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Increasing numbers of New Zealand schools are employing security guards for safety as large-scale brawls become more prevalent.
A police officer's tooth was pushed through his cheek during a school brawl in Hastings on Tuesday that reportedly involved up to 200 people.
Police and the security industry say cellphones and internet technology are huge factors in attracting mass groups to such incidents, which are on the rise.
Barrie Cooper, executive director of the New Zealand Security Association which represents 160 security companies, told the Herald he expected more schools would hire guards after the Hastings incident.
"It makes other schools a bit wary and they want to make sure it doesn't happen in their schools."
Mr Cooper said he did not have figures on how many schools were using security guards but anecdotal evidence from the companies he represented suggested it was on the rise.
"Certainly, they are doing it and I think we'll see more and more of it ... There are companies that are on static guard duty at schools because of concerns of violence and safety of children - it's not just children, it's the teachers as well."
Auckland schools who use security guards include James Cook High in Manurewa, Papakura High, and Selwyn College, Kohimarama.
Selwyn College principal Sheryll Ofner said a sole security guard was employed by the school to prevent outsiders entering and to deter students from leaving.
However, the school was reviewing whether it still needed the service, she said.
Further north, Whangarei Boys High School began employing guards after a street fight last year involving at least 12 students.
Whangarei Girls High School also uses security guards.
Secondary Principals Association president Peter Gall said he was not aware of an increase in schools hiring security officers.
"I know that some schools have done that in the past with varying degrees of success and some still continue to but there's only a couple - two or three - that I'm aware of."
Senior Sergeant Mike Fulcher, community services manager for Counties Manukau police, said the Cops in Schools programme that began this year and placed five police officers on site in 10 schools was progressing well.
"By having these cops in schools, we've been able to head off a lot of trouble because we've been able to get on to it a lot quicker."
Mr Fulcher said fights in schools often involved "minimal" people actually fighting but many others watching.
Text messages and social networking websites like Bebo and Facebook made it easy to attract a lot of people, he said.
Some schools in New York had security guards at the gates with metal detectors to hunt out weapons.
"I'm not sure how far away that is for New Zealand, but what we're trying to do with Cops in Schools is head that off," Mr Fulcher said.
Cops in Schools was being expanded to include two Papakura schools in January but anything beyond that would depend on the outcome of a review expected to be completed by April.
CHECKPOINT AFTER BRAWL
A checkpoint run yesterday by court bailiffs and police in Flaxmere, the Hastings suburb under the spotlight after a mass brawl on Tuesday, ended with several seized vehicles and dozens of fines issued in less than two hours.
Sergeant Clint Adamson of Hastings police said eight vehicles were seized while driving through the suburb, and 30 fines were issued for infringements such as licence breaches and failing to wear a seatbelt.
Police continued their investigations into the after-school brawl, which involved more than 200 pupils aged between 13 and 16 and prompted a big police callout.
A 14-year-old boy was to appear in Hastings Youth Court charged with assaulting a police officer. Six other pupils were arrested and charged with disorderly behaviour likely to cause violence, including a 13-year-old boy found in possession of a chain.
One officer was taken to hospital with a split cheek. Another suffered a neck injury.
- NZPA
