“We are not going to drop our jobs to be able to drop our kids at school.”
Sanssar has twin 14-year-old sons, Alexis and Emilien, at Hastings Boys’ High School, which is roughly 20km from their home.
Alexis has a hearing impairment and receives support for it at his current school.
“He’s finally thriving … He’s not targeted by bullying there. He really has found a nice place and feels at home,” Sanssar said.
“He’s in the second-top class, and his twin brother is in the top class …They want to be there, they are happy there.
“We’ve put it on the table. They said they don’t want to go to Flaxmere College.
“Hastings Boys’ is working for them. Their academic and sports results shows it. Why would I send them elsewhere?”
Te Onepu parent Desiree Janson, whose son uses the bus, said a school bus would still travel from rural Maraekakaho into Hastings and up Pakowhai Rd, but would not stop at Hastings Boys’, Hastings Girls’ or Karamū High School.
“It just seems nonsensical to have a bus going all the way up to Hastings Girls’ on Pakowhai Rd, then turning around without stopping,” she said.
“So, you’re going to have extra cost for parents and extra buses on the road going exactly to the same places.”
Janson said she first learned about the change during an enrolment interview for her younger daughter in early November.
Her 14-year-old son already attends Hastings Boys’ High School, while her 13-year-old daughter is due to start at Hastings Girls’ High School next year.
“It came as a bit of a surprise, and not a lot of time for us to sort things out.”
Janson said her family chose Hastings Girls’ because her two older daughters attended the school and they are familiar with its environment and programmes, while Hastings Boys’ was selected for her son because of its engineering pathway, which she says is not offered in the same way at closer schools.
“Flaxmere College is 1.7km closer to our home. The Ministry of Education is creating a huge upheaval and added stress to parents, over 1.7km.
“Living approximately 40km from Hastings City, it seems ridiculous to make these changes over such an insignificant distance,” Janson says.
“The ideal situation would be keeping it as one bus that does all of the schools, and if the parents that are not sending their child to their closest school have to pay extra, then so be it.”
Ministry of Education leader of operations and integration Sean Teddy said he acknowledged the change was unsettling for some families.
The ministry regular reviewed school bus routes to ensure they aligned with school transport policy and funding rules, he said.
“Our recent review of our school bus route D050306 found that many students travelling on this service are not eligible for school transport assistance as they are not attending their closest school.
“Their closest state secondary school is Flaxmere College, and their closest state-integrated [Catholic] secondary school is St John’s College.”
Teddy said the ministry notified Hastings schools on July 2 this year.
“It is the school’s responsibility to notify their community of changes to their school bus services.”
He said students travelling to Karamū High School were using the service under a private arrangement with the bus operator.
“Families with ineligible students can explore private arrangements with the bus operator, provided there is space and written consent from any schools being bypassed.
“While we acknowledge that caregivers have the right to choose where they enrol their children, the eligibility criteria for school transport assistance are intended to ensure the ongoing viability and integrity of local schooling networks by supporting students to attend their closest school.
“This helps to prevent inefficiencies in the network due to excess demand at some schools and surplus capacity at others.”
Hastings Girls’ High School assistant principal Rob Orr said it was the last remaining ministry-funded bus route serving their school, after previous cuts to Clive and Central Hawke’s Bay routes.
He said about 35 Hastings Girls’ students had been affected across the three cancelled routes.
“We believe in equity and equal opportunities for all students. These cuts are making it more difficult for families to get their students to their preferred schools,” Orr said.
Families affected by this latest change were notified in July, the same month the school received official confirmation from the ministry, he said.
Orr said Hastings Girls’ was considering subsidising a private bus route by $200, which meant families would pay about $250 per student, per term in 2026.
Flaxmere College principal Cherie Heeney said the school respected the right of parents to choose the school that best meets their needs.
“The wellbeing and educational success of each individual student should always remain paramount,” Heeney says.
“Flaxmere College is a whānau-based, inclusive school, and we pride ourselves on providing a high-quality education for all students who choose to attend here.
“I warmly encourage any whānau affected by these changes to come in, meet with me, and take a tour of our beautiful facilities.”
Hastings Boys’ High School did not want to comment.