Shield was awarded to Riwaka. The Board greatly appreciates the wonderful improvements carried out at many of the schoolgrounds by the Public Works Department. Had it not been for the facilities provided by the Minister in this connection many of the schemes carried through would have been beyond the resources of the Board. There are still a number of grounds in need of improvement, and the hope is expressed that similar facilities will be made available throughout the coming year. Physical Instruction. — Once again the Board desires to urge the desirability of the reintroduction of the itinerant instructors. During February all teachers and pupils throughout the district entered wholeheartedly into the " Learn to Swim " Campaign, with very satisfactory results. The Board desires to express its appreciation of the great assistance received from officers and members of the various swimming clubs.

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