As the end of the 2024 approaches, many school camps are about to take place to finish off the school year. The recent sentencing of the Whangārei Boys’ High School Board of Trustees (Board) acts as a reminder of how tragically these activities can end if they are not planned and undertaken safely.
On 27 September 2024, the Board was sentenced following a guilty plea to a charge brought by WorkSafe following the death of a student during a caving trip. That trip took place despite weather warnings and concerns having been raised by parents of students on the trip. A lack of understanding between organisers and decision makers about when trips would be cancelled has been highlighted by WorkSafe as leading to the tragedy.
Education Outside The Classroom (EOTC) is a celebrated part of New Zealand education. It covers everything from a trip to the library through to multi-day camps. While some have raised concerns about the future of the "the great Kiwi school trip", the reality is that most schools execute these activities carefully and with real benefits for students. There is, however, massive trust and reliance placed on organisers and schools to undertake these trips safely.
It is a brave Board that decides an EOTC activity is not up to safety standards and pulls the pin on a camp or other activity. They will not be held out as heroes and will often suffer negative comments from other parents and school staff. However, there is a long list of tragic school events that have occurred since 2000 including:
2020 – Melville High School Board prosecuted but resolved through an enforceable undertaking in 2022 – a 17-year-old drowned at Waihī beach while swimming on a geography trip.
2012 - Paritutu Rock tragedy in 2012 when two students and an instructor died after being swept off the rock by high seas. The school, Spotswood College, was not charged but the activity provider, Taranaki Outdoor Pursuits & Education Centre was.
2008 - Mangatepopo canyoning tragedy in 2008 where a teacher and six students from Elim Christian College drowned. The school was not prosecuted but the Sir Edmund Hillary Outdoor Pursuits Centre of New Zealand was.
2001 – Hanmer Springs School was undertaking a school canoeing trip when the canoe overturned, and two children drowned.
2000 – Howick Intermediate School had a double fatality when two boys drowned after playing in the Kauaeranga River near Thames.
2000 – Waimate High school had a double fatality when two boys drowned in the Black Hole swimming hole on the Waihao river during a class trip.
No charges were filed in the last three examples. Finally, both Tauraroa Area School and Dive! Tutukaka were prosecuted after two students got trapped in a sea cave during a school trip in 2020. Fortunately, both students were able to be safely rescued.
If you are a Board member or senior leader in a school, the first step is to make use of the freely available resources on the Ministry of Education’s (MoE) website (click here).
The detailed guidelines should be reviewed by Board members as well as the specific resources which are linked on the webpage. The guidelines help Board members understand what their role involves and the systems the school should have in place regardless of their size.
The second step is for Board members to question the school leaders and not rely on the leaders’ experience. This includes testing that MoE’s recommended processes have been developed and are in place.
The reality is that EOTC requires additional resources in the form of planning time, visiting providers and vetting volunteers. Some parts of these processes are currently done better than others. For example, it would be rare for a parent volunteer to attend an overnight EOTC activity as a volunteer without a police check. However, other steps that are recommended can be compromised due to familiarity or time pressure.
Having teachers who are either champions or leaders in EOTC to help support others in the school is one of the recommendations. Board members should know who that person or team is at their school and confirm they are getting the support and training required to enable them to properly support others with EOTC activities.
Another aspect of the guidance is working through a review or audit process. This should be a mix of internal and external reviews or audits to ensure the systems are working as they should and to identify areas for improvement. Inviting other schools to provide a peer review is one way of doing this. It requires both vulnerability and maturity to open up a system to an external person for review or audit, but the benefits can be significant. You don’t know what you don’t know!
If you are on a Board asking when the last peer review or external audit was completed is a very simple step that can be taken to help strengthen your own school’s EOTC performance.
Finally, there are some points worth raising due to the screeds of misinformation on social media:
No individual Board member has been charged in any EOTC incident in New Zealand.
The references to the Board of trustees being charged is primarily ‘lawyer speak’ for the legal ‘person’ that technically is the school. The claims are against schools not individual Board members.
Schools do not typically pay any reparation as they hold insurance policies which cover such costs. This explains why no fines are payable due to lack of funds but reparation is able to be funded.
Our team of specialist health and safety advisers can provide expert guidance on health and safety systems to help ensure your school's compliance with safety regulations and appropriate management of risks. We help through reviews, audits, and supporting decision-makers responsible for planning EOTC activities as well as providing external investigation services when things do not go as planned.
The views and opinions expressed in this article are those of the author/s and do not necessarily reflect the thought or position of Findex.
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