Bayswater council looks to open long-awaited out-of-school-hours childcare facility at Gibbney Reserve

Maylands parents say they are “desperate” for an out-of-school-hours childcare facility as the City of Bayswater looks at opening a centre at a local sports reserve. The City of Bayswater council unanimously voted in support of a ground release at Gibbney Reserve to open a long-awaited OSHC facility at a meeting on September 24. Gibbney Reserve is just a six-minute walk from Maylands Peninsula Primary School. And despite being the second largest primary school in WA, MPPS does not currently have an on-site OSHC centre. In 2021, MPPS contacted the city asking them to open an OSHC facility at Gibbney Reserve Pavilion. Gibbney Reserve Pavilion is already leased to Football West as a “training and education centre” on weeknights and weekends. Bayswater council voted to give Football West a five-year-lease of the pavilion in December 2023, which will mean “any new development will need to consider existing users”. The council’s latest decision will see Bayswater chief executive Jeremy Edwards seek expressions of interest from operators to design and construct the new facility behind Gibbney Reserve Pavilion or next to the park’s cricket nets. MPPS P&C’s Megan Parker said there was a “critical need” for after-school care. “As working parents, some members of our committee have experienced the overwhelming emotional, mental and financial distress of trying — and failing — to secure suitable OSHC care for our children,” she said. “Our experiences reflect those of a growing number of working Maylands parents. “As costs of living continue to rise, working around school bell times has become a privilege that fewer and fewer parents can afford. “As parents of MPPS students, we are facing impossible choices and it would be unconscionable under the circumstances for council to stand in the way of a long-awaited and much-needed resolution. “After-school and vacation care is an essential service for the school community, given the amount of working families that rely on these services to manage their work commitments.” Local parent Jessica Toon echoed Ms Parker and said she was “astounded” to discover there was no OSHC facility at MPPS. “I have been told there is at least an 18-month wait for any of the existing providers,” she said. “Given that MPPS is the second largest school in the State and that most parents have to work, there is such a need for this facility.” Local grandmother Kathryn Lance said a nearby OSHC facility would minimise the safety risk of young children walking home. “Having six grandchildren, I personally know that primary school children by the end of the week ... can be irritable and stressed after getting up early daily and getting picked up later than most due to working parents or guardians,” she said. “Extreme weather conditions can make it difficult to walk safely, especially if the path is uneven or cracked ... particularly concerning is the risk from a traffic accident by speeding vehicles, road rage and the hostility of many drivers. “Let’s minimise these risks and give these youngsters an appropriate facility near the school.” Cr Nat Latter, who tabled the motion, said residents “wanted a solution”. “It’s clear that residents are looking to council to assist in a solution and this is the pathway for us to do that without incurring the cost ourselves or impacting the other community spaces we provide,” she said. “As families are more constrained by cost of living in this economic climate, the impact is even greater when one parent can’t return to the workforce or can only return part-time just because they cannot secure out-of-school care for their child. “We know that this is overwhelmingly women that are affected by this, so this is a cost of living and gender equality issue. “This solution ... makes good use of underutilised land while not impacting the primary use of the reserve.”