The Gloriavale compound on the West Coast. Photo: RNZ / Jean Edwards
A private school run by the Gloriavale Christian community has failed an audit for the second time in as many years.
The Education Review Office said in a report published on Wednesday that its review visit at the end of 2024 found the school had improved since a 2023 review, but it still failed three of eight registration criteria.
It said the school did not provide suitable staffing for students with complex additional needs, suitable equipment for students with complex additional needs, or a physically and emotionally safe space.
"At the time of the ERO onsite review phase, the school was supporting an enrolled student with extremely high and very complex needs that impact on full onsite engagement within the classroom," the report said.
"An overarching goal of supporting full attendance and achievement at school is in place within the limitations of the school's isolation, the wishes of family and the severity of the complex needs."
It said enrolled students with high and complex needs could not attend because there was insufficient equipment to support those needs.
The report said about 40 percent of the 224 school-aged children in the Gloriavale community attended the school, while about half were home-schooled and the remainder were enrolled with Te Kura (formerly the Correspondence School).
"Education provision in the Gloriavale Christian School is slowly improving. The school board and staff have worked extensively with board-contracted external support and Ministry of Education advice and guidance to develop capacity to provide high quality learning and teaching," the report said.
The report said most children in home-schooling were taught "at least as regularly and well as in a registered school" and students studying through Te Kura felt well supported.
The community's preschool was working towards fully implementing quality systems, processes and practices to enable the delivery of a responsive curriculum for all children.
However, the report said "access to education across the community is inequitable" and course and NCEA choices were limited.
"ERO is not yet assured that all learners' physical and emotional health and safety is closely, regularly and sufficiently considered and monitored across all schooling provisions. The inconsistent application of some policies and procedures poses risk to children given a history of unsafe practices within the Gloriavale community," the report said.
It said the Teaching Council was investigating an allegation of staff misconduct and the school had been instructed to formally monitor the staff member.
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