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Peter Meecham/Stuff
Auckland Grammar School principal Tim O’Connor was ready to open up the school gates.
The Ministry of Education has apologised “profusely” to Auckland schools after a technical glitch meant they had been left out of the loop on a shut-down order issued to the region.
Confusion abounded among schools as staff learnt from news media that they would be shut down for onsite learning until after Waitangi Day weekend.
Auckland Grammar headmaster Tim O’Connor sent a notice to parents saying the school would continue with its plans to open on Tuesday.
“I am aware of recent media reports stating that schools must close … [but] at this point the school has received no communication from the Ministry of Education to support this.
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“We have spent the weekend preparing our campus to be open tomorrow. As the ministry has not communicated with us today, the best I can do is read the media reports that provide an option for schools to remain open.”
The ministry put a bulletin on its website “apologising profusely” and blaming a technical fault for the lack of communication.
“We agree that you should always hear such news directly from us first. Unfortunately, an IT fault meant our emails out to principals were blocked.
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Schools, kura, early childhood services and tertiary institutes are affected.
“We will strive for this to never happen again.”
It said the National Emergency Management Agency had asked schools to close to minimise traffic on Auckland’s road while infrastructure was repaired.
Schools and kura are permitted to “open remotely for distance learning” but the ministry asked that as few staff be on site as possible.
Olivia Coote
Kelston Primary School is among schools that experienced flooding on Friday afternoon.
In a statement provided to the New Zealand Educational Institute union, Secretary of Education Iona Holsted said she knew the late announcement would “cause disruption”.
“Principals and education leaders have done a fantastic job of readying their schools for opening, and I know that this decision will be upsetting for some of them and for some parents,” Holsted wrote.
Schools across the region urgently put out statements to parents online after 5pm on Monday saying they would be closed the following day.
Auckland Grammar School could not be reached for comment by Stuff.
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