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A months-long bitter dispute between parents at a northside kindergarten has forced the state government to intervene and set up a makeshift centre as an emergency solution to provide education to dozens of Brisbane kids in limbo.
This masthead revealed earlier this month the once-idyllic Craigslea Community Kindergarten in Chermside West had been plunged into chaos with parents refusing to send their kids after a staff exodus.
Parents at the Craigslea Kindergarten had feared the final term of kindy would be compromised by the ongoing committee dispute.
C&K, as the central governing body, cut funding to the affiliated kindergarten and launched a probe into claims a parent was running the management committee on his own after the heated conflict forced the previous members to quit.
The investigation from C&K is ongoing. And the man at the centre of the claims, Thomas D’Souza, rejected the accusations and said the committee had sufficient members.
But tensions continued to escalate, culminating in the committee, led by D’Souza, last week asking parents to pay $2200 for their own children’s artwork to help pay alleged debts owed by the kindy – prompting widespread backlash.
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The initial refusal to hand over portfolios of the kids’ art and photographs of kindy activities disgusted many, but devastated parents said their primary concern was the deterioration of the once-loved community centre.
Multiple families who spoke to this masthead said they were uncomfortable with D’Souza’s management and unwilling to send their children to the centre after the committee replaced the entire staff with temporary workers.
But it can be revealed Education Minister John-Paul Langbroek has offered the former staff jobs at the temporary centre set up in a vacant building within the nearby Craigslea State School for the 44 kids in need of a kindy for term four.
“This solution keeps families in their area, keeps children together and keeps teachers in jobs,” he said in a statement to this masthead.
“We have been working around-the-clock to transform this vacant building into a dedicated kindergarten that can rapidly stand-up and provide certainty to families.
“Children must come first and the deplorable decision to lock doors and withhold portfolios was disgraceful, deceitful and deeply un-Australian.”
D’Souza told parents last week he had placed the kindy into voluntary administration owing debts of tens of thousands of dollars.
But Langbroek promised to both provide a temporary solution and work towards restoring the former community kindergarten services could resume at the Craigslea centre next year.
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“It’s critical we continue working together to restore normalcy for the remainder of the 2025 school year,” he said.
“Together with families, C&K Limited and Brisbane City Council, we will secure a long-term solution which will see Craigslea Kindergarten back in their usual classroom in 2026.”
C&K chief executive Sandra Cheeseman said the group was relieved to find a temporary solution at short notice after meeting with parents and Department of Education officials last Thursday.
“The new temporary site will ensure C&K can provide the best possible experience for these children as they enter the final term of their kindy education,” she said.
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