Auckland Teachers Guilty After Child Left in Van

Two preschool teachers in Auckland have been found guilty of serious misconduct by the Teachers’ Disciplinary Tribunal after a child was left locked in a van for approximately 80 minutes following a class trip.

The ruling follows an incident on December 1, 2022, at Kākāpō Creek Children’s Garden in Mairangi Bay. Teachers Mee Sung (Michelle) Choi and Rochelle Gray had taken nine children on a trip to a local farm-forest and returned to the centre at approximately 2:05 PM.

Failure in Safety Protocols

According to the tribunal, the teachers failed to complete a compulsory roll call after returning from the excursion. After parking outside the centre, Rochelle Gray took two children inside, leaving Michelle Choi to supervise the remaining children in the van.

At the time, two children were sleeping in the vehicle: one in the front passenger row and another in the back near the left window.

Gray eventually returned to the van to unload more children and bags before relieving Choi for a lunch break. During this transition, Choi referred to there being sleepers in the van. Gray recalled looking at the child in the front row and asking Choi, is that it?

The tribunal found that the presence of the child in the back seat was not expressly communicated by Choi, and the two teachers did not clearly communicate the total number of children sleeping in the vehicle.

Incident Timeline

While monitoring the child in the front row, Gray continued to unpack bags and equipment from the van. Once the child in the front woke up, Gray took them inside the centre.

Gray later returned to the van with her daughter and moved the vehicle forward approximately 20 metres into its standard parking space. At 2:39 PM, Gray locked the van and returned to the centre, leaving the sleeping child in the back seat unattended.

The tribunal noted that Gray did not conduct a final check of the van to ensure no children remained inside before she left for the day.

Choi remained at work, but neither she nor two other staff members on duty noticed the child was missing from the group.

Discovery and Aftermath

The child was discovered at approximately 3:28 PM by a parent arriving at the centre to collect their own child. The parent noticed movement inside the van and found the preschooler screaming.

The child was removed from the vehicle after several minutes and taken inside to be comforted.

Both Choi and Gray subsequently apologised to the family. Kākāpō Creek Children’s Garden conducted a disciplinary process and a review of its policies regarding class trips following the event.