Timaru Boys’ High School rector Dave Thorp believes a proposed zoning restriction could have a drastic impact on the school’s future.
Last week it was announced the Ministry of Education (MoE) would be seeking feedback on plans to impose enrolment zones on both Timaru Girls’ and Timaru Boys’ High Schools (TBHS).
The proposed zones would come into effect on January 1, 2026 and mean parents in much of the north and west of Timaru would face ballots for out-ofzone places for their children.
Mr Thorp said the school was made aware of discussions around a proposed zone for TBHS at the end of March.
‘‘We held an extraordinary board of trustees meeting on April 1 and Ruth Sullivan, the manager of our local Ministry of Education hub, attended and explained the MoE’s thinking.
‘‘The MoE felt that we were near capacity or at capacity and that we were at risk of becoming overcrowded.’’
He said he did not feel that a zone was necessary.
‘‘The MoE has very strict criteria for measuring capacity.
‘‘They don’t count any classroom that is smaller than the stated regulation size and they don’t count spaces that the board of trustees own.
‘‘Like any school, some of our senior classes often have 20 or fewer students.’’
He said the school had 36 classes with fewer than 20 students and quite a few with fewer than 15.
‘‘Like all other schools, we can utilise smaller spaces for these small classes.
‘‘We feel that we have the capacity for a much bigger roll.
‘‘We have three classroom spaces coming on stream when the library refurbishment is completed later this term.’’
There would be a major impact on the school if the zone were to go ahead, he said.
‘‘If we immediately lost a large number of enrolments, we could face the problem of overstaffing, which would be very worrying for staff.
‘‘We might have to cut some smaller subjects and students would no longer have the curriculum choices they currently enjoy.
‘‘The major impact on the wider Timaru school community is that the families in the north and west of Timaru and in many of the rural areas will no longer have the guarantee of enrolling at Timaru Boys’ High School.’’
Many of these families had been connected to TBHS for generations and Mr Thorp said it was sad that these connections could soon be severed.
Mr Thorp said that it was important for families to have a choice of where they wanted to send their children to school.
‘‘South Canterbury has five secondary schools in Timaru and another four in the wider area.
‘‘Until recently, parents could send their sons and daughters to the schools that best meet their children’s needs.’’
Boys’ schools offer their own distinctive approach to education, he said.
‘‘Fundamentally, we believe that basic structures and clear instruction are the foundations of good learning for teenage boys.
‘‘We also believe that sports and cultural activities play a huge role in a boys’ social and personal development.
‘‘We concentrate on building a sense of belonging and brotherhood at our school, which leads to better wellbeing and achievement outcomes.
He said, in the school’s view, zoning would remove choice for South Canterbury families.
A consultation period began on Monday and Mr Thorp said it was crucial the community provided their feedback before it closed on June 27.
‘‘We want the MoE to be aware of what the South Canterbury people think about this issue.
‘‘We believe that the Ministry of Education will take any feedback seriously and they especially listen to parental feedback.’’
Ministry of Education Te Rai Runga acting hautu ¯ (leader) Andrea Williams said the proposed zones would help manage the growing demands for places at the two schools.
‘‘The ministry regularly monitors roll trends across the country and both schools’ March 2025 roll return indicated a risk of overcrowding.
‘‘We have been working closely with both school boards on proposed enrolment schemes to help manage demand for places and to reduce the risk of overcrowding in the future.
‘‘When developing an enrolment scheme, we are guided by the requirements of the Education and Training Act 2020, which states that if overcrowding occurs or is likely to occur, the secretary for education must establish an enrolment scheme for the school.’’
More information on the proposed zones and how to place feedback can be found on the ‘‘Have your say’’ section of the Ministry of Education website.
