Anglesea Daycare closed, Aireys Inlet Primary School relocated due to extreme fire danger

Surf Coast schools and day cares are scrambling to relocate and close due to fire danger on Thursday – but not everyone is convinced its safer.

Aireys Inlet Primary School will relocate on Thursday due to fire danger.

A Surf Coast school will relocate, and childcare centre will remain shut on Thursday, as the coastal communities prepare for the extreme heat.

In an email to parents at 5pm on Wednesday, Aireys Inlet Primary School principal Simon Pocervina confirmed that the school would relocate to Torquay College (P-6) on Thursday due to the Extreme fire danger rating.

Mr Pocervina said the decision was in line with the department’s Bushfire and Grassfire Preparedness Policy, which required schools at high risk of bushfire to enact pre-emptive action plans.

The plans are based on a subset of weather district ratings, LGA-level fire danger forecasts, issued by the Bureau of Meteorology.

The school said while not issued publicly, these ratings were provided to the Department of Education and emergency services to support operational activities.

“Conditions can vary significantly across the wider weather district, so using local forecasts helps us to respond appropriately to risks in our local area and maintain stability and educational continuity for our students and school community,” he said.

“Given the potential for elevated fire danger, we encourage you to consider your own bushfire survival plan and reassess any travel through bushfire risk areas.”

Anglesea Child Care will also remain shut on Thursday, after they announced their decision to move in a text message to parents on Wednesday.

“Tomorrow has been declared as an Extreme fire danger day,” the message said.

“We apologise for the inconvenience but safety has to be our number one priority.”

“Please all stay safe tomorrow.”

The message asked parents to please respond to the text message to know it was received and thanked the team.

Speaking on behalf of a group of researchers investigating the impact of school closures on pedagogy and parenting, Dr Alicia Flynn, PhD in education, said the relocations showed that climate change was already affecting children’s schooling.

“These school relocations are reactions with the onus on risk aversion, but being cautious is not necessarily the same as being careful.

Ms Flynn said the long-term affects of the relocations had the potentially to be disastrous.

“In addressing disaster, we need community-embedded and place-specific solutions.

“We need the Department of Education to consider the long term educational and mental health ramifications of school closures and relocations, especially to already vulnerable children and their families.”

A parent with a children at the daycare centre said with these closures likely to increase, new solutions were needed.

“We’ve got to figure out childcare options, but we’re in a childcare dessert,” the parent said.

“I understand the rational, but there’s no alterative for us.

“We don’t have an alternative plan.

“It’s not safer at home.”

A Department of Education spokesman said Aireys Inlet Primary School was “one of 50” at risk schools that would “pre-emptively relocate.”

“The safety of students and staff is always our highest priority … and we are supporting the school in enacting their plan – as they are required to do,” he said.

Originally published as Anglesea Daycare closed, Aireys Inlet Primary School relocated due to extreme fire danger