Overview
- On Australia Day at Kurnell’s Bonna Point Reserve, rangers ordered an inflatable pool emptied and packed away after a public complaint, affecting eight-year-old Walter, who has cerebral palsy.
- According to his parents, officers first directed them to lower the water, then warned against dumping water in bushes and using park taps to fill the pool.
- The council says inflatable pools capable of holding more than 30cm are subject to the same safety and fencing regulations as permanent pools and are not allowed in busy public parks.
- Sutherland Shire Mayor Jack Boyd said discretion should have been used and apologized to the family, as staff offered to arrange accessible swimming at Gunnamatta Bay Baths or a local leisure centre.
- Community backing has grown, with Bondi lifeguards inviting Walter for a tailored beach outing and locals expressing frustration over how the rules were enforced.