Concerns Gloriavale children will struggle to adapt once school closed

A former Gloriavale member says leavers should be involved in helping families adjust to alternative schooling options.

The secretary for education has confirmed the registration of Gloriavale Christian School will be cancelled.

The school's board said it would challenge the Ministry of Education's decision, dubbing the move "unjust".

The ministry said it had outlined a range of options for parents, and had just started working with families, community and other schools.

Virginia Courage, who left the community with her family in 2019, said Gloriavale families would need ample support.

"There needs to be a lot of discussion with the parents, and it actually might take input from leavers to just help them and re-assure them through the process."

After leaving the West Coast Christian commune, the most daunting issue facing Courage and her husband was the education of her children, she said.

When they departed Gloriavale, seven of their 10 children were still in school.

"We were more concerned about that than where we were going to live, what kind of Christianity or religion we were now going to be a part of, what we were going to wear," Courage said.

"Gloriavale people are filled with so much fear about the education system, other than the Gloriavale system."

Secretary Ellen MacGregor-Reid wrote to Gloriavale's private school in October, advising that she was considering deregistering the school, after a second failed Education Review Office (ERO) audit in as many years.

July's ERO report found Gloriavale Christian School had not met three of eight registration criteria, and was not a physically and emotionally safe space for students.

Gloriavale Leavers' Trust spokesperson Liz Gregory said families that had home-schooled their children had also failed ERO reviews.

Courage was concerned about the potential for "heavier" indoctrination tactics outside school hours, if children were educated outside Gloriavale.

"I think that's a real issue that needs to be considered. How much are those little children going to hear - even more now - talk about the fact they're going outside into this worldly school and these people are going to teach them terrible things?

"No child should be suffering through that."

Gloriavale children's' eyes will be opened - lawyer

Lawyer Dennis Gates was part of the legal team that represented former Gloriavale residents at the Employment Court. He said the closure of the school would have knock-on effects for the children inside the commune.

"With these kids going into public schools, they'll get unimpeded access to the internet. They'll see how the rest of the world lives, and then go back and see what squalor they're living in, and ask the question why."

Gates called on the government and its applicable ministries to put Gloriavale through a "forensic examination".

"They signed off a child welfare policy with Howard Temple, who has now been convicted of child sexual abuse, and all the factors in that child welfare policy that indicate sexual abuse are still there on Saturday."

Temple - the 85-year-old former Gloriavale overseeing shepherd - was last week sentenced to 26 months in prison for indecently assaulting young women and girls over 20 years.

Children's Commissioner Dr Claire Achmad told RNZ the transition of Gloriavale children into other schooling options would need to be carefully managed.

"No matter what the new educational environment looks like for the children of Gloriavale, it's going to be really important that there's continued oversight of that to ensure there's high quality education, and that it is safe and inclusive for all of the children of Gloriavale."

The cancellation was due to take effect from 23 January.

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