Local council officers under fire after emptying inflatable pool used by child with disability

A family trip to the park to celebrate Australia Day ended in tears when an inflatable pool being used by a child with disabilities was flipped over by Sutherland Shire Council officers.

The incident occurred on Monday at Bonna Point Reserve, Kurnell, in Sutherland Shire, where families had gathered to celebrate Australia Day.

Among those was mother, Siu Siola'a and her family, including her eight-year-old son Walter who has cerebral palsy and is unable to walk.

According to a post on the Facebook page Everything Sutherland Shire, the family took an inflatable pool, which they part-filled with water so Walter could cool off.

The park is directly across the road from Silver beach, but according to his mum, "[He] struggles with the sound of waves and carrying him across sand into the water isn't always possible".

"This little pool allowed him to enjoy the beach in his own way," she said.

She said the pool was only for her son and some toddlers in their family group to use, "under adults' supervision".

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But within 30 minutes of the boy getting in the water, the family was approached by two Sutherland Shire Council public safety officers who had "received a complaint from a local regarding this pool".

She said they were first told they would need to reduce the amount of water in the pool to 50cm, so her cousin grabbed a bucket and emptied it into bushes behind them, before they were told it was an offence to place the water there.

They were also told they had broken the law by using a tap to fill the pool instead of taking it from the ocean, before being told the entire pool was a slip hazard, even though they had set it up behind public toilets, away from pedestrians.

"After all of this, they said just empty the water and deflate the pool," she wrote.

"The officers were aware of my son's disability and why we had the pool there."

It was while family members waited with her son while she went to get a towel that the council officers became impatient.

"I returned to one officer motioning my son to quickly get out – that's what upset me," she said, adding she wasn't "using my child's disability to justify our presence or ask for special treatment" but hoped the matter would result in "a little more understanding" and compassion".

A passerby who had seen the boy in the water moments before and witnessed the council officers emptying the pool, was the first to raise the matter in a post on Everything Sutherland Shire.

The post has since attracted more than 550 comments, with almost all in support of the family.

The witness told 2GB's Mornings with Mark Levy today she was devastated for the family and questioned the council's response.

She said she had witnessed dozens of teens across the long weekend setting up slip and slides and inflatable pools in parks in Sutherland Shire, yet none seemed to gain the attention of council officers. 

2GB radio host Mark Levy commented on the incident live on air, describing Sutherland Shire Council as a "bloody disgrace".

However, Sutherland Shire Council has today defended its actions, telling nine.com.au the officers involved were "following the law".

"Council acknowledges the distress experienced by a family visiting Bonna Point yesterday, following a complaint made by a member of the public about safety issues concerning the use of an inflatable pool," a Sutherland Shire Council spokesperson told nine.com.au.

"Sutherland Shire Council regrets that for the family involved, their Australia Day experience was not a positive one. Australia Day should be a day that everyone can enjoy, regardless of ability.

"In New South Wales inflatable and portable pools that can hold more than 30 centimetres of water are subject to the same strict safety requirements as permanent swimming pools. As the pool did not have a compliant barrier, Council staff were required to act."

The council said its public parks, playgrounds and waterways were especially busy on long weekends, and it was important to keep everyone safe, "which means structures like inflatable or temporary pools are not able to be used in these areas".

But the boy's mother said they would never put anyone in danger.

"We know about water safety. We would never create an environment that isn't safe, especially if our child is there," she said.

She also told Levy on 2GB: "As parents we try to do everything possible just to make him feel included in what every other kid can do easily".

Council said its staff had since "reached out to the family to offer support, with the intention of arranging a safe, accessible swim experience on the mobi-mats at Gunnamatta Bay Baths or at one of our leisure centres".

Jack Boyd, Mayor of the Sutherland Shire, has since spoken about the incident in a press conference.

Addressing the media, he said: "So my understanding from discussions with council officers was that a complaint was made, and once the complaint was made, two of our rangers attended on site and observed a pool that was deeper than 30 centimetres.

"Unfortunately our officers enforce the rules as they exist, not as what they would wish them to be. So they took steps to try and empty and lower the water line, and then in discussions with the family decided that they would then assist them in emptying the pool in its entirety."

He added that his "heart breaks" for Walter and his family, and invited them to come down to the local leisure centre and beaches at Gunnamatta Bay where Mobi-mats are equipped for accessibility.

"We want to right this wrong and ensure that he can have a great time down at the beach or in our leisure centres," he added.

"On behalf of the council, I'm really sorry that this has happened to Walter, and to his family. It would have been incredibly distressing and I was devastated when I heard the news."

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