At a large primary school in an area with many working families, like Lane Cove Public School, an after-school care service is vital.
A parent cooperative provides care to 130 students each afternoon for a school of more than 800, a service for which principal Gemma Ackroyd is thankful.
But, she argues, it would be unreasonable to expect every principal to guarantee an after-school care service was available at their school, a suggestion put forward by the Productivity Commission this week.
“It can’t be seen as just the individual school’s responsibility,” she said. “It is a whole of society responsibility.”
The commission's draft report recommended principals be held responsible for ensuring schools provide before and after school care.
Ms Ackroyd said, if that were to be enforced, the government would have to provide the necessary facilities and support schools in the provision of services.
She said the greatest barrier to on-site services was finding adequate and appropriate space, often within increasingly crowded schools.
“There are quite stringent requirements for these facilities to operate, in terms of spacing and kitchen and toilet areas, and many schools are not set up for that,” she said.
“So, unless the department made the decision that they would provide the facilities in schools, you couldn't expect schools of their own volition to be able to modify places to actually accommodate before and after school care.”
