The move to create a petition comes after the NSW Department of Education denied the Murrumbateman community funding for a school, stating that it was not a viable option until post 2026. 

President of the Parents and Friends of Murrumbateman School Association Mike Reid said that it was a great show of support from the local community and hopes that with the petition it will show the NSW Department of Education the great need for another school in the area. 

“We are really pleased with the response, we think we could have got more because I think the Yass High petition that was being circulated was confusing for people,” he said. 

“It has given us a chance to get some feedback from all sorts of people from the community.”

Mr Reid contacted the ACT Minister for Education Joy Birch who responded by confirming that over 350 children from Murrumbateman attend schools in the ACT in both Government and non-government schools. 

“We currently manage this enrolment,” the letter stated. 

“If demand for places at a particular school were to exceed available places, applications from NSW residents would not be considered.”

Local resident and mother of three Melissa Moyer works at a school in the ACT and said that she is concerned about the prospect of being unable to enrol her children in a high school.

“I have three children, ages 4, 6 and 9, the school-aged children attend ACT public schools and we are basically being told high school will be non existent, there is a very strong possibility that they won’t be going there,” she said.

“They would probably love to take us but they are at capacity. In my class, as it is I have no room, so it’s Yass or nothing.

“I’m being told that we probably won’t be able to get the kids into the ACT high school. It doesn’t matter anymore who you are or who you know, I’m just desperate.”

Mrs Moyer said the only option for her is to leave ACT teaching and register with NSW and attempt to get a job in Yass. 

“But this will be a detriment to Yass High, because as a teacher when you are trying to fill classes up it takes away from the individual attention. 

“It’s a detriment to their learning, they can’t do all the electives that they want to because there are just too many kids and not enough space.”

“We are losing our sense of community here, the kids don’t even know the kids two streets away, they want to play footy together and know one another, but they don’t because they're always in transition.”

Ms Goward describes the issue as the toughest fight she has ever had. 

“The only thing that comes close to this is the rail problem, but this is much more of daily importance,” she said. 

Ms Goward will be taking the petition to The NSW Department of Education in the coming weeks.