Selwyn Times: March 13, 2019

SELWYN TIMES Latest Christchurch news at www.star.kiwi
Wednesday March 13 2019 7
Teacher falls on pupil – no injuries
•From page 1
West Melton School has also
received support from Selwyn
MP Amy Adams.
Said Mr Taylor: “They [pupils]
are freighted goods from A to B
and it doesn’t matter how they
get there.”
“At the moment when all
children are seated at three to a
seat, we’ve got the whole aisle,
from the back to the front [of
the bus] of kids standing,” Mr
Taylor said.
Ms Shannon said the ministry
took safety of children “very
seriously” but won’t provide
another bus to West Melton
School’s technology class.
“Each bus has a
certificate of loading that sets
out how many passengers
can be seated and standing,
and this varies from bus to
bus depending on its physical
attributes. The bus referred to
[by West Melton School] is being
operated within its limits and we
aren’t planning to add another
bus to this service,” Ms Shannon
said.
Mr Taylor was critical of the
ministry’s response.
“Are they really caring
about safety when teachers are
standing on the first step of the
bus’ entrance because there’s no
SQUEEZE: There is not much room for movement in West
Melton School’s technology class bus.
PHOTO: MARTIN HUNTER
room? Are they worried about
my safety? Would they stand
there? I doubt it.”
Mr Taylor said there was an
incident a fortnight ago when
a teacher fell on a pupil. But
luckily the child was unhurt.
“I fear for my life to be fair, “
he said.
Ms Adams spoke to the school
on Friday and will raise the issue
to Government agencies this
week.
“I certainly plan to be writing
to the Ministry of Transport and
Education about it,” she said.
Ms Adams also intended to
write to WorkSafe as the school
Amy Adams
Aaron Taylor
would be required to keep
children in a safe environment.
“At the moment it seems
that they [the school] are being
prevented from doing that,” she
said.
Ms Adams said if the ministry
believed seating children was
an issue, it should not have to
wait until 2021 to roll out the
changes.
“These are intermediate school
kids, not five or six year-olds.
Three pre-adolescent preteenagers
sitting on a seat with
one of them balancing on the
edge with their feet sticking out
into the aisle is simply not safe,”
she said.
•HAVE YOUR SAY: Do
you think the Ministry of
Education should provide
West Melton School
with another bus? Email
your views to anan.zaki@
starmedia.kiwi
Local
News
Now
Fire rages, homes at risk
Community
work for
council staff
DISTRICT COUNCIL staff
had the opportunity to do some
volunteering around the district.
About 30 staff offered their time
to give back to the community
over the past few weeks as part of
a wider volunteering campaign
run by the economic development
team.
A further 10 staff are planning
for their volunteer activities to take
place over the coming month, the
district council said.
The volunteers worked on a
number of different projects including
native planting at Lincoln
Wetland, restoration work at
Southbridge Pool and lending a
hand at Salvation Army store in
Rolleston.
Salvation Army Family Store
manager Tracy Beardsley said the
extra volunteer assistance was
greatly appreciated.
“It really made a difference as
this time of year is always very
busy for us,” she said.
District council biodiversity
co-ordinator Andy Spanton said
help from the volunteers helped to
maintain the Lincoln Wetland as a
pleasant spot for the community to
visit and explore.