Schoolies 2019: Business and political leaders back slashing Schoolies to three days

Week-long Schoolies celebrations would be axed under a radical revamp which has won the backing of political and business leaders.

WEEK-long Schoolies celebrations should be axed to a long-weekend under a radical revamp backed by political and business leaders.

On the eve of the annual rite of passage for school leavers, the founder of Drug and Alcohol Research and Training Australia says it is time to shorten the Glitter Strip’s celebrations to just three days.

There are calls to cut Schoolies week. Picture: Jake Nowakowski

The move, he said, would bring the Coast in to line with South Australia and Western Australia.

“On the Gold Coast the only booking option is for a full-week package, it’s too much,” he said.

“A week is a long time for anyone to flat-out party.

“It’s too much time to experiment with risky behaviours, it’s too much time away from home and up all night, which is when we see kids really burn out emotionally, mentally and physically.”

Schoolies have fun in the early days of the week. Picture: Jake Nowakowski

Schoolies has been held on the Coast for more than 30 years and evolved through the 1980s as a week-long event.

More organised events were introduced through the 1990s to curve violence and chaos in the streets.

Mayor Tom Tate has backed calls to cut the event’s running time, citing his two decades at the helm of the Islander Hotel in Surfers Paradise, which was long a popular hub for Schoolies.

There are calls to slash the number of days Schoolies party on the Coast. Picture: Jason O'Brien

“I would have 500 Schoolies at my place and they would be excited and polite the first night as they look forward to things but after the third night they would have had enough and generally a lot of them would start going home,” he said.

“By the end they are burnt out - the fact is three days or a long weekend is plenty.

“There would be a lot of wins out of this - it would cost less for the Schoolies, there would be less wear and tear for hotel owners and it would be less intense for police and volunteers too.”

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Mayor Tom Tate says Schoolies get burnt out by the second half of celebrations. Picture: Jake Nowakowski

Gold Coast Central Chamber of Commerce president Martin Hall said there was the potential to leverage more out of a smaller event.

“Schoolies for a long time is something businesses have been keen to see reduced,” he said.

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“You have to consider the return you get from it as well as historically the damage which has been caused by some of the kids attending.

“If there was a greater return from a smaller event then this could be interesting.”

Schoolies at the beach. Picture: Mike Batterham

The Safer Schoolies Response Gold Coast Advisory Board provides services to Schoolies during the week.

Its long-time chairman Mark Reaburn said the same level of services would continue regardless of any changes to the event’s length.

“We don’t control how long the school leavers stay here. Commercial operators such as accommodation houses and booking agents and the schoolies themselves have the flexibility to decide when they come and how long they stay,” he said.

“We will provide the current level of support services whether the period is seven days (as it is now) or whether it is three days.”