I am writing this article from our 1200 acre school property in the Brewarrina Shire. As part of our application to the NSW Education Standards Authority (NESA) to open a school here in 2023, I had to be present at an inspection of the two sites we are proposing to use for the school.

A reminder that our 1200 acre property contains a small boarding school with staff housing that was run by the Seventh Day Adventist group until mid 2019 when the school closed, and they put it on the market. We have also purchased a large house in the township which is 35 minutes away to run the Kindergarten to Year 2 classes and the older students will bus down to the school site each day. The house in town obviously needs renovating to be set up for school use and requires a Development Application (DA) for a change of use. It has been a slow process to get the DA submitted as it is not easy to get consultants who need to do site visits to come out to a remote town like Brewarrina. Please pray for us as we work with NESA to see if we can get approval to use both sites next year. It is possible that without an approved DA by the end of August, they will only approve the school site as it already has approval as a school.

This is not a huge issue, but it does mean for at least a term next year we would need to bus all students down to the site and we were hoping to avoid the youngest ones having to do that trip each day. The NESA Inspectors were positive about our plans, and we are almost certain to get approval to start next year at least on the school site.

Being here again inspires me as I think about the possibilities for our students to experience a place like this, so different from the Central Coast. We have already had three small groups of students out here this year and all say what a great experience it has been for them. Not only do they get to see and experience Australia’s farming outback, but they get to meet Aboriginal young people and adults and connect with them. This helps to dispel the myths that so often surround groups of people we know about but have no real contact with. As we develop programs for our students out here, it will certainly include time with the local students in the school and learning about local history and culture.

Places shape us and challenge us as anyone who has travelled extensively knows. By taking our students out of their usual environment and putting them in a place very different from that, it causes them to question their current thinking and perceptions and with the help of good mentors, can be a life-changing experience. This is what we hope Brewarrina will be for our students.

 Photo: Brewarrina GPCC property and school site