Falls Creek Public School may close

For almost 130 years the school has produced high achievers in an environment that can only be described as a close-knit family, but it could all change by the end of the year.

Parents and teachers recently received notice if there weren’t enough students to replace the year 6 graduates, the school would fall below the “small school” category.

The school will then be forced to cut one full-time teacher, lose a classroom, librarian, cut office hours and put more pressure on remaining staff.

Parent to four Falls Creek students and former P&C president James Duke said as a former student himself, he would like nothing better than to see all his children graduate from the school.

“If staff are cut like they say will happen, I don’t doubt parents will be forced to look at other options or the school could merge with another,” he said.

“I’ve had family here since the school opened.”

P&C member and student parent Tammy Harvie was clearly emotional about the possible need to take her children to another school.

“We have 52 students at this school from kindergarten to year 6. For the past six years the biggest has been this year that’s about to graduate,” she said.

“Once we lose these students we fall into the next band and that’s really scary.

“There is only a handful of numbers needed for our school to remain how it is.

“It’s heartbreaking,” Ms Harvie said.

There are 10 students who will leave just before Christmas. Enrolments are open.

A Department of Education spokesperson said staffing allocations at the school would be determined by the final number of 2016 enrolments.

They said if a school’s future was to come under consideration, it was done strictly case by case and the school community would be the first to be consulted.

At this stage the Department had no plans to close or put Falls Creek Public School into recess, nor any plans to initiate community consultation over its future.