“By AVIS HOPKINS

CHILDREN are fainting from hunger and

showing other signs of neglect in North Van-
couver’s Queen Mary Community School, says

the school’s principal.

And incidents of physical
and sexual abuse are
soaring, with 20 cases of
abuse reported in the first
two months of this school

year compared to 43 cases in |

the whole of last year, ac-
cording to principal Claus
Spiekermann.

Mounting pressures
caused by a money shortage
in families receiving welfare
are the cause of the
problem, he claims.

One child who fainted
recently in the school's
hallway hadn't eaten ° all
weekend, he told the News
and the number of children
coming to school without
lunches is dramatically
increasing.

One day 65 children came
to school without lunches,
he says, and a day doesn't go
by without some children
needing help to get lunch.

Spiekermann met with
Ministry of Human
Resources officials on
Thursday to discuss the
problem with the result that
a social worker will now
attend the school’s weekly
pupils’ services meeting.

The school is located in an
area with a high number of
single parents, many of
whom have an average
yearly income of $9,000,
much lower than the $28,000
yearly average which is
North Vancouver's norm, he
said.

Spickermann decided “to
go public” after a group of 10
single parents approached
him about the situation.
They are all on welfare.

One parent's assistance
had been cut back $35 under
the new income gains
program put into effect
November | by the Ministry
of Human Resources.

At the same time her rent
had been increased by $200 a
month.

“She has no job and no
prospect of a job with her
skills,” he says.

Other parents told him
they were afraid the same
thing was going to happen to
them, and they were already
having trouble coping with
their financial situation.

The new policy enables
mothers to be classed as
“employable” whose
children are over six months

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old, resulting in a reduction
of benefits. sO,

The lower Lonsdale
school was one of several
schools to be
allocated more staff, said
Spiekermann.

A report released by the
North Vancouver School
District
eight

unidentified schools

which should be designated.

as special needs schools
because of the high number
of students with problems.

The lower Lonsdale
school was one of several
schools to be recently
allocated more staff, said
Spiekermann.

A report released by the
North Vancouver School
District this spring cited
eight unidentified schools
which should be designated
as special needs schools
because of the high number
of students with problems.

The schools had a high
number of students with
learning, emotional and
health problems as well as a
high rate of absenteeism and
children from single parent
homes.

The year-long study was
triggered by a North Van-
couver Teacher's
Association recom-
mendation that designated
schools should receive more
staff.

The report highlighted
problems the schools faced
such as:

@Student absenteeism in
one school twice the district
mean;

®Almost 40 per cent of the

student population of one
school came from single
parent homes;

®Fourteen per cent of the
students in one school have
chronic health problems.

Deputy Minister of
Human Resources John
Noble said his ministry is
concerned about reports of
abuse and neglect ol
children at the school and
MHR staff is willing to help
the school deal with the
problem.

Noble said the aim of the
new policy is to assist
recipients into the work
force and the only persons
ho will be cut off welfare are
those who are able to work
but have refused job offers.

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recently

this spring cited |

showing increases in physical and sexual abuse of students at Queen
Mary School are given by principal Claus Spiekermann, who blames the situations on
increased pressures in welfare homes brought about by Human Resources cutbacks.
Spiekermann says single parents face particularly tough financial pressures and that
this is the reason more:and more children are coming to school without bringing
lunches. (Terry Peters photo)

GRIM figures

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