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Children barred from school bus by 117-year-old law
19 Feb, 2021 04:00 PM
5 minutes to read
Kaipara College students Ethan Hepper (left) and Kael McFarlane are barred from the school bus on Helensville s winding Inland Road because they live within 4.8km of school. Photo / Sylvie Whinray
Hundreds of children living on rural roads near towns are being barred from school buses under a law that hasn t changed since 1904.
Kaipara College students Kael McFarlane and Ethan Hepper, both 13, watch a school bus go past their doors on Inland Rd 3.8km outside Helensville, but the bus is only allowed to pick up high-school students if they live more than 4.8km from school.
Veronica-Jean Photography/Supplied
Waimauku resident Jess Williamson, pictured with sons Josh, Jack and Jai, says a high school in the north-west is needed.
The need for a high school in Auckland’s north-west has been “accelerated” after Fletcher Building was granted consent to buy 20 hectares of land for housing. In recent years, suburbs such as Kumeu, Huapai and Riverhead have experienced fast population growth, creating heavy congestion on State Highway 16. It has also led to calls for a high school in the area, as the closest ones are Kaipara College in Helensville and Massey High School in Massey. Both are about a 20km drive from Huapai.
NCEA results are out and it appears most teenagers overcame the disruption of the pandemic and did well in the national qualification.
It appeared more students had achieved their NCEA certificate through internal assessment before they sat their exams, Education Minister Chris Hipkins said. File photo
Photo: 123RF
Education Minister Chris Hipkins said the provisional 2020 results were similar to previous years and in some cases slightly better.
That s despite the national and Auckland lockdowns robbing schools of weeks of classroom time.
Hipkins said he was especially pleased that level 3 results for school-leavers had improved.
It appeared more students had achieved their NCEA certificate through internal assessment before they sat their exams, but it was not yet clear how the results were influenced by extra learning recognition credits awarded to students last year, he said.