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[UNCLASSIFIED]

Kia ora Ross

Thank you for the information request below. The Ministry will consider and respond to your request in accordance with the Official Information Act 1982 the Act).

Under section 15(1) of the Act, we are required to make and inform you of our decision on your request as soon as reasonably practicable and in any case not later than 20 working days after the day on which your request is received. You can therefore expect to receive our decision on your request on or before 17 November 2025. If more than 20 working days are needed due to the potential workload and/or consultations involved in answering your request, we will notify you accordingly.

The Ministry may publicly release on our website the response to your request five days after you have received it. Any personal information will be removed.

In the interim, if you have any questions about your request, please email [email address]

Ngā mihi

Enquiries National Team | Te Tāhuhu o te Mātauranga | Ministry of Education | TW
education.govt.nz

We shape an education system that delivers equitable and excellent outcomes
He mea tārai e mātou te mātauranga kia rangatira ai, kia mana taurite ai ōna huanga

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[IN-CONFIDENCE - RELEASE EXTERNAL]

Kia ora Ross,

 

Thank you for your email of 17 October 2025 requesting the following
information from the Ministry of Education (the Ministry):

 

Under the Official Information Act 1982, I respectfully request the
following information regarding Mt Wellington Residential School (also
known as Kohitere or the Special Residential School, Auckland),
specifically during the period between 1958 and 1975:

·       Staff Qualifications and Training:

o   Records of staff employed during this period, including their roles
and any formal qualifications or training in child care, education, or
social work.

o   Any policies or requirements in place at the time regarding staff
training or vetting.

·       Field Officer Reports and Concerns:

o   Any reports, correspondence, or internal memos from Auckland-based
education field officers or District Child Welfare Officers expressing
concern or suspicion of improprieties or abuse involving pupils.

o   Records indicating whether these concerns were investigated, and if
so, the outcomes of those investigations.

·       Use of Isolation or “Time-Out” Rooms:

o   Documentation or policy guidelines regarding the use of isolation
rooms or “time-out” spaces at the school.

o   Any records of incidents involving pupils being placed in such rooms,
including duration and reasons.

·       Disciplinary Practices:

o   Any official policies or guidance on physical punishment or
disciplinary practices at the school during this time.

o   Records of complaints, investigations, or disciplinary actions
involving staff accused of excessive or inappropriate punishment.

 

Your request has been considered under the Official Information Act 1982
(the Act).

 

Your request, as currently worded, is very broad in nature and scope and
lacks due particularity. In the hope that we are able to reasonably
identify the information you are seeking, and so that we may be able to
avoid refusing your request, we would like to invite you to clarify and
refine the scope of your request.

 

Firstly, can you please confirm that you are seeking information about Mt
Wellington Residential School, which then became known as Waimokoia
Residential School? Kohitere Boys' Training Centre is the name of a
different institution, which was based in Levin. If you are seeking
information about this institution instead, can you please confirm that.

 

As part of establishing the rapid payment process for Mt
Wellington/Waimokoia Residential School, the Ministry has undertaken a
significant amount of research on the school. As a result, to collate the
information you have requested, as it currently stands, may require
substantial collation or research and therefore may be refused under
section 18(f) of the Act. We therefore invite you to clarify your request.

 

You can find more information about the Ministry’s rapid payment process
for Mt Wellington/Waimokoia Residential School here:
[1]https://www.education.govt.nz/our-work/a....
You will also find a research report regarding the school that may be of
use to you in clarifying your request, and may provide some of the
information you have requested:
[2]https://web-assets.education.govt.nz/s3f....

 

Given the information already publicly available that I have linked above,
are there any other aspects of your request that can be refined, or that
you no longer require information for? Regarding the scope of your
request, the period 1958-1975 is a relatively long period of time, are you
able to reduce the time-period you are requesting information about?

 

We look forward to hearing from you. Once we have your
refinement/clarification, we will commence work on your request. Please
respond to this email by 5 November 2025.

 

Please note that, in line with section 15 (1AA) of the Act, if refinement
or clarification of a request is sought within seven working days of the
date on which the request was received, the Ministry may treat the amended
or clarified request as a new request that replaces the original request
for the purposes of calculating the timeframe.

 

 

Nâku noa, nâ,

Official and Parliamentary Information | Ministry of Education | LJ

[3]education.govt.nz

He mea târai e mâtou te mâtauranga kia rangatira ai, kia mana taurite ai
ôna huanga
We shape an education system that delivers equitable and excellent
outcomes
[4][IMG]

 

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