Townsville parents camp out overnight at Pimlico State High School to enrol their children for 2021

Dozens of parents unrolled swags and camped overnight in the hope of enrolling their children into a popular Townsville school.

Dozens of parents unrolled swags and camped overnight in the hope of enrolling their children into a popular Townsville school.

Mum-of-two Shan Wheatley was one of more than 15 mums and dads who slept outside Pimlico High School last night to snag a spot for their children in 2021.

“Everyone was upbeat and (the school) don’t encourage a sleep out but if you want your kids in, it is one of those risks that you take,” she said.

Ms Wheatley lives in the Kirwan State High School catchment and tossed up between a state school or private school but her daughter settled on Pimlico.

“Some Townsville high schools are not up to standard but I have heard great things about Pimlico,” she said.

“We decided at the beginning of the year that Pimlico (State High School) is where Stephanie wanted to go for the global leadership program.”

Townsville parents have camped outside Pimlico State High School overnight to secure their children a spot for 2021.

After arriving at 10pm last night, Ms Wheatley settled in for the night in her fold-up chair and said she did not sleep a wink before the line started moving at 7.30am this morning.

“I met a couple of new people and had a bit of a chat and played on their phones and we went through the forms to make sure we filled it all out correctly,” she said.

“There was one man who had a full swag there and another couple who had their son there and they had a mattress and pillows and they were watching TV on their phone.”

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Ms Wheatley said around 30 to 40 parents arrived between 4am and 5am with up to 100 parents waiting in line after 5am.

Some parents even arrived before school ended yesterday who were instructed to wait off the premises until classes had ended.

Originally published as Townsville parents camp out overnight at Pimlico State High School to enrol their children for 2021