By Te Kāhu

Kaitaia Abundant Life School, after consulting with their community, has decided to close their doors rather than assimilate the government’s controversial sex curriculum into primary school education.

With the sexualised curriculum designed to be “embedded” into normal lesson plans, there have been growing concerns about the level of gender ideology, sexual preference training and sexual confusion being inculcated into children as young as seven years old.

With groups such as Family First exposing the dangerously radical new sexual curriculum, more parents are realising the need to have their children protected from such training.

The proprietor of the school, whose role is to administer the property and ensure the school operates within and maintains its Special Christian Character, has written the following:

Kia ora Kaitaia Abundant Life School Whanau,

You will be aware that we have been consulting the school community about our Integration Agreement with the Government. It was signed in 1996 on the understanding that we would provide an education within our special character as a Christian school.

That character is determined by the beliefs, values and lifestyle of the Proprietors of the Kaitaia Abundant Life School.

Unfortunately, recent statutory constraints prevent us from being able to offer that education any longer.

It also means that if we do comply with these new laws and requirements, we are breaking our very own beliefs, statement of faith and our constitution, the legal document upon which the school is based. As Proprietors, we will not be moving from our beliefs or from the Word of God. These are the reasons why we have negotiated by mutual agreement an end to our Integration Agreement with the Ministry of Education.

The recent survey we conducted with the school community showed that the overwhelming majority of parents agree that the new demands placed on us from the Government go against our beliefs and we must stand up for what we believe in.

In collaboration with the Board of Trustees and mutual agreement with the Ministry of Education, we are working towards a termination of the Integrated agreement and the closure of the School, date effective at the end of Term 2, 2023 (16th July 2023). We’re extremely disappointed it has come to this but there was no alternative. We haven’t changed our special character and we won’t change our beliefs or convictions.

However, the Government has forced changes and imposed legislation on us, making it impossible for us to operate within it without compromising who and what we are as Christians.

To continue under these new laws and constraints would require us to move away from, or change, our core beliefs and to break our constitution and we can’t and won’t do that.

We are looking at ways we may be able to continue to operate without government funding and we’ll keep you posted every step of the way. The wellbeing of your child and every student at this school is paramount to us. That’s why we will do all we can to find the best education for them, whether that be with us in some way or another option.

Thank you for your continued support. My door is always open if you would like to discuss this further.

And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose” Romans 8:28

Nga mihi,

Ivy Tan

Kaitaia Abundant Life Centre Proprietors