Brindabella Christian College bus advertising has been running for years, but the administrators have called a halt. Photo: Region.
The Charnwood K-6 campus of the Brindabella Christian College will close on Friday, 11 April, but the Early Learning Centre will remain open at this stage.
The closure comes as administrators reveal that the college owes $20.8 million to more than 200 creditors.
It is understood that parents were notified of the imminent closure on Tuesday night (1 April) at a meeting with Deloitte administrators.
The college pays rent to Life Unlimited Church, a creditor owed $241,089, which owns the school site in Lhotsky Street.
There are only about 35 students enrolled there at present, down from about 60 last year, and a number of years have been operating as combined classes.
The Administrators would be looking to cut costs as much as possible as it keeps the school running as a going concern and markets it to other education operators in the hope of securing a sale.
The Head of Campus is Annie Reuben, the wife of the new college principal, Peter Reuben. The couple joined the school at the beginning of the year. It is understood the four staff will be offered roles at the main campus in Lyneham.
It is believed that students have also been offered positions at Lyneham.
Then ACT Education Minister Joy Burch approved the Charnwood campus in 2013 amid controversy over low demonstrated demand.
The way in which the approval was made was roundly criticised by the Australian Education Union, the ACT Council of Parents and Citizens Associations, and the public schools’ lobby, Save Our Schools, sparking a departmental review of arrangements for approving and registering new private schools.
The college’s former board chair, Greg Zwajgenberg, missed the cut for the seven-member Committee of Inspection, which will assist and monitor the administrators.
A creditor claiming $205,000, Mr Zwajgenberg had nominated himself for the COI despite concerns about a conflict of interest.
The seven creditors elected to the COI are Australian Government Department of Education official Jane Mitchell, secured creditor National Australia Bank (NAB) official Laura Johns, Education Directorate official David Matthews, unsecured creditor Deputy Commissioner of Taxation (ATO) official Rowanndra Pameijer, employee Geoffrey Roberts, and parents Kevin Yau and Vanessa Yule.
The administrators also confirmed at the first creditors’ meeting that the college’s controversial public transport advertising campaign will cease.
Material from an Administrative Appeals Tribunal hearing revealed that the striking advertisements spruiking the school’s achievements on buses and light rail vehicles cost $400,000 or $500,000 a year, contributing to “severe liquidity issues”.
Region reported in 2023 that the Commonwealth Education Minister had profound concerns about Brindabella Christian College, including the “severe liquidity issues” and “a very high risk” to the school’s solvency.
Advertising company Go Transit Canberra is listed as a creditor claiming it is owed $78,000, according to the minutes of the creditors’ meeting.
The three biggest creditors are NAB ($9,282,220), the Tax Office ($6,051,760) and HP Financial Services (Aust) ($1,165,375)
The college went into voluntary administration on 5 March.
