She turned up at about 6.30am prepared to chain herself to the front entry gates only to find around half-a dozen workman, and two security guards set up, and ready to go.

The 69-year-old grandmother was outnumbered, powerless to stop the removal as the crew had arrived at 4.20am, and had the entrance blocked with machinery by the time she arrived.

At around 8.30am the crane left, and only the exposed underworkings as well as deflated P&C members remained.

She says they could not start work until 7am but suspects they arrived that early simply to thwart her attempts at saving the space. 

And, although the school has suddenly promised the P&C some storage space, a frustrated Mrs Fuller says she still has one question.

“Where are the groups who use the demountable going to go?” she says.

In a school where space is evidently already limited, and there are plenty of examples of this.

From School Learning Support Officers working out of a room, and a partitioned off area, located in the busy foyer of the main adminstration building, to the school banking coordinators never knowing where they will be put, and the uniform shop being housed in a former janitors closet, Ms Fuller is at a loss as to why the building needs to be taken away and put in a paddock with thousands of others waiting for refurbishment - when it is clearly needed at the school.

She says it was used on a daily basis for many cultural and welfare programs, including Seasons for Growth,and the Defence School Transition Aide (DSTA).

The school’s new chaplain also utilised the building.

This year DSTA Rebecca Fattore says she sees 44 students on a weekly basis every Friday.

“Every Friday I have great difficultly finding a classroom to teach in and often take my groups outside,” Ms Fattore has written in a protest letter.

“I cannot continue doing this with winter approaching and rainy days.”

“Please consider my reasoning on the matter of taking away the demountable I strongly disagree with the it  being removed.”

However, her pleas and those of the  P&C’s, have fallen on deaf ears with the education department unwilling to deviate from their standard policy.

A spokesperson says the SHPS has been experiencing a reduction in enrolments (which are now projected to remain steady), and as a result, has a surplus of teaching spaces.

“The demountable referred to is therefore considered an accommodation overentitlement,” he spokesperson says.

“Departmental policy requires that surplus demountables be removed so that they can be refurbished and redeployed in schools experiencing increased enrolment demand.”

Sadly what the bureaucrats see an an “overentitlement” was a much needed space within our local school.