Border closes on start of school term
Horsham mothers Rosie Ann Dean and Renae Bartlett were expecting to have their children back at school this week.
But when New South Wales suddenly closed its border to Victorians last week, their sons were left stranded interstate.
Victorians must apply for a border entry permit through Service NSW’S website to legally enter the state.
Premier Gladys Berejiklian announced the closures on Monday last week in response to rising COVID-19 cases across Melbourne.
Ms Dean heard the news of border closures while at a Royal Melbourne Hospital appointment with her ninemonth-old daughter Luna, for her cataracts.
Her son Alex, 12, visiting his father in Albury, is stuck on the other side of the border until Ms Dean will be eligible for a permit.
Ms Bartlett planned to pick up her children, Thomas, seven, and Zac, nine, at a halfway point at Jerilderie after they were visiting their father in Orange for the school holidays.
Both mothers were among many people across Victoria who were left confused about the conditional circumstances of entering NSW following the sudden closure.
Ms Dean tried to apply for a permit but was told she would have to self-isolate for 14 days prior to travel because she had travelled to Melbourne.
Her ex-partner, a truck driver, was also told he would need to self-isolate if he took their son across the border from NSW, forcing him to miss 14 days of work.
“It was just panic – especially when we’ve got a daughter who needs to be in Melbourne and we’re having to put ourselves right in the middle of the hotspot all while we have borders closing when my child is over there,” Ms Dean said.
“He’s meant to be at school and now he will likely miss a month. That’s a long time to miss school.”
Ms Dean said when borders closed she struggled to find any clear information about what her travel conditions were.
“Before they shut the borders, they needed to make it clearer for parents and carers about how we could get across,” she said.
“I’m going to have to wait two weeks because their dad can’t afford to self-isolate.
“We’re just trying to do the right thing to parent and co-parent our children. But there seems to be a massive grey area that authorities are not taking into consideration.”
Ms Bartlett now has a permit and will be allowed to pick up her sons Thomas and Zac from Jerilderie this week.
Her ex-partner also could not afford to cross the border due to quarantine conditions.
Ms Bartlett said when borders shut she struggled to find helpful information about conditional travel.
“I called the Service NSW hotline a few times after they announced the closure, but they didn’t have any information – they hadn’t even finalised what the exemption be,” she said.
“I was just waiting to clarify what the exemptions would look like. They couldn’t provide me with information about my particular circumstance.”
Ms Bartlett said media coverage of the closures was also making her situation more confusing.
“A lot of the media attention and focus was on the people who live in border towns,” she said.
“They ensured people who lived in those border communities could still travel across for work – but at the time I couldn’t find any information for a parent like me.”
Ms Bartlett said she hoped to get her boys back in Horsham and to school as soon as possible.
“The kids have been a little bit stressed when I told them they had to stay in New South Wales for a little bit longer,” she said.
“But I’ve been speaking with them every day and they understand I’ll be coming to get them.
“Their dad is trying to keep them occupied and just acting like it’s just a longer holiday to keep things as less stressful as possible.” criteria would
“It was just panic – especially when we’ve got a daughter who needs to be in Melbourne and we’re having to put ourselves right in the middle of the hotspot all while we have borders closing when my child is over there” – Rosie Ann Dean