Peachey Allan: Questions for Oral Answer — Questions to Ministers 
Peachey Allan: Questions for Oral Answer — Questions to Ministers 
[Volume:670;Page:17127] 
10. 
ALLAN PEACHEY (National—Tamaki) 
 to the  
Minister of Education 
: What provisions have been made to ensure continuity of early childhood education and schooling in the Christchurch region since the 22 February earthquake? 
Hon ANNE TOLLEY (Minister of Education) 
: 
 I am pleased to inform the House that as of this morning 80 schools and 165 early childhood education centres have opened. In addition at least another 30 schools and 45 early childhood centres have said that they are planning to open either tomorrow or on Monday. This means that by the beginning of next week approximately 40000 students will be back at school and continuing their education. Around the country a number of Christchurch children have enrolled in other schools. To give schools certainty we are effectively double-funding these students by funding them in their new school and in their original Christchurch school. This and other measures are expected to cost around $20 million. 
Allan Peachey 
: What provision has been made for the students of those schools that are so severely damaged that they will not be able to open this term? 
Hon ANNE TOLLEY 
: Schools in Christchurch are being extremely flexible and are looking at very innovative solutions to ensure continuity of schooling. In some cases we are looking to share school sites. For example next week Shirley Boys High School will share the Papanui High School site with Papanui High School using the classrooms in the morning and Shirley Boys High School using them in the afternoon. In other cases we are putting relocatable classrooms on to school playgrounds. Where schools can open but do have severe infrastructure issues we are working on a number of solutions. For example the Defence Force is working to develop temporary sewerage systems and we are bringing water on to school sites. The Farmy Army has also helped to clear the results of liquefaction at 10 school sites. 
Allan Peachey 
: What reports has she had of the initial response to the earthquake in schools? 
Hon ANNE TOLLEY 
: I am very pleased to say that the schools had worked on their earthquake drills and the children were very well rehearsed. We have had no reports of serious injury on school-grounds. I take this opportunity to thank principals teachers and other school staff for their support for pupils. I have had reports that teachers stayed on-site with children until well into the early evening waiting for their parents to come and collect them. Those teachers and principals had problems in their own homes and with their own families but they did not leave before they had made sure that every single child was accounted for and safely with their family. 
Te Ururoa Flavell 
: Tena koe Mr Speaker. Kia ora tatou. Will any extra resources be made available to schools outside of Christchurch such as Te Kura Kaupapa Maori Hoani Waititi in Auckland Te Kura Maori o Porirua or Te Kura Kaupapa Maori o Ruamata which have had a quite big influx of students because of the earthquake? 
Hon ANNE TOLLEY 
: Yes. I should acknowledge the fact that many kura and in fact many other schools throughout New Zealand have done a fantastic job of welcoming Christchurch students into their schools and making provision not only for them but also for their families. We are double-funding; we are paying those kura and schools for those students even though they are still enrolled in schools back in Christchurch schools that are being paid for them. We are dealing as we can with those schools that need extra resources to cope with those students on a case by case basis. But we are asking schools to try to share the students amongst the network so that we do not put pressure on our property; of course all the temporary property is being directed down to Christchurch.