Principals seek help over school attacks

Auckland principals will meet to discuss concerns with the Ministry of Education about school security following an attack at Onehunga High School.

Onehunga principal Chris Saunders, two staff members and a student were injured after 15 young people, armed with wood and hammers, invaded the school early this month.

The group had affiliations with Papatoetoe's Aorere College and went to Onehunga to "deal with" a specific student.

Police have charged three youths and are speaking with both schools but say there is little they can do to prevent such attacks, which are becoming more common in Auckland.

In June, a De La Salle College student was critically injured after being attacked at night by a group of young people with links to St Pauls College. There were reports of an ongoing dispute between the schools.

Also in June, a Howick College student was beaten up at school by five youths from outside the school.

On Friday last week, police were called to Mt Albert's Marcellin College after teachers were informed that a group of young people planned to enter the school and attack a student.

Some of the attacks are provoked by interschool rivalries. Others are personal vendettas or retribution for earlier fights.

Mr Saunders said there was little schools could do to protect students besides turning schools into a fortresses, which he did not want to do.

He felt schools discussing the problem would achieve little since the aggressors were failures of the system and most no longer attended school.

Mr Saunders said the issue needed to be addressed at a higher level and research done by the Ministry of Education into why the students had dropped out in the first place.

Auckland Secondary Schools Principals Association president Stephanie Norrie said principals had raised concerns about how they could protect their schools.

"It's becoming an issue that a number of principals are becoming nervous about," she said. "Some schools are taking quite strong measures to keep their campus secure."

Ms Norrie said security-related matters would be discussed with ministry officials at a special meeting later in the school term.