Cost of living crisis, higher rents, results in surge in children arriving at school hungry
Teachers are putting their hands in their pockets to help children arriving to school hungry on the Gold Coast amid a spiralling cost of living crisis. READ OUR SPECIAL REPORT
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TEACHERS are putting their hands in their pockets to help children arriving hungry to school or lacking basics like water bottles as parents struggle to pay high rental costs on the Gold Coast.
Some students are also doing homework by torchlight before bedding down for the night in cars or tents. Charity Foodbank, which supports seven schools on the Gold Coast, said an increasing number were looking to take part in its breakfast program.
“In the last 12 months, Foodbank Queensland has seen an increase in demand for school breakfast programs across the state,” Queensland CEO Sara Harrup said.
“In 2022, we received eight new School Breakfast Program inquiries in the Gold Coast region, with one new inquiry so far in 2023.”
Ms Harrup said the charity’s research showed 440,000 Queensland households went hungry due to a lack of funds last year – more than half of them with young children.
“As cost of living continues to rise, families are being forced to choose between keeping a roof over their heads and putting food on the table,” Ms Harrup said.
“Unfortunately, not all children are able to start the day with breakfast at home. That’s why our School Breakfast Program is so important.”
SCRIMPING ON FOOD AND MEDICINE
A recent report by the Community Housing Industry Association (CHIA) and the University of NSW (UNSW) showed the Gold Coast and Logan/Beaudesert were among the three worst areas in the state for households struggling because of housing costs.
The Gold Coast was listed as having significantly more struggling households than any other region in the state. St Vincent’s de Paul South Coast President John Blake said that soaring rents had forced families to scrimp on food, medicine and other bills.
“It’s getting tougher and tougher all the time,” Mr Blake said.
“The rents have just gone up so much. You speak to the schools and you have plenty of instances where kids go to school without breakfast, and most cases without lunch.
“Some schools have specific programs to go and cover that type of thing, but other schools you’ll find teachers are dipping into their pockets at times to go and get them something.”
Vinnies Queensland CEO Kevin Mercer said the charity had received a record number of applications for support from its Children’s Education Fund for the 2023 academic year.
“The demand for back-to-school support is now more than double what it was in 2019,” he said.
“... Throughout 2022, we saw a perfect storm of Queensland families dealing with rising rent and housing costs while the cost of groceries, fuel and utility bills skyrocketed.”
Mr Blake said among those helped by the charity last year was one student who was living with her mum in the back of a car after a request from teachers.
“One of the conferences started up an education grant,” Mr Blake said. “An application came in from one of the schools.
“It was a young girl. The teachers were telling us in their report as to why this person should get something. And they were saying how she tries so hard with her study, her grades were going the right way, she’s got objectives in life, she’s got a vision and she’s working towards that. But then you hear that her home is the back of her mum’s station wagon.
“And they lie on the mattress at night time under a battery torch light while she tries to do her homework. And how much easier it would be if she actually had a laptop. So needless to say we gave money to the school and the first thing they did was to provide her with a laptop.
“It’s such an emotional thing to go and read. People are sleeping in their cars, under bridges, families with three or four kids in cars. Using the public amenities out in the middle of nowhere.”
DEVASTATING EFFECT ON YOUNG CHILDREN
The Society’s Logan Regional President, John McClennand, said parents were foregoing basics to ensure they kept a roof over their children’s heads.
“One of them recently said, ‘I don’t care if they cut the electricity off, as long as I’ve got the roof over our head and can pay the rent, that’s all I need’,” he said.
“They never go out to eat. They’re never able to shout their kids, say, a McDonald’s, which is not an over-expensive exercise, but when you’ve got four kids, it is.
“They might decide they may not get their hair done. And I’m not talking about hundreds of dollars, just the basic cut and trim to make yourself look presentable.
“They will go to op-shops to buy clothes. They won’t have new clothes, themselves, or quite often for their kids. They will be scrimping and saving on what they can feed their children.”
