School saved from closure

A TOWNSVILLE school has been saved from the brink of closure after a last- minute sale to a not- for- profit educator.

Shalom Christian College was due to close at the end of the school year but will now continue operating, after Carinity, a subsidiary of Queensland Baptists, purchased the Condon- based campus from Uniting Church in Australia, Queensland Synod.

Carinity’s executive manager of education, Christine Hill, said the specialist indigenous school would continue in 2019 with about 100 Prep to Year 7 students.

“We are absolutely delighted to be able to retain this vital service for Townsville and we are already working with traditional owners and other community elders to ensure the college thrives in the future,” Ms Hill said.

“We plan to launch the high school, when the school reopens in January, with a Year 7 cohort and progressively introduce more year levels all the way up to Year 12.

“We want to reassure young people and families that the college is here to stay.”

Ms Hill said Carinity would initially focus on “local students” and had not yet considered reopening boarding facilities.

“That would be a question we would need to look at into the future,” she said.

Ms Hill said parents had been informed of the sale and encouraged enrolment inquiries.

“We’ve been educating young people for more than 20 years and our expertise is in supporting students through alternative education featuring significant one- on- one support,” she said.

When the Uniting Church closed the senior school in 2017, about 85 teachers lost their jobs. Ms Hill did not guarantee the remaining primary teachers would stay on, but said every staff member had been invited to have a conversation with Carinity about the future of the school.

Independent Education Union assistant secretary Brad Hayes said negotiations had already begun to ensure staff received their full entitlements.