Letter received 22 August 2024

The Waimate Centennial School Board takes all complaints seriously and has considered your recent
email regarding the FAST committee’s drag bingo fundraiser at our publicly excluded meeting on August
19.

In making our decision regarding whether this fundraiser is to go ahead, we considered our school values,
relevant policies and our requirements and objectives under section 127 of the Education and Training Act
2020.

The board believes due diligence has been carried out and your complaint was not upheld.

The fundraiser will proceed as planned. If you are not satisfied with the outcome of your complaint, you are
welcome to contact the office of the Ombudsman as per the school’s concerns and complaints policy
Ombudsman New Zealand | Tari o te Kaitiaki Mana Tangata.

This letter is confidential and intended for your use only as required under the Privacy Act 2020. Any
unauthorised use or copying of this letter is strictly prohibited.

Kind regards,
Waimate Centennial School Board

Received from Centennial School 16/09/2024

Dear Vanessa,

The Waimate Centennial School Board's response to your OIA request is as follows:

I requested further information from your Board of Trustees, which was rejected because "the board considers the matter closed". The matter is not closed until I receive the information requested.

Your letter of complaint has been processed by the Board and an outcome has been reached, which we have informed you of. You are within your rights to request information under the Official Information Act which we are providing in accordance with the OIA.

I now formally request the following:

1. Please provide details of the Boards interpretation/application of section 127 of the Education and Training Act 2020 that lead the Boards conclusion the hosting/engagement of Drag Queens is a requirement or an objective under this legislation.

The Board explained in its letter responding to your complaint that “in making our decision regarding whether this fundraiser is to go ahead, we considered our school values and our requirements and objectives under section 127 of the Education Training Act 2020”. As you will be aware our school values are Respect for Self, Respect for Others, Respect for Property and Respect for Environment, and the relevant parts of section 127 that the Board considered when making our decision have been highlighted below for you. This is not a school event and is optional for those who wish to attend. The event has been approved by the Board as it demonstrates inclusion of different groups and persons with different personal characteristics, diversity, and identity which are all outlined in section 127 of the Education and Training Act.

127 Objectives of boards in governing schools

A board’s primary objectives in governing a school are to ensure that—

(a) every student at the school is able to attain their highest possible standard in educational achievement; and

(b) the school—

(i) is a physically and emotionally safe place for all students and staff; and

(ii) gives effect to relevant student rights set out in this Act, the New Zealand Bill of Rights Act 1990, and the Human Rights Act 1993; and

(iii) takes all reasonable steps to eliminate racism, stigma, bullying, and any other forms of discrimination within the school; and

(c) the school is inclusive of, and caters for, students with differing needs; and

(d) the school gives effect to Te Tiriti o Waitangi, including by—

(2) To meet the primary objectives, the board must—

(a) have particular regard to the statement of national education and learning priorities issued under section 5; and

The education and learning objectives for early childhood education, primary education, and secondary education are—

(a) to help each child and young person attain their educational potential; and

(b) to promote the development, in each child and young person, of the following abilities and attributes:

(i) resilience, determination, confidence, and creative and critical thinking:

(ii) good social skills and the ability to form good relationships:

(iii) participation in community life and fulfilment of civic and social responsibilities:

(iv) preparedness for work; and

(c) to instil, in each child and young person, an appreciation of the importance of—

(i) the inclusion of different groups and persons with different personal characteristics:

(ii) diversity, cultural knowledge, identity, and the different official languages:

(iii) Te Tiriti o Waitangi and te reo Māori.

2. Please provide details of the Boards interpretation/application of the Privacy Act 2020 that lead the Boards conclusion they have the power to preclude my onward communications regarding my concern, and the manner in which those concerns where addressed/disregarded.

You are correct that within the response letter from the Board there was no personal information that precluded the recipient sharing this information and breaching the Privacy Act.

3. Please provide details of the Boards conclusion that they have the power to override an individual's right to freedom of expression as outlined in Section 14 of the New Zealand Bill of Rights Act 1990.

The Board acts always in the best interest of the students and the school.

Everyone has the right to freedom of expression however the Board will not tolerate harassment of staff or Board members if a complainant is not happy with an outcome.

You have the right to seek an investigation and review by the Ombudsman of this decision. Information about how to make a complaint is available at www.ombudsman.parliament.nz or freephone 0800 802 602.

4. Please provide ANONYMISED copies of all written objections that the Board have received regarding their decision to employ Drag Queens in their school fundraising efforts.

The Board has not employed Drag Queens. It has come to the attention of the Board that this misinformation has been alleged on FYI.org.nz. The Board requests that this statement that the “School Board of Trustees Employment of Drag Queens” be removed from this platform and any other social media site as it is a breach of Principle 6: “A digital communication should not make a false allegation” of the Harmful Digital Communications Act 2015.

The Board can confirm that there have been one verbal and six written objections to the Board regarding the fundraising event.

The Board has decided to refuse your request of anonymised copies of all written objections/complaints under section 9(2)(ba) of the OIA.

This section of the OIA applies to protect information which is subject to an obligation of confidence or which any person has been or could be compelled to provide under the authority of any enactment, where the making available of the information—

(i) would be likely to prejudice the supply of similar information, or information from the same source, and it is in the public interest that such information should continue to be supplied; or

(ii) would be likely otherwise to damage the public interest.

The Board has an obligation to protect the integrity of its Concerns and Complaints process, confidentiality is fundamental to this process. It is reasonable for a complainant to have an expectation of confidentiality. Releasing even anonymised copies of these complaints may mean people are less likely to submit complaints if it creates a perception that the process is not confidential.

5. Please provide a record of the 19 August Board Meeting in which letters objecting to the schools employment of Drag Queens was addressed. I'm particularly interested in the scope of the discussion, and how each point raised in all letters of objection was considered.

The Board has not employed Drag Queens. It has come to the attention of the Board that this misinformation has been alleged on FYI.org.nz. The Board requests that this statement that the “School Board of Trustees Employment of Drag Queens” be removed from this platform and any other social media site as it is a breach of Principle 6: “A digital communication should not make a false allegation” of the Harmful Digital Communications Act 2015.

The Board has decided to refuse your request of the “record of the 19th August Board Meeting in which letters objecting” to the event were discussed under section 9(2)(ba) of the OIA.

This meeting was held entirely in publicly excluded business due to discussing the complaints before the Board. As stated in point 4, The Board has an obligation to protect the integrity of its Concerns and Complaints process, confidentiality is fundamental to this process. It is reasonable for a complainant to have an expectation of confidentiality. Releasing the minutes from this meeting regarding these complaints may mean people are less likely to submit complaints if it creates a perception that the process is not confidential.

The Board has explained above why they came to their decision to approve the FAST event.

6. Please detail all conflicts of interest that exist between the school fundraising committee (FAST) and the school Board of Trustees, and how they are effectively managed.

As per our conflicts of interest policy the Board manages both new and ongoing conflicts of interest, these are documented with actions taken if required.

You have the right to seek an investigation and review by the Ombudsman of this decision. Information about how to make a complaint is available at www.ombudsman.parliament.nz or freephone 0800 802 602.
Regards,
Waimate Centennial School Board