Dr Bruce Flegg
Member for Moggill

School oval plan fraught with problems

Tuesday, 02 March 2010 14:30

2 March 2010

School oval plan fraught with problems

Plans by the Bligh Government to open school grounds to the general community are fraught with problems for those schools, the LNP said today.

Shadow Minister for Education and Training Dr Bruce Flegg said opening school grounds to the public will significantly increase the cost of maintenance from already meagre school maintenance budgets.

"School facilities will require additional cleaning, especially from litter and the increased maintenance that would accompany such increased usage", said Dr Flegg.

"In many schools this would also require a significant increase in security arrangements to protect schools from vandalism, arson and the like.

Dr Flegg said opening schools to the public created a public liability issue for people who might suffer an injury while on school grounds.

"It also threatens to impose a significant administrative burden on schools to track the use of their facilities", he said.

"The Education Department already has a ‘School Watch’ program. How on earth is a community supposed to know who is legitimately entering a school and who could pose a threat?

"Some schools around Brisbane already have significant problems with discarded syringes and the like and opening them to ‘trespass’ can only make this matter worse.

"School communities should have the right to control the assets and resources within their school.

"After all we hold them accountable for the handling of those assets.

"No one is opposed to schools being used after hours for appropriate activities.

"In fact almost every school in the State is already but it should be done under the control of the school administration."