NSW Education Department responds to being sued by COVD Safe Schools

On Monday the parent, teacher and community advocacy group, stated it would sue the NSW Department of Education for autonomy and to allow parents the right to choose to keep their kids at home from school for safety reasons.

This came almost two years after the Department "made it very hard" for Mrs Siegenbeek van Heukelom, who has a number of chronic health issues, to keep her children at home from school for a few weeks.

"Two years ago when there were no vaccinations and community transmissions were high, I asked the department to give us a few weeks time to keep our children home to protect me and my health. They declined," she said.

Read more: School closure fears: Illawarra teachers bracing for disruptive school year

This week COVID Safe Schools reiterated their desire for parents to have the right to make the call and not send their children to school if they deemed it was not safe. The group met with members of the Education Department and said they were threatened with fines or legal action if they kept their kids at home.

Legally kids have to be sent to school unless they have a medical certificate.

The parents plan on taking their objections all the way to the NSW Supreme Court. The group wants a so-called pandemic leave which will enable parents to make that decision to keep their kids at home without breaking the law.

"We are not advocating for the closure of schools, what we are advocating for is choice, parental choice as to whether or not to send their children to school," COVID Safe Schools acting vice-president Karen Armstrong said.

This view was shared by Mrs Siegenbeek van Heukelom.

"I feel like our family is part of a community, of a society that we want to keep healthy," she said. "I'm looking at the death rates and hospitalisation rates. Our chief pediatrician said around one or two children out of 100 will end up in hospital.

"I don't want to be a part of that and I wonder in our school of 120 kids, who we are going to pick, which one of those children are we going to send to hospital?

"As long as transmission rates are as high as they are or higher and kids aren't fully vaccinated, I don't think schools are a safe place to be."

Read more: Everything Illawarra parents need to know ahead of school year

Mrs Siegenbeek van Heukelom, said schools, including Tarrawanna Public School, where her children Paxton, 8 and six-year-old Quinn went, weren't too blame.

"It is the Department which is at fault," she said.

"Sending groups of people into rooms where we know they can't socially distance, where we know the CO2 levels aren't being measured, where we know everyone is not fully vaccinated, I don't think at this point of time that is the sane thing to be doing.

"We will take it one week at a time. When the transmission numbers come down I will reassess.

"When all children have had both vaccinations and all the teachers have been boosted, we can have a chat. But right now today, I don't think school is a great idea for us."

A Department of Education spokesperson said the safety and wellbeing of staff and students remained the main priority heading into the 2022 school year.

Read more: Everything Illawarra parents need to know ahead of school year

"We have worked closely with NSW Health on the school settings for the start of the new school year," the spokesperson said.

"Regular attendance at school for all students is essential to learning and wellbeing. When schools are open, all students should be at school unless they are unwell; or they have a medical certificate which states that they are unable to return to school due to an ongoing medical condition. These students can be supported to learn from home provided a valid medical certificate is supplied.

"There are a range of options available if students are prevented from attending school, including the sick or general leave and exemptions from attendance under Section 25 of the Education Act 1990. Each case will be managed collaboratively in partnership between schools and parents. We always act reasonably when considering leave explanations and exemption applications and will continue to do so."

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