AT ST JOSEPH’S Barcaldine, a small Catholic primary school an hour from Longreach, the drought is so crippling that school fees have been waived and a mob of famished kangaroos have taken over the school’s oval.
It is one of several Catholic schools in drought-ravished Queensland regions that have stopped charging parents because times are too tough.
Neil McDonald, from the Catholic diocese of Rockhampton, said term-two school fees at three parish schools in Longreach, Blackhall and Barcaldine had been waived to take the pressure off families.
The schools have also received food and grocery vouchers for families to use in local stores.
St Joseph’s principal Annie Wachtel said the decision to waive school fees has made a big impact.
“It was a huge relief for our families, to have that cost away from their budgets, especially the families who live on properties,” she said.
Ms Wachtel said the school’s oval was now the only slice of green in Barcaldine, so a mob of hungry kangaroos had taken over.
Wealthy independent boarding schools such as Marist Brothers Ashgrove and Rockhampton Grammar School also are doing their bit to help country families whose livelihood is being impacted by the protracted drought.
James Metzeling, the school’s head of boarding, said that Marist did not want students to be forced to leave the school because of family financial pressure.
Australian Boarding Schools Association excecutive director Richard Stokes said most independent boarding schools were offering bursaries or payment plans for school fees, so country kids did not have to suffer the dislocation of being pulled from school in tough times.