Ombudsman Urges School Boards To Take Parents’ Concerns Seriously

The Chief Ombudsman is concerned some school boards are failing to act fairly when children are facing disciplinary action, decisions on enrolment or other decisions that affect their education.

Peter Boshier says parents and children have the right to complain to him if they feel a school board hasn’t followed the correct process which is particularly important in disciplinary proceedings or decisions on enrolment.

"No one likes it when their children get into trouble but if they find themselves in that difficult situation, parents need to be sure that school boards are going to do the right thing," Mr Boshier says.

"Boards should also ensure that parents who raise issues around enrolment are given adequate information to understand the reasons behind a decision.

"Fortunately, most boards either know what to do or are willing to put things right. It is very disappointing when boards fail to see my recommendations as an opportunity to learn from their mistakes and improve their processes and decision-making.

"What’s even more unfortunate is that failure by a school board to accept my recommendations reflects badly on the school as a whole. What many parents are looking for is recognition by the board that it has failed them and is willing to apologise."

Mr Boshier recently investigated complaints about the boards of St Peter’s College in Auckland and Cashmere High School in Christchurch. Both boards have refused to implement some of his key recommendations.

"I have now decided to publish case notes on these complaints which I do when I believe there is a public interest in doing so. A case note outlines how I investigated a complaint and how I reached a decision.

"These case notes also outline my recommendations and how the boards of these schools responded to them. They will serve to provide guidance to school boards who find themselves in similar situations in the future."

Mr Boshier’s investigation into St Peter’s College Board centred on the Board’s decision to exclude a student for several instances of buying and smoking marijuana.

The Board determined that the student’s actions amounted to gross misconduct and excluded the student. The student’s parents complained that the Board hadn’t followed Ministry of Education guidelines but the Board stood by its decision.

"School boards have three options available to them when considering appropriate disciplinary responses and they must consider each of them. The guidelines also require boards to record their deliberations in writing and must show how a board arrives at a decision.

"The Board’s records failed to show it had considered each option and why it decided a more lenient option wasn’t available. I would expect any board to keep an exact record when making such a serious decision about a student’s education."

Mr Boshier made a number of recommendations including that the Board apologise to the student and his parents. The Board refused to apologise to the student or his parents but has implemented the other recommendations.

His investigation into Cashmere High School Board was about the Board’s decision to decline enrolment for an out-of-zone student. The Board did not act unreasonably in declining the enrolment but the way the board communicated with the parents was unreasonable.

"The Board didn’t explain the basis for its decision nor did it outline the factors it considered beforehand. This made the parents feel like they hadn’t been listened to. They were unsure whether the Board had considered the factors they put forward in their letter before reaching a decision.

"There were also issues with the Board’s record-keeping. It is vital that proper records of a decision-making process are kept to make sure they are transparent and are accounted for. Like other government agencies, school boards must comply with the Public Records Act."

The Chief Ombudsman recommended that the Board write a comprehensive apology to the parents and take appropriate steps to make sure its members are aware they need to properly explain the basis for decisions. The Board has refused to implement the recommendations.

"When my recommendations are not complied with, ultimately I can escalate my concerns to the Prime Minister and Parliament. I can ask them to examine the situation and decide what further action to take," Mr Boshier says.

"But I shouldn’t need to do this. I expect that when I make recommendations, they are complied with. The vast majority of boards do this, so it is very disappointing when some do not."

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