Sara Cohen School principal Raewyn Alexander has confirmed she will retire later this year.
However, the school’s limited statutory manager, Nicola Hornsey, says Mrs Alexander’s retirement has nothing to do with recent allegations of child abuse at the school.
Mrs Hornsey said in December 2015, the principal signalled her intention to retire on July 7 (the end of term 2), after she had turned 65.
Since then, the school has been working through a succession plan for a new principal, as part of the school’s charter which was adopted in February last year, Mrs Hornsey said.
Mrs Alexander declined to comment.
Ministry of Education associate deputy secretary Susan Howan said the ministry was not aware of the principal’s impending retirement.
"We have not received any update on this as schools aren’t required to report staff changes to us, including principals."
The school for special needs pupils has been in the spotlight in recent months, over allegations of child abuse at its Concord School campus.
While some parents and staff alleged children at the special needs school were hit, sat on, pinched, force-fed, tackled to the ground and regularly put in a seclusion room by a teacher and a teacher aide at the Sara Cohen unit at Concord School, several other parents believed the allegations were false.
One staff member has quit and another was suspended.
Police investigated the school after a parent complained in February, but the investigation ended with no charges being laid.
The Ministry of Education employed education consultant Mike Corkery to conduct an investigation into the concerns raised by parents, and Mrs Hornsey was put in place as a limited statutory manager in April, with powers relating to employment, complaints, communication and aspects of health and safety.
