David Tchappat, a popular housemate recently evicted from the television reality program Big Brother Australia, has spoken out critically of his childhood experiences in the controversial religious group "Raven-Taylor-Hales Brethren", referred to in Australian media as "Exclusive Brethren". Tchappat was a participant in the edition Big Brother Australia 2008, and was voted off the show on May 25.

Tchappat, 33, a former police officer and presently a firefighter, left the controversial group at age 19. He says he attempted to leave at age 17 but was brought back by members of the group and "interrogated" by group leadership for months. Up until he left he had never eaten in a restaurant, listened to the radio or been to the movie theater. According to Macquarie National News, Tchappat's former community numbers number approximately 15,000 in Australia. Raven-Taylor-Hales Brethren is a sect of Protestant Christianity and a breakaway group from Exclusive Brethren.

Due to his departure from the group, Tchappat had to break off contact with family members still inside the organization, though at times he speaks with his parents. Members do not vote in elections because they feel it contradicts their belief that God should determine who is in power, but they provide finances to the Liberal Party of Australia. Tchappat's cousin Andrew left the group a few months after he did.

After getting to know his fellow Big Brother Australia housemates for three weeks, Tchappat recounted some of his experiences in his former religious group. "Look, I don't like to say it's a cult, but it basically is. My whole life was controlled. I didn't have a say in it myself," he said on one episode. He grew up in the Raven-Taylor-Hales Brethren community in Gosford, New South Wales, and explained: "It's based on Christian values but it's very strict. So I had no TV, no radio, no computer, never been to a movie or a restaurant or kissed a girl - you name it, I didn't do it."

In an interview Tuesday with former Big Brother Australia runner-up Tim Brunero on Macquarie National News, Tchappat said he is planning on releasing a book about his experiences growing up in the controversial religious group. "I've spent the last two years writing it. It just happened that I got into Big Brother in the tail-end of it. Obviously there's a few more chapters to add, but I'm really pumped, it's an interesting story," he said. He plans to title the book Losing my Religion.

He was also interviewed by ninemsn on Tuesday, and said he does not regret discussing his experiences in Raven-Taylor-Hales Brethren on Australian national television. "I'm an example of how you can go out and be successful. I say to people that if you are thinking about leaving, and you're serious, take a punt and give it a go. You can always go back if you don't like it." Former members of the group were inspired by Tchappat's comments and empathized with his experiences in posts to Big Brother Internet message boards.

Prime Minister of Australia Kevin Rudd criticized the Raven-Taylor-Hales Brethren group in August 2007. At the time he was leader of the Australian Labor Party, and requested that then-Prime Minister John Howard reveal what took place in a private meeting with senior members of the religious group. "I believe this is an extremist cult and sect. I also believe that it breaks up families," said Rudd to reporters in Adelaide according to The Sydney Morning Herald. He noted that the organization was being investigated by the Australian Federal Police for prior election activities, and wanted to know how much funding had been given by the group to the Liberal Party.

During his election campaign Rudd called on Australian federal agencies including the anti-money laundering agency Australian Transaction Reports and Analysis Centre (AUSTRAC), the Australian Federal Police, the Australian Taxation Office, and the Australian Electoral Commission to investigate the activities of Raven-Taylor-Hales Brethren. In spite of Rudd's criticism of Raven-Taylor-Hales Brethren, the religious group was guaranteed AUD10 million in taxpayer funding for its school facilities in January 2008. Rudd had promised during his election campaign to maintain education funding levels for non-government schools if he became Prime Minister.

Australia media reported on May 18 that Rudd rejected a request from former members of Raven-Taylor-Hales Brethren to investigate the group. 34 ex-members of the religious group had sent a letter to the Prime Minister's office asking him to investigate how they were treated in the the organization. A spokesman for Rudd said that the ex-members should instead take their request to the police, and that a government investigation would raise religious freedom issues. Rudd's chief of staff David Epstein said that the Prime Minister "does not resile from the views he expressed last year" and "remains concerned about the reported imposition of doctrines that weaken family bonds".

Australian Greens spokeswoman Christine Milne told Australia's ABC News said that the well-being of children still in the group should be of primary concern. "The issue here is not about religious freedom, it is about what this cult is doing to destroy families and effectively to undermine the law," said Milne.

