Conflict Analysis in Anglican Boarding Schools: A Thematic Analysis of Governance, Accountability and Authority Relations

This article examines sources of conflict in Anglican boarding schools in Zimbabwe, with particular attention to governance, accountability and authority relations. Boarding schools combine teaching, residential care, discipline, pastoral responsibility, administration and resource management. In Anglican schools, this complexity is intensified by the interaction between school-level management, diocesan authority, Church expectations and Ministry of Education regulations. The study adopted a qualitative research design based on four focus group discussions conducted in four anonymised Anglican boarding schools, coded as School A, School B, School C and School D. Twenty-four participants took part, representing senior teachers, boarding staff, administrative staff, pastoral staff, finance-related personnel, disciplinary committee members, school committee members and church liaison roles. Data were analysed thematically. The findings revealed eight sources of conflict: governance and leadership, financial management and accountability, procurement and administrative procedures, communication and institutional coordination, policy compliance and institutional dualism, resource allocation and infrastructure, enrolment and admissions, and human resource and staff welfare issues. The article argues that conflict in Anglican boarding schools is largely institutional and structural rather than merely interpersonal. Its original contribution lies in showing how conflict emerges at the Church-State-school interface, where overlapping authority, weak accountability and unclear procedures turn routine decisions into recurrent institutional tension. The article recommends governance clarity, stronger financial oversight, harmonised Church-Ministry procedures, transparent resource allocation and participatory conflict-resolution mechanisms.

Anglican boarding schools; conflict analysis; governance

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