Photo: RNZ / Marika Khabazi
Aliases have been used in this story to ensure any current students remain anonymous.
A commissioner will be appointed to run Northland's Dargaville High School after a damning assessment by the Education Review Office (ERO) found fewer than half of its students are regularly attending school, with the same number failing NCEA level one.
The ERO report also highlights a serious need for school systems that ensure students are physically and emotionally safe.
Parents RNZ spoke to weren't surprised by the dismal evaluation - they claimed wagging, fights and mismanagement were all the norm.
Rachel, not her real name, has two children at Dargaville High School, but she won't be sending her youngest there, she said.
The biggest problem she highlighted was attendance. Once she had to drive one of her children back to school after finding them at home hours early, she said.
"It was just really - it felt like a very surreal situation because I never had to do this before. I know kids can bunk but the fact that there was quite a large number of them leaving the premises and no one was stopping them was really concerning," she said.
Another Dargaville High parent who did not want to be named told RNZ her children has told her that serious fights broke out roughly twice a month.
Sandra, not her real name, is the parent of a former Dargaville High student who left in 2023. She said problems at the school were not new.
Her son expressed concern to a teacher about the safety of staff on his final day at school.
"[He] said to his dean on his last day of school: 'You know, I don't know how for the small amount of money you get paid each year, you feel safe around these students'. Like he felt like the teachers' lives were always in danger."
When Sandra's son was at the school, she said some students were asked to only attend on a part-time basis, and on the days, they weren't in class, they were expected to do their own 'self-led' learning at home.
Parents were never provided with a clear explanation about the directive, she said.
"When you confronted them about the problem or why my student wasn't able to attend a full week's work, it felt like you got beaten around the bush. You weren't given a straight answer, that's just how it is, we're working on making something more accessible. You were made to feel like your student wasn't worth educating."
One of ERO's reports found multiple breaches of the 2014 Children's Act, including that the board failed to put all its staff through adequate safety checks, such as police vetting, nor ensuring its teachers were licensed.
"I don't have a lot of confidence in the school leadership. I think the board should have been and the principal should have been on top of this a while back, and the fact that it's got to this point is quite disappointing," Rachel said.
Commissioner decision supported
A statement from the school's board of trustees said it fully supported the decision to appoint a commissioner, calling it the best way forward for the future of the school.
A request to interview principal Michael Houghton was also responded to by the board, saying he was on leave.
Acting principal Vern Stevens said he has been covering the role for seven weeks, however, he also declined an interview.
He told RNZ Houghton was due to be back at the beginning of term three, midway through July, but will leave as principal at the end of the year.
