‘Huge relief’: Queensland grants exemption to NSW boarding students
In a quiet online announcement, the Queensland chief health officer has granted travel exemptions to boarding students after a #nobordersforboarders campaign drew national attention.
RURAL families are celebrating today, as the Queensland Government bows under pressure and grants cross-border travel exemptions to boarding school students from NSW and the ACT.
In a letter dated September 5, but widely published online today, Queensland Chief Health Officer Jeannette Young provided an exemption for primary and secondary boarding school students from NSW and the ACT, allowing them to return to Queensland without quarantining if they live in a local government area with no active cases of COVID-19 and do not leave their home property or have visitors for the school holidays.
The changes mean students can come home for school holidays knowing that their start to term 4 will be equal to their peers.
The announcement is a welcome relief to Isolated Children’s Parents Associations in NSW and Queensland, which have been campaigning for a workable solution to the inflexible border restrictions.
ICPA Queensland president Tammie Irons said: “The right decision has finally been made — it is disappointing that families have had to go through all this angst before our government has acknowledged their unique circumstances, however we are so relieved for all those families who can now be together these holidays, and thankful for a positive outcome at last.”
ICPA NSW president Claire Butler said the news had come at the right time.
“This announcement is a huge relief to our parents and their children, we understand caution with the current pandemic, but these children never posed a threat to health in the first place and we are very pleased their education will now continue without unnecessary disruption and anxiety,” she said.
The letter from Queensland Health has been posted widely on social media pages today.
The Queensland premier, Annastacia Palaszczuk, has not made a formal announcement about the change.
Last week, pressure mounted on the Queensland Government as a #nobordersforboarders campaign gained momentum.
On Friday, Ms Palaszczuk responded to critics by announcing that the northern NSW town of Moree would be added to the Queensland border zone.
Ms Irons and Ms Butler said the Queensland result was a positive outcome for many families, but some children were still facing uncertainty as other states’ and territories’ border closures affect interstate boarders.
ICPA is calling for a collaborative, nationally consistent and long-term approach to be applied during ongoing situations such as the COVID-19 pandemic so that families are not faced with continued uncertainty and anxiety around educating their children.
Federal ICPA president Alana Moller said: “Providing long-term, nationally-consistent guidelines for families whose students must traverse state borders to access an equitable education is essential to ensure that the uncertainty which has arisen for families during the COVID-19 pandemic are not repeated in the future and ICPA would welcome the opportunity to be a key stakeholder in such a group.”
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