‘How many times before he’s fired?’ Parents demand action over school staffer

Friday, 19 June 2026

Taipa Area School in the Far North apologised to a family who allege a staff member forcefully pushed their 8-year-old boy to the ground after he was involved in a scuffle.

The school admitted the staffer hadn’t been properly inducted and given “restraint training”.

The parents of the boy pulled him out of the school, concerned it was unsafe.

Now, another mother claims her son was pushed over and had keys thrown at his head by the same staffer.

Parents of two students at Taipa Area School in the Far North are demanding the school take action against a staffer they accuse of violence against their children.

The first incident occurred at the school near Mangonui, which caters for children from year one to 13, in November and involved police.

Serene Mallowes said her primary school-age son, who had behavioural issues due to his ADHD, was involved in an altercation with another child.

Instead of verbally intervening to stop the fight, she said, the staff member stood by.

The whole incident was caught on the school’s CCTV cameras.

Contact the reporter: tony.wall@stuffdigital.co.nz

“The boys stopped and the [man] then walked towards my son, grabbed him by the back of his t-shirt and then pushed him to the ground with force,” Mallowes said.

“He then pulled him up by his shirt and pushed him again.

“My son walked away sad and upset and confused.”

The video of the incident was played at a meeting a few days later involving the boy’s parents and the principal, Lisa White.

White’s minutes of the meeting, later emailed to Mallowes, stated that the employee had been stood down while the matter was investigated.

He was “remorseful, realised his fault, inquired about [the child’s] wellbeing and was keen to participate in a restorative hui,” the notes said.

White advised the boy’s parents at the meeting that the staffer had not had restraint training, nor a “full and appropriate induction”, prior to his appointment and this was an area the school needed to improve.

In a phone call, which Mallowes recorded, White said she had watched the video several times and it appeared that after her son had hit or kicked the other student, he turned around and was beginning to walk away when the man “grabbed his jumper”.

He realised straight away he shouldn’t be doing so, White said.

“He is shocked and remorseful at how he reacted, he is accepting support going forward and has told me nothing like that will ever happen again,” she said on the call.

She added: “I apologise that I did not make sure he was inducted well and he’d not had restraint training, and he will not be at school until that has happened.”

At a subsequent meeting, notes show, White said she had consulted the New Zealand School Boards Association to ensure appropriate processes were followed, and the Ministry of Education would be advised.

She offered to apologise directly to the child “for the fact that the [staffer] had not been appropriately trained and inducted”.

When the man later returned to the school, he no longer worked with children of the boy’s age.

Mallowes said she withdrew her son and another child from the school at the end of the year, as she was still concerned for their safety.

She also laid a complaint with police.

Detective Senior Sergeant Michelle Harris of the Far North CIB said in a statement police made inquiries after a “report of an assault” at the school in November.

“In this … case, the threshold for criminal charges was not met and the case has been closed,” she said.

“All parties were informed of the outcome.”

Mallowes said her son had been involved in incidents at the school before, and was a “little bit of a troublemaker” because his ADHD had gone undiagnosed.

He had since been formally diagnosed.

“Every other time anything has happened, teachers automatically stop it with verbal [instructions] … there was none of that at all, he [the staffer] just watched it all unfold.”

Mallowes has since acted as a support person for another mother whose 13-year-old son alleges wrongdoing by the same man.

That mother, who asked to remain anonymous as her son is still at the school, told Stuff that she got a call from the school about a month ago saying there had been an incident and he was upset.

When she went to pick him up, he “burst into tears”, she said, claiming that the man had thrown a set of keys at the back of his head.

“Later on that same day he shoved him over in the hall. He burst into tears on the way home and he said it was just the shock.”

The mother said the school had apologised for the incident in general, but the staffer denied both incidents and because it was unclear exactly what happened, White said at a meeting no further action would be taken.

There was talk of a “restoration meeting” between her son and the man, the mother said.

She is concerned that there have now been two alleged incidents involving the same staff member.

“I believe a lot of our kids at Taipa school come from violent, abusive homes and the school should be the one place where they don’t get that treatment from adults.”

Stuff put a list of questions about the incidents and whether any action had or would be taken against the staff member to White and Taipa Area School board of trustees presiding member Stephen Tansey.

They said in a statement they were “aware of the concerns that have been raised” but because it involved “student and employment privacy” they couldn’t comment.

“At Taipa Area School the safety and wellbeing of our ākonga [students] and staff is always our highest priority,” the statement said.

“As with any matter of this nature, the school followed its established pastoral and employment processes and sought appropriate external advice where required.

“Our focus remains on providing a safe, supportive learning environment for all ākonga.”

Hira Gage, the Ministry of Education’s director of education for Tai Tokerau, said the ministry was notified of the November incident.

“We contacted Taipa Area School to understand the steps being taken to respond to the incident,” Gage said.

“The school advised it was following its internal process.

“We understand the school offered to meet with the whānau to address their concerns.”

Gage said school boards were responsible for managing staff and as the employer, the Taipa Area School Board made decisions about “employment matters.”

The ministry was not aware of the second incident, but was following up with the school, Gage said.

Mallowes said the school had refused to release the video of her son’s incident and she was now seeking it via the Privacy Act.

She said she was told prior to the most recent meeting with the principal and the other mother that she was not able to speak at the meeting.

“I did, however, get to ask how many times would this sort of thing happen before [the staffer] was fired.”