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NSW will hold a parliamentary inquiry into Redeemer Baptist School in North Parramatta after a slew of “disturbing” allegations unveiled by The Sydney Morning Herald and 60 Minutes into the academically acclaimed private school.
Greens MP Abigail Boyd and other Greens and Labor MPs have directed parliament’s education committee to hold an urgent inquiry into the school following revelations it subjects students to extreme control, dictating their underwear colour and university choices, and does not pay its teachers wages.
Boyd said the inquiry would provide victims and whistleblowers with the protection needed to interrogate allegations made in this publication after more than half a dozen witnesses came forward.
“For decades, questions and allegations have swirled [about] Redeemer Baptist Church and the Redeemer Baptist School,” Boyd said. “More than 20 years ago, the Greens raised concerns in the NSW parliament about this alleged conduct, but at the time, there lacked the political will from others to interrogate the issues fully.
“Finally, in the wake of exemplary public-interest journalism of additional allegations, we have secured support for a parliamentary inquiry into these disturbing accounts.
“This is a school that is supposedly overseen by NSW authorities and has benefited from public funds. Serious allegations and concerns were raised decades ago and never resolved by public officials. The community deserves answers, and that’s what our inquiry will seek to provide.”
The inquiry will examine “any use by the school of coercive control in relation to students, families, guardians, employees and volunteers”.
It comes after recent community escapee and former student Alexandra Garth said those born inside the church “feel constantly monitored and watched”.
“As a child, I would view them as having control over my life,” Garth said. “I remember knowing I will have to marry someone in the church. I will have to stay here. I could see my whole future in front of me.”
The inquiry will also examine the school’s finances and operational structure after a joint investigation by the Herald and 60 Minutes revealed the school, which has an extensive property portfolio, had raked in tens of millions in government funding in the past decade – all while its teachers go unpaid, relying on a small stipend and, for some, Centrelink benefits.
Parliament will probe the safety, wellbeing and education of students, the school’s employment conditions and arrangements, and look into oversight by other government agencies in relation to school registration compliance and funding obligations.
A six-month investigation by the Herald revealed the extent of the Redeemer Baptist Church’s control over members’ private lives, from orchestrating careers and marriages to dictating household structures.
The practice of moving children into principal Jonathan Cannon and headmaster Russell Bailey’s care is common in the Redeemer community.
The inquiry will probe living arrangements inside the church and school after the Herald revealed an estimated 50 children have lived inside the homes of elders and Cannon and Bailey over the past 38 years.
Redeemer has been contacted for comment. In a previous statement, the school said: “Just because our practices are unfamiliar, it does not mean they are unlawful, coercive or abusive, and we reject the attempt to portray us as anything other than a law-abiding community with strong Christian faith and practices.”
Submissions to the inquiry will open on Wednesday.
Emily Kowal is a Walkley award-winning education reporter for The Sydney Morning Herald.Connect via email.From our partners
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