Brindabella Christian College to defend its viability in tribunal

Brindabella Christian Education Limited, the charity which runs the Canberra private school, is also expected to argue the school is financially viable in a public hearing at the Administrative Appeals Tribunal.

Meanwhile, a number of former and current parents, teachers and executive staff of the school have formed an association which is calling for the school to overhaul its constitution and governance structure.

In May 2021, a delegate for the federal Education Minister decided the organisation was not fit and proper to be the approved authority to operate the school and ordered a review of its governance arrangements.

The school, which has not publicly revealed its financial reports since 2019, was also required to have an independent professional review its financial affairs and include any related party transactions in its future audited financial statements.

Legal representatives for the school board have appealed this decision.

Board chair Greg Zwajgenberg declined to comment ahead of the tribunal hearing.

The school has been plagued with allegations of bullying, workplace safety issues, high staff turnover and unfair enrolment contracts.

The school has not had any parent representative body, such as a parents and friends association, since 2019.

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An association called Community for Constitutional Reform at Brindabella Christian College has formed in recent months with the aim of lobbying the school and regulatory authorities for changes to the school's governance.

David Stephens, whose children attended the school and wife worked at the school, is the president and public officer for the association.

"We all support the school and we want to see the school thrive and be the best it can be. And the teachers have done a great job in sometimes difficult circumstances in years gone by," Mr Stephens said.

"But it's clear to us that there has been a lot of disruptions and a need for change at that governance level."

The association, which has partnered with Adero Law, is calling for membership of the company that runs the school to be opened up to include parents and interested parties and for a new board to be established that is independent of the operational management of the school.

Committee member Jodie Jayatilaka, whose sons had their enrolment terminated after she and her husband raised concerns, said many people had been impacted under the current governance arrangements.

"All these people have been touched in some way either themselves or people they know. So it's a collective of people wanting to see restoration and repair," Mrs Jayatilaka said.

Mr Stephens said the group did not have any religious or political affiliations and was focused only on accountability and transparency of the school's operations.

The group is accepting new members and donations to pay for administration costs. Mr Stephens said the association decided to go public to coincide with the hearing in the Administrative Appeals Tribunal.

"Most of the school community doesn't even know that this was a ruling, that's a big part. If you ask the average parent out there, they would have no idea," Mr Stephens said.

The hearing is expected to run for five days.

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