Weekend bike ride raises money for boarding allowance lobby

The inaugural 80km Nive River bike ride on the weekend was aimed at raising money to enable the branch to send delegates to this year’s federal conference, to be held in Perth in August.

A colossal 83 people from Blackall, Charleville, Longreach, Alpha and Tambo took part in the ride, 22 of them braving 80km of hills and headwinds, while 37 took part in the 25km ride and another 24 went in the 5km ride.

Blackall’s Jason Sprague was the first one home.

Treasurer Kimberley Rains said the message of a fit and happy lifestyle was an attitude especially important in rural areas at present as people continued to struggle with drought and no cash flow.

“There are lots of people getting fulfillment out of sport,” she said. “This could well be the start of an annual event.”

Nearly 200 people were fed at the after-party and organisers were thrilled with the community support.

Sponsorship rolled in from a number of sources, including Pip Fearon, who donated a driftwood horse, bought at auction by Geoff and Cassie Swanson.

ICPA research has found that even after government assistance, families in rural communities are still confronted with average out-of-pocket costs of between $17,500 and $25,000 per year per child.

 According to federal president, Wendy Hick, the significant cost burden poses a genuine strain on the family unit, especially during a period of prolonged drought.

“It is forcing families to borrow to pay for school fees, relocate one parent to enable children to access more affordable schooling, and even postpone the final high school years of older students,” she said. “It is clear this inequitable situation cannot continue and the federal government must take action.”

One Tambo couple that knows the cost of educating children all too well is Andrew and Heather Turnbull, who have endured 16 years of fees so far, with four-and-a-half left to go.

“We could have our second condo on the Sunnie Coast by now,” Heather commented, as she worked to feed the many people ready to enjoy the aftermath of the bike ride on Saturday night.

She and her husband are like thousands of others in the bush putting money that others might invest into the education of their children and finding it increasingly harder to source the funds.

“At one time we had three children away at once – that was almost impossible,” she said. “Then add to that the drought and how your ability to make money is affected.”

ICPA is urging the federal government to increase the AIC Basic Boarding Allowance for the 4572 students receiving the allowance by 50 per cent, or about $4000.

The organisation has also called for a significant increase for families receiving the Additional Boarding Allowance and for future payments to be indexed by the CPI education sub-index rather than the general CPI.

“In order to unlock the economic potential of rural Australia and capitalise on the huge financial benefits provided by the agriculture sector and rural communities, we must be able to attract and retain a skilled workforce in the bush,” Ms Hick said.

“This cannot be done without assurance of the ability to access education by families living in these areas.

“ICPA calls on all parties to take action at the 2016 federal election to address these concerns.”