Bike theft spurs school security

A THURINGOWA school is looking at new security measures after reports of three people stealing a student’s bicycle from the grounds last week.

The incident, which took place at The Willows State School last Thursday, has sparked conversations about how to stop people trespassing on school grounds.

A Department of Education and Training spokeswoman said staff from the school contacted police after a member of the public alleged that three people removed a bicycle from school grounds on July 17.

A student later reported their bicycle missing.

“The school has reminded parents, caregivers and students about securing belongings,” the spokeswoman said.

“The bike racks have been moved to a more centralised location and the school conducts daily spot checks to ensure unlocked bikes are taken to a secure area.

“The school also requires visitors to report to the office.

“We ask the community to be our eyes and ears and report any suspicious activity to the police or contact the School Watch hotline on 131 788.”

A message placed on school’s Facebook page the the day after the incident urged visitors to report to the school’s front office and said the school was “currently working on possible solutions to stop thoroughfare and use of our grounds during school hours”.

Thuringowa MP Aaron Harper said he planned to meet with Education Minister Kate Jones this week to push for the installation of security fencing at the school in the wake of the incident.

“I think student safety should be our first priority,” he said. “These fences make it harder for people to come into the school grounds and they reduce vandalism, which can be a big problem during school holidays. It’s a good investment upstream.”

Mr Harper said he had successfully pushed for security fences to be installed at Rasmussen State School last year following trespassing incidents.

“We managed to turn that around quite quickly within a six- month period,” he said.

“From my point of view I’m very keen to see all my schools in Thuringowa have security fences.

“The schools in the upper Ross corridor all now have security fences.

“I’ve also reached out to schools in Heatley ... security is also their No. 1 issue.

“I encourage any parents or schools in my electorate to contact me with any of these concerns.”