Ex-member Peter Flinn, who wrote the letter sent to Rudd which was signed by 33 other former members, was disappointed by the Prime Minister's response. "We just want to highlight other equally fundamental human rights, such as access to family who remain Brethren members, a right callously denied for decades," he said in a statement in The Sydney Morning Herald. Senator Bob Brown of the Australian Greens party has proposed a government inquiry into the group's public funding, tax concessions and possible practices that harm children.

Sources

* ninemsn staff "Big Brother's David a cult hero: Big Brother evictee David Tchappat has urged cult members who hate their lives to leave and rejoin the outside world". National Nine News, May 27, 2008

* Tim Brunero "Big Brother’s David to write 'cult' book". Macquarie National News, May 27, 2008

* Shannon Molloy "Double trouble for BB". The Age, May 26, 2008

* Tim Brunero "Blokes punted in shock double eviction". Macquarie National News, May 25, 2008

* "Quiet is the new loud". The Australian, May 19, 2008

* "Rudd backflips over Exclusive Brethren inquiry". Scopical, May 19, 2008

* Christine Sams "Big Brother house just like living with sect". The Sydney Morning Herald, May 18, 2008

* Michael Bachelard "Rudd knocks back pleas for inquiry into Brethren". The Sydney Morning Herald, May 18, 2008

* "Rudd knocks back Exclusive Brethren inquiry call". Australian Broadcasting Corporation, May 18, 2008

* Tim Brunero "Cults, racism and man-children: Big Brother's far from bland". Macquarie National News, May 16, 2008

* Anita Beaumont, Dan Proudman "Cult escapee fires up for stint in the house". The Newcastle Herald, April 29, 2008

* Yoni Bashan "Labor backflip on Brethren". Macquarie National News, January 15, 2008

* "'Extremist cult' slammed". The Sydney Morning Herald, August 22, 2007

Extract:

After running away from a “strict and controlling” religious sect at the age of 19, Big Brother evictee David Tchappat said he doesn't regret the decision that saw him cut off from his entire family.

The 33-year-old fire fighter was a member of the Exclusive Brethren group until he decided to leave the secretive confines of total domination and venture into the real world.

Despite discussing on national television the organisation's authoritative stance over its members, Tchappat said he doesn't fear any backlash from his former “brothers”.

“I don't answer to them anymore... I'm happy with my life and they leave me alone now,” he said.

He spent three weeks in the Big Brother house before deciding to share the story of his unusual upbringing with his fellow housemates.

“It's not something I go around promoting... I tell people when I am close to them.”

He attempted to leave the sect at 17-years-old, but was dragged back and “interrogated” by senior members for several months, he said.

Two years later he left for good and said he hasn't looked back.

However, he said life was difficult for several years and he battled through some “tough experiences”, including the breakdown of his marriage, because of his naivety about the world.

“I had no idea... some people took advantage of me and I blew a lot of money but thankfully I didn't do anything that was life-changing.

“If I had stayed out when I was 17, I probably would have crashed and burned.”

Leaving the sect required numerous sacrifices, including severing ties with his family, but Tchappat said he occasionally speaks with his parents.

“I don't have much of a relationship with my family anymore... we moved in different directions and we have different lives.

“I took a punt in entering the real world and I think it has paid off.”

While every facet of his entire life was controlled, including who he would one day marry, Tchappat said he still had a happy childhood.

But life was vastly different to that of other Australian kids.

“I wasn't allowed to do anything that was considered fun... playing sports, going to the movies, watching TV, sleeping over at a mate's place, playing computer games, Christmas... I didn't have any of that.

“We went to church every night, a half day on Saturday and all day Sunday... it's a very strict and regimented life that is completely planned for you.

“Your life is controlled and you don't have a choice about anything.”

A network of Exclusive Brethren private schools has more than trebled its roll from 476 to 1555 in five years.

Figures released to The Press reveal the reclusive sect's burgeoning school roll will see it benefit from more than $2 million of government funding this year, despite having "an enormous amount of money".

The usually media shy Brethren has gone on the front foot over its Westmount schools, declaring them superior institutions.

Marcella Marshall, administrator for the Westmount school in Templeton, south of Christchurch, said the schools were popular because they had a better environment than "normal" schools. "The kids respect there's never been a fight here at school," she said.

