News
3 November, 2026
Shock turns to anger over St Michael’s closure
Angry parents have walked out of evening Mass in silent protest over the planned closure of St Michael’s Catholic Primary School in Mittagong.
Angry parents have walked out of evening Mass in silent protest over the planned closure of St Michael’s Catholic Primary School in Mittagong.
As reported by The Southern Wire, the Bishop of Wollongong Most Reverend Brian Mascord announced last week that the school would be amalgamated with St Thomas Aquinas in Bowral from the start of the 2029 school year.
Parents were advised of the closure by email late Thursday afternoon.
Approximately 40 parents walked out of the 5pm Mass service in Bowral on Sunday – taking their children with them – when Parish Priest Fr Sean Cullen started reading a letter from Bishop Mascord announcing the closure.
It is another sign of growing anger in the local Catholic community over a decision which has been labelled nonsensical.
Fr Cullen reportedly told a parent the decision was final and was not open for reconsideration.
He also allegedly said that Bowral had been selected as the site for the new Corpus Christi Catholic Primary School because of anticipated growth in the East Bowral area.
Willow Vale parent Alison Parker – who gathered with other parents and grandparents outside the school on Monday morning – said her initial shock over the announcement had turned to anger.
She said the closure simply didn’t make any sense given enrolment numbers at St Michael’s were “solid” and that the region’s population was expected to grow significantly over the next 15 years.
“If anything we should be building another school,” Mrs Parker said.
“There is no valid reason to close this school.
“I just don’t understand it.”
Mrs Parker was one of five siblings who attended St Michael’s and said it had been a huge part of her upbringing.
“I loved it. I loved everything about it,” she told The Southern Wire.
She enrolled her own children at the school because she wanted them to have the same experience.
Two are already at the school and a third is due to start next year.
Removing them from the Catholic education system and enrolling them at Mittagong Public School is now a real option – but only if there is room at Mittagong Public School.
She said Bowral was too far for her children to travel every day from Willow Vale.
She also claims that the buildings at St Thomas Aquinas are run down and the school has no room to grow.
Mrs Parker said the closure would have a significant impact on the local community including local businesses and sporting groups.
She said a better option would be to amalgamate the schools but to keep St Michael’s open as a Mittagong campus.
She said the school buildings were all in good condition and the educational outcomes had been excellent.
“They have been doing so well,” she said.
Mrs Parker said the Diocese hadn’t engaged with the school community and parents had basically been told “it’s happening whether you like it or not”.
She believes the Catholic Church has other plans for the site and that it isn’t being fully transparent.
Mon McKellar Stewart – who sent her two sons to St Michael’s – also said the decision failed to take into account population forecasts.
“The NSW Department of Planning's endorsement of Wingecarribee's Local Housing Strategy refers to an estimated need for approximately 9,500 additional dwellings across the Shire by 2041,” Mrs McKelar Stewart said.
“While this is a Shire-wide estimate, rather than a target specifically allocated to the northern villages, it highlights the importance of planning educational infrastructure for future generations.”
Mrs McKellar Stewart has written to Bishop Mascord, Fr Cullen and the Catholic Education Diocese asking for the decision to be reconsidered.
“I recognise that the Diocese must make difficult decisions about the future of Catholic education.
“However, I respectfully ask whether a decision of such consequence, ending 135 years of Catholic schooling in Mittagong, should proceed without the community first having a meaningful opportunity to examine the reasons, consider alternatives and be heard.”
She has also questioned if the closure was consistent with the mission of St Mary Mackillop and with the needs of the children and families her mission was established to serve.
St Michael’s (formerly known as St Joseph’s) was established by the Sisters of St Joseph of the Sacred Heart – the congregation founded by Mary MacKillop and Father Julian Tenison Woods.
Tanya O’Connor has had one child go through St Michael’s and has another one in Year 3 at the moment.
She described it as an “amazing” school community with “fantastic” teachers and admin staff.
She said children in Year 3 at St Michael’s this year now faced the prospect of three different schools in three years: Year 5 at St Michael’s in 2028, Year 6 at Corpus Christi in 2009 and then Year 7 at one of the region’s high schools in 2010.
Grandparents Denis and Brendan Walsh said news of the closure had come as a complete shock.
They described St Michael’s as a “brilliant little school” producing excellent outcomes.
She said the children received all the attention they needed because it was a small school and were “not left out of anything”.
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