School battles against proposed liquor outlet

PRINCIPAL'S CHALLENGE: Running Bethlehem Primary School could get a bit tougher for principal Brian Field if another bottle store opens nearby. PHOTO/ANDREW WARNER

Twenty years of seeing the impact of drug and alcohol abuse on some Bethlehem families has convinced primary school principal Brian Field that the suburb did not need another bottle store.

The school, which unsuccessfully opposed Liquorland going into Bethlehem Town Centre, has asked the District Licensing Committee not to allow a fifth retail liquor outlet to open in the area.

Mr Field told yesterday's hearing that although residential growth had seen Bethlehem Primary go from a decile three school to decile eight, many of the lower socio-economic families that made the school decile three were still there.

He said that was their major concern with the application by Pankaj Goel to open a Super Liquor store in the main road shopping centre.

Mr Field said his 20 years at the school had allowed him to see a second generation coming through from families whose experiences with alcohol were "very undesirable"'.

He said the progress of these children was sad and they drained the school's resources. Those who could least afford it were the customers of these liquor outlets."

The school was working with the results of foetal alcohol syndrome and poor parenting skills. "We have to work very hard with these children."

Apart from the physical symptoms, the children also struggled to relate to others and had anger management issues that could be traced back to the influence of alcohol in families.

Mr Field said safety was another big concern, with broken booze bottles, cans and packaging littering school grounds from groups of young people getting up to mischief.

The school felt strongly that Bethlehem did not need another bottle store, he said.

Quizzed by Mr Goel's consultant about Bethlehem's older demographic where the median age was 47, Mr Field said he could only go by the roll growth, which had more than quadrupled in the last 20 years.

Asked how one more liquor outlet would matter, he said it was the competition aspect and that alcohol was being made more accessible.

"Why would you want more - we appealed against the last one."

He said it was a huge jump to go from the one liquor outlet 20 years ago to where Bethlehem was now. The growth in liquor outlets had more than kept pace with residential growth. "That is why we are here now."John Cousins