I am calling upon the NSW Department of Education & Cronulla High School to immediately act and protect my child from the educational harm being incurred from 4 continued years (2021-2025) of significant levels of 'non school attendance'. The amount of 'non school attendance' this year alone is standing at approximately 80-90%.

Context - The Childs Primary Carer Background

In 2020, around the time of my divorce, my ex-partner ignored my wishes to have a mutually agreed co-parenting plan in place for our then 10 year old child. My ex-partner then subsequently refused to attend family dispute resolution which I arranged in wanting to discuss and to mutually agree upon a co-parenting plan for our child.

Instead, they applied to Services Australia - Child Support Agency for primary care of our child which was subsequently approved and so my ex partner became the primary carer of our child. This was despite myself heavily disagreeing with this decision and in wanting to equally share the co-parenting of our child which I felt was in the best interests of the child in order for the child to maintain their meaningful and balanced relationship with both parents.

Following the child support decision to grant primary care to the other parent, contact with my child became difficult and diminished and I was soon disempowered in my parental role as the child's father which then progressed into what I allege as being Parental Alienation. 

I always shared a historic, meaningful and loving relationship with my child from their birth, a bond that has since been tragically damaged. Now communication is sparse, and for some years I have been finding myself struggling to communicate and connect with my child when I desperately want to.

Its very difficult to help raise, guide, supervise and protect my child if I am not actively part of their life!

Cronulla High School and The NSW Department of Education are very much aware of the family dynamic.

So all in all, I'm lodging this petition in difficult and trying circumstances from the side-lines.

For context, this petition is not about resolving the family dynamic as explained above. This petition is about the role I allege Cronulla High School & The NSW Dept of Education has played in the child's educational demise as outlined below.

Cronulla High School - Alleged Educational Neglect & Harm / 2021 to Now 
The inadequacies in my child's education have been glaring as evident in the extreme level of consistent "non school attendance'. This is evident via the almost daily school absence SMS notifications as well as the constant flow of student non compliance letters and teacher concern letters which I directly receive from Cronulla High School. 

The child's non school attendances commenced in around 2021 when the child was just 11 years old and in year 6 primary school.

Despite being enrolled at a NSW Government School with educational mandates, I allege that since 2021 my child has not received an adequate level of public schooling education covering each of the school grades; 6, 7, 8, 9 & 10, an outcome of significant school non attendance. It can also be confirmed that my child does not carry a medical illness or medical certificate restricting their participation at school.

Repeatedly over the last 4 years, I have reached out to Cronulla High School and the NSW Department of Education, imploring them to intervene and provide help through "Compulsory Schooling Orders". These are orders applied for on behalf of the NSW Dept of Education which if approved, are placed upon the child's primary carer as a means to help ensure that the educational needs of the child are met by the primary carer.

Compulsory Schooling Orders have been formally requested by myself to Cronulla High School, The NSW Dep of Education and The NSW Minister of Education on many occasions over the last 4 years which has been met with sustained inaction.

I allege that The NSW Department of Education and Cronulla High School are instead actively facilitating in both harming and disadvantaging my child by failing to properly protect the child; it speaks to a systemic failure. 

According to The NSW Department of Education Policy, a child's right to education is paramount, and in Australia, education is compulsory. Yet, in this crucial developmental phase, my child's educational needs remain unmet, leading not only to an academic shortfall but also potential long-term repercussions on their future.

The emotional turmoil and academic stagnation experienced by my child is unconscionable. Every child deserves access to education that empowers them, shapes their future, and nurtures their potential. It is imperative that Cronulla High School and The NSW Department of Education acknowledge their role and responsibility in safeguarding this right and in making any child's primary carer accountable for sustained and historic child educational neglect or where the primary carer deflects the child's non attendance back onto the child themself when a historic pattern of primary carer enabling has been occurring.

Immediate action is needed. The NSW Department of Education should enforce compulsory schooling orders and fulfil their duty to protect each child's educational journey. This isn't just about my child; it's about safeguarding the educational rights of all children under their care.

I fervently urge Cronulla High School and The NSW Department of Education to reconsider their stance, actively intervene, and make my child's education a priority.

By signing this petition, you can help ensure my child, and children in similar situations, receive the education they deserve. Stand with me in demanding accountability and change.