The Ministry of Education has ordered the country’s oldest school to close its hostels at the end of this week after further serious and “harmful” incidents related to student safety.

Wesley College’s hostels have been the subject of scrutiny for more than two years after allegations of violence and assaults among boarders at the Paerata school on Auckland’s southern border.

Wesley’s trust board itself acknowledged “ongoing concerns about student safety and hostel culture” and last month announced it would close its hostels at the end of term 4 on December 10.

The Herald can today reveal that the Ministry of Education has moved to close the hostels early and has suspended Wesley’s licence to house boarders, effective from this Friday.

The ministry said the Education Review Office (ERO) had recommended the suspension.

Wesley College said today it is seeking urgent legal advice about the suspension.

The Herald understands some parents of Wesley boarders are unaware of the ministry’s decision that was communicated to the school at the end of last week. The school says it is seeking urgent legal advice on the ministry’s move.

“This decision [to close the hostels] follows a pattern of serious and ongoing concerns about the safety and wellbeing of boarders,” the Ministry of Education’s Sean Teddy said in a statement.

“While some improvements have been made since special conditions were imposed on the hostel’s renewed licence in April 2025, further serious incidents have occurred this year. These incidents have highlighted persistent issues with student safety, staff oversight, and the hostel’s ability to shift away from longstanding practices that place boarders at risk,” Teddy said.

ERO’s recommendation to suspend the licence was made in a September report. The office has refused a request from the Herald to proactively release that report.

Teddy said that the ERO’s recommendation, “alongside the Ministry’s own monitoring and the recurrence of harmful incidents, has led to the conclusion that continued operation of the hostel in its current state is not in the best interests of boarders”.

Wesley College is on Auckland's southern border. Photo / file

While international boarders and any students sitting NCEA assessments will be able to stay on to complete the term, all others must leave by this Friday.

“These safeguards apply solely to the interim exam period of Term 4, 2025. The hostel remains subject to closure in 2026, as previously announced by the Wesley College Trust Board, and the licence remains suspended as outlined in the official Suspension Notice,” Teddy said.

“The ministry remains focused on making sure that all boarders are safe and supported and will continue to work closely with the school and families to manage this transition.”

Trust board chair Jan Tasker said in a statement to the Herald today: “We are meeting with the Ministry and will be in a position to provide comment after that. The board is seeking urgent legal advice in relation to steps taken by the ministry.”

‘Deep, structural change is required’ - school bosses

Wesley College announced last month that the hostels would close at the end of this term “for a period sufficient to ensure meaningful and lasting improvements are achieved.”

The school said the decision followed “ongoing concerns about student safety and hostel culture” and that its trust board accepted “further deep, structural change is required”.

“Student safety and wellbeing are our highest priority,” Tasker said last month.

“We acknowledge that our hostel provision has not yet met the consistent standard we expect. Closing the hostels is a decisive step that will allow us to reset the culture, systems, and facilities once and for all.”

A history of violence

Wesley College was established in 1844 and describes itself as the country’s oldest registered school. A special character school, it is tied to the Methodist Church of New Zealand.

The school was placed under statutory management in 2023 after allegations emerged of bullying and violence at the school, including reports of “coverings”, in which students were made to cover their faces before being punched, kicked and slapped by older students.

In April that year, the Herald reported that Oranga Tamariki was working with police to investigate a “report of concern”.

At the time, principal Brian Evans said the school’s trust board welcomed the support “to assist us in our progress towards being an exemplary model of change”.

In response to “significant concerns”, ERO said it commissioned a special review of the college and its hostel operations.

“The school board and hostel management of Wesley College have a duty of care to ensure all learners at the school and all boarders in the hostel are physically and emotionally safe.”

ERO’s special review, released in June 2023, recommended that improvements were required in hostel governance and leadership, health and safety, complaints processes and the quality of care for boarders.

Lane Nichols is Auckland desk editor for the New Zealand Herald with more than 20 years’ experience in the industry.