St Peter’s head takes extended lead

The chair of St Peter’s School board has rejected claims the private Cambridge school is facing another crisis following news Head of School Marcus Blackburn has gone on extended leave.

Marcus Blackburn, St Peter’s School

John Macaskill-Smith, who chaired the board in 2021 when principal Dale Burden left the school amid allegations of bullying, said Blackburn was on leave for “family reasons”, which he would not go into.

Contradicting claims of a toxic culture, he said “it’s a school that is thriving with great outcomes for the young people and staff”.

Blackburn emailed parents last week saying he was having to take an “immediate and extended period of leave for the remainder of Term Three.” He indicated he would be back on October 14. Campus principal Julie Small will act in his place.

The board held a meeting with parents, which Macaskill-Smith said had been scheduled for months, on Tuesday night after The News went to press

John Macaskill-Smith

Blackburn told The News several weeks after he started in his role last year that he was at the school to “facilitate the things we need to do to maximise the potential of the school”.

He was deputy headmaster and Head of Senior School at St Peter’s College in Adelaide from 2020-2022. The college is a boys only Anglican boarding and day school of 1500 boys. St Peter’s in Cambridge has a roll of 1200.

Former staff and some parents claim there is a “toxic culture” at the school and pinned the blame on Blackburn – but other parents told The News they were happy with the changes at the school and the latest drama was “just a beat up.”

See: Blackburn leading the way

See: The return of Arikirua

See: St Peter’s names new head

See: St Peter’s up to the test

See: St Peter’s calls in Worksafe

 

Marcus Blackburn, St Peter’s School

More Recent News

News in brief

We have ourselves an election with a record number of nominations in the Cambridge ward for the four vacancies on Waipa District Council. Fourteen people have put their names forward for the council and 13…

Abuse a ‘stain on national character’

The spectre of abuse in some New Zealand care institutions will remain unless those responsible are held accountable and a bipartisan government approach is taken to address the recommendations of the Royal Commission of Inquiry…

Storey keeps council in tent

Waikato Regional Council is back as a member of Local Government New Zealand (LGNZ), following chair Pamela Storey’s casting vote to overturn last month’s decision to leave. The motion to renew the council’s $80,375.55 LGNZ…

Stepping into the unknown

What careers will still be around in five years? That was one of the questions on Alicia Smart’s mind as she visited a free Community Careers Expo at the Cambridge Town Hall last Thursday  with…