Cambridge High to be reviewed

By AINSLEY THOMSON

The Waikato secondary school at the centre of allegations of staff bullying and manipulation of school results is taking action.

The Cambridge High School board of trustees held a meeting yesterday to discuss the allegations and said it had requested the Qualifications Authority reassess the school's standards and procedures, including those relating to NCEA.

However, NZQA spokesman Bill Lennox said it was NZQA that contacted the senior management of Cambridge High School last week and indicated a visit was required.

Mr Lennox said the school agreed and the meeting was scheduled to take place at the end of the month.

The Cambridge High board of trustees said it had also asked the Education Review Office, which was scheduled to review the school in July as part of its regular assessment, to specifically investigate the allegations of staff bullying.

And the board said it would also assess the existing staff complaints procedure against procedures at other schools, and make changes if they were needed. "The board of trustees has never received any complaints from teachers about staff bullying," it said.

"To date, the only allegations we have heard have been through the media."

But it said the allegations were putting stress on staff and students.

The school and its principal, Alison Annan, have often been the focus of national controversy.

In 1996, it made headlines when 14 students were suspended indefinitely for cannabis use; then in 2002 there was the infamous "boner" essay which resulted in the 15-year-old author being suspended for five days.

Last year it was in the news again when its perfect NCEA record was questioned after it was revealed that students were getting NCEA credits for completing menial tasks such as picking up litter.

In the past two weeks the adverse attention has intensified after stories in North & South magazine and on 60 Minutes alleged bullying of staff, financial mismanagement and conflicts of interest.

The stories also rekindled the ongoing allegation that the school manipulated exam results to achieve its 100 per cent NCEA record.

A 50,000-word report by a former staff member about bullying at the school is with the Ombudsmen Office, and Occupational Safety and Health has investigated a complaint from a staff member that the school had not handled her stress problem properly.

The school said OSH found there were no grounds for the complaint.

Despite the criticism, the school's roll has continued to grow - by 200 this year to reach 1200.

Former Waipa District Council deputy mayor Rosemary Hill, who taught at Cambridge High for 20 years and sent her four children there, is one of a number of parents and Cambridge residents who have questioned the school and Mrs Annan's policies.

Yesterday, Mrs Hill told the Herald that she was pleased the board of trustees was finally acting.

"One of the weak things in this sorry saga has been the performance by the board of trustees."

She said she would like to see an independent investigation carried out into the allegations of staff bullying, manipulation of results, inappropriate disciplinary treatment and alleged conflicts of interest.

Mrs Annan was not available for comment. She is attending an education fair in Bangkok.