This week, the NSW Parliamentary Inquiry into Early Childhood Education and Care gave speaking time to our case of KU Community Preschool vs Willoughby Council.
Hon. Abigail Boyd MLC summed it up perfectly
"these [market] fees will continue to go up and up in order to feed this vampire of the market. What we're seeing is more government subsidy being directed to landlords, instead of to education and care."
The real sting? This vampire isn’t a faceless property developer — it’s our own local Council. The very people entrusted to safeguard community assets have instead chosen to cash in, with no intentions on reinstating a preschool that serves 110 of our families each year.
Meanwhile, my GIPA (freedom of information) request to Willoughby Council — lodged 16 July — is now overdue under the law. No documents, no transparency, and no answers. This is the same Council that decided the fate of KU Chatswood Preschool in a closed meeting, without any genuine community consultation.
And if that wasn’t enough, Councillor Anna Greco has confirmed she hasn’t been able to get the support of Council officers to even assess a potential site for a new preschool. They’re advising against a feasibility study altogether — meaning they don’t want to consider a preschool anywhere.
This fight is far from over. Your voices are making a difference. The more we push back, the harder it becomes for them to ignore us.