Mr McClennand said homelessness could also have a devastating psychological effect on children.
“It’s not easy for them (homeless children), because they don’t know what they have done wrong. They’re like, ‘what have we done’,” he said
“And particularly kids who are going to school, it’s not so much that other kids are cruel, but they will say, ‘oh, you’re sleeping in your car, why haven’t you got a house?’
“So it does have an effect.”
FORCED TO LEAVE THE GOLD COAST
Coomera MP Michael Crandon, who has 23 schools in his northern Gold Coast electorate, said he had also heard from teachers that there had been an increase in the number of children going to school hungry.
“That’s the feedback I’m getting from some of my schools. There’s no doubt about it,” Mr Crandon said.
“There are families that rely on the fact that the school is able to provide some relief to them through breakfast programs.”
Proptrack data shows that median rent in Coomera has gone from $470 per week in January 2021 to $650 per week in January this year.
Mr Crandon said the rises had been to much for some families to bear, forcing them to leave the Gold Coast entirely for places such as Ipswich.
“It’s just bone-crushing,” he said. “I get letters from people all the time who are having to leave their accommodation and they can’t find other accommodation.
... Some people have to vacate and can’t find rental accommodation nearby so they have to move out. Which then disengages them from their communities that they have been involved with for a long time, disengages them with other family that might be in and around the area.”
LACKING BASIC SUPPLIES
Mr Crandon’s office is used as a drop-off point for school food donations by charities Love Thy Neighbour and Walk With Us, with support from Koahanii.
Walk With Us co-founder Nikki Sega said the organisations had teamed up for the initiative last year after realising how bad the problem had become.
“We’ve been working with some local schools. We started at the end of last year, just giving them snacks if kids come up hungry,” Ms Sega said.
“This year, some of them are starting breakfast clubs, so we’ve been supplying them.
“... We’ve got one at Robina, one at Pacific Pines at the moment.
“We’re trying to expand. We’re trying to get everything nutted out so we can help more schools.”
Ms Sega said children from financially stressed households were also arriving at school without basic essentials such as exercise books and water bottles.
“My son’s a teacher and he said to me he’s had kids coming up and saying, ‘sir, I’ve got no food, have you got extra food?
“I was shocked.
“Some of the kids don’t even have a water bottle. So I actually got a quote on water bottles to get made up.
“We’ve got school bags, school supplies like exercise books, pencils, all that as well. Whatever they need for school.”
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SCHOOL’S BREAKFAST CLUB SERVES UP IMPRESSIVE RESULTS
Academic results at Pimpama State Primary College are improving faster than almost any other Gold Coast school – in part thanks to its popular Breakfast Club.
Principal Dave Hartley said that in addition to his “wonderful” staff, the club, which started two years ago, had a major impact on results.
“We have data that indicates that student behaviour and engagement is much more settled,” Mr Hartley said.
“I can walk around here between 9am and 11am and you can’t hear a pin drop.
“That has contributed to a huge increase in our NAPLAN data and report card data.”
Mr Hartley said the club, which was the brainchild of teacher Candice Kinder, was a huge help for working families.
“Brekkie Club allows a lot of working families to drop their kids off, go to work and know their children are having a nutritious breakfast,” Mr Hartley said.
“It allows parents to have that additional time in the morning and have peace of mind that they (their children) are going into school with a full belly.”
Volunteers from Highway Church in Ormeau help out at the club each morning, while it is also supported by sponsors including Bendigo Bank, Dreamworld and Coles Pimpama City.
Mr Hartley said it had been such a success that other schools had contacted him asking how they set it up.
The school is now seeking a sponsor for another new initiative – a karate club to help children struggling with behaviour issues.
“It has been a big turnaround for our community,” Mr Hartley said.
“We’ve been able to make this a school that the kids, staff and community are very proud of.”
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