Five-year-old stranded at rural Auckland pool after being left behind by school holiday programme

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Stephanie Pita is asking why her 5-year-old son Shane was left behind at Parakai Springs on a school holiday programme trip.

A west Auckland 5-year-old was stranded for more than a hour after school holiday programme staff left him at a swimming pool. 

On Friday, Massey woman Stephanie Pita received a phone call all parents dread: "We can't find your son."

Five-year-old Shane Pita had been taken on a day trip to Parakai Springs in northwest Auckland through Te Whānau o Waipareira Trust's holiday programme.

But when Pita's mother-in-law went to collect him from Ranui Primary School that afternoon, 38km from the pools, he was missing. 

Shane had woken up early on Friday morning, ready and excited to go to the pools. "He was amped," his mum said.  

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Shane Pita was left stranded at Parakai Springs in northwest Auckland on Friday (file photo).

When it was time to leave, Shane and the others went to get changed.

He told Pita he was one of the first to finish getting dressed, so he went to play on a nearby bouncy castle in the meantime. 

He was still playing on the bouncy castle when he saw the bus leave without him, he said.

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Young Shane was "terrified" by his ordeal, Stephanie Pita said.

Shane told his mum he ran to try and chase the bus, but the driver and staff on board couldn't see him. 

Pita, who had flown to Wellington a day earlier to be by her sick father's bedside, said being told her son was missing was a "nightmare". 

"It's the worst call you can get, being told 'we can't find your child'."

After more than an hour waiting at Parakai Springs, Shane was picked up by a holiday programme staff member, Pita said. 

He was reunited with his grandmother about an hour and a half later.

"He's terrified – it's stuck in his head." 

She questioned why a head count was not carried out either at the pool before they left, on the bus, or when they arrived back at the school, to flag that Shane wasn't there.

Though the trust had been in touch to apologise, it hadn't softened the blow, Pita said. 

"It really makes my blood boil that they had no idea he was missing at all." 

Pita wasn't sure how many children were taken the pool by the holiday programme, but estimated it was about 100. 

Parents had to register their children, so staff would have been well aware how many children were in attendance, she said. 

She said it was lucky Shane was safe and well at the pools and was looked after by workers there, but said it could have been very different. 

"He was near water, anything could have happened."

Pita said she wanted what happened with Shane to open supervisors' eyes to the importance of head counts. 

"For daycares and schools it should be the number one thing – it's so easy to do and it could save lives." 

Stuff asked Te Whānau o Waipareira Trust whether staff conducted head counts, and what could be done to prevent similar situations in the future.

However, a trust spokesman declined to comment.

Parakai Springs was also contacted for comment, but did not respond on Sunday.