After a long period of consultation there has been no consensus reached about the future of St Paul’s and Our Lady of Fatima schools in Mairehau, so Christchurch’s Bishop Barry Jones has been forced to make the final call.
The Bishop’s proposal was made following three rounds of community consultation
The proposal is to cancel the integration agreement of both St Paul’s and Our Lady of Fatima schools and to establish and integrate of a new state integrated school.
The new school will be called St Francis of Assisi School.
This is also the name of the new parish that has been formed by the uniting the former parishes of Burwood, Dallington and Mairehau.
The new school will be located on the current site of Our Lady of Fatima School on Innes Road.
The St Paul’s website reports that the decision will result in the loss of all jobs associated with both the schools.
CEO Christchurch manager Mike Nolan said opinions between both school communities were “clearly mixed” after an “extensive consultation process”.
The office had resource consent for the plans to extend the Our Lady of Fatima site and “all going well” building would start about October, Nolan said.
Education Ministry spokeswoman Katrina Casey said its own consultation would end on July 18.
Options for the new school to open are in term three of 2015, or at the start of 2016.
Our Lady of Fatima board of trustees chairwoman Noeline Soper said she had been “extremely concerned at the integrity of the consultation process”.
Soper hoped the ministry’s consultation would give more consideration to families.
While her school felt for the St Paul’s community, the decision was based on property rather than on what was best for the children, she said.
Catholic Education Office (CEO) chief executive Pat Lynch said the move was “absolutely earthquake-driven” after St Paul’s in Dallington was damaged and became the only red-zoned school in the city.
Soper says, “We remain hopeful and ready to work for a better result than that proposed by the bishop, for our staff, for our families, but mostly for our children.
However, Casey said the ministry had “no role” in putting forward change options when integrated schools were involved.
St Paul’s principal Chris Callaghan said it had been an “incredibly difficult situation”, but it was time to focus on the positives.
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