"You just don't get any of the things you get at normal state schools. I'd say the kids are more of a higher class.

"They're still normal kids, you do get behaviour problems, you just don't get the graffiti, and the chewing gum and the knives and whatever else you get at normal schools."

The Brethren's Westmount Schools were established in their current form at Mangere, in Auckland, in 2004.

There are now 15 "satellite" schools nationwide, including in Templeton, Oamaru, Invercargill, Nelson, Timaru, Westport and Blenheim.

Massey University historian Peter Lineham, who was brought up as a Brethren and has studied the sect, said the Brethren's Westmount schools were growing because Brethren were worried about their children being socialised in to wider society.

"They would have generally been concerned about some science instruction but they were mostly allowed to go through normal schooling," he said.

Lineham said the Brethren had "an enormous amount of money" to spend on their schools. "It's not that difficult to set up a school, and if they can find that much money for a silly political campaign, they're much more likely these days to put their money in to schools because, as they learned to their cost, they're not so popular when they try to influence the outcome of the election."

Marshall said the Templeton roll had gone up from 90 last year to 140 this year. Children came from Rangiora and Ashburton to attend the school, which has 17 teachers.

Teachers at the schools are all non-Brethren because members of the religious group do not attend tertiary education so cannot be registered teachers. Only practising Brethren children can attend the schools, however.

An Education Review Office report said the Westmount national office in Mangere set policies that reflect a Brethren ethos and encouraged a learning environment conducive to the Brethren philosophy.

Kevin Rudd is becoming adept at the political art of the back pedal. At this rate, it won’t be long before he hops on a unicycle and starts juggling chainsaws.

In August last year, Rudd called on four separate government agencies, including the Australian Federal Police, to investigate the activities of the Exclusive Brethren. Rudd described the kooky cult as “extremist” and in the business of “breaking up families.”

It looked just like we were headed for a good, old-fashioned witch burning, post-election (by gar, it’s been a while) but those expecting the return of the Spanish Inquisition (I know, I know - no one expects the Spanish Inquisition), were left disappointed and disheartened.

Just six months later, Rudd advised that he would not support calls for a broad inquiry in to the Exclusive Brethren, as it would impinge on the rights of Brethren folk to practice their faith freely and openly.

In February, Rudd’s office had received a detailed letter written by a former member of the sect, Peter Flinn, calling for an examination into “disproportionately high taxpayer funding of Brethren schools, dishonest political campaigning, charitable status in relation to rate and tax exemptions, and their well-known intimidatory tactics during traumatic Family Court cases.”

The document was signed by Flinn and 33 other former members of the Exclusive Brethren. It contained personal accounts of the emotional damage wrought as a result of the Exclusive Brethren’s doctrine of separation; where those who leave the sect are prohibited from contacting their families.

It took a full three months for Rudd’s office to reply. This time there were no public comments from the Prime Minister; just a tersely worded letter to Flinn, from Rudd’s chief of staff, David Epstein, indicating that Rudd’s anger had been assuaged somewhere between opposition and government.

The Exclusive Brethren has its roots in an evangelical movement in the 1820s, known as the Plymouth Brethren. The sect first stood on its own two feet in the 1850s, after a split with the main assembly. Initially at least, it was a gentle group of people not unlike the Mennonites and Anabaptists.

After a series of schisms in the 20th Century, the Exclusive Brethren globally is now a loose coalition of various splinter groups. The generic term is often attributed to the sect in Australia but the predominant group is more accurately known as the Raven-Taylor-Hales Brethren.

They have as many 40,000 members worldwide. Of those approximately 10,000 live in this country.

Popularly, the Raven-Taylor-Hales Brethren is renowned for eschewing technology, but businesess owned by members of the sect are known to use email and do their accounts using computers.

Their children aren’t quite so fortunate.

Brethren children between the ages of 11 and 17 are educated at Brethren-owned schools. In 2006, the Raven-Taylor-Hales Brethren received $20.7 million in Commonwealth funding for its 31 schools nationwide.

Most modern texts and novels are banned and the curriculum is designed and written by senior Brethren members. Students are not permitted to undertake any formal tertiary education.

In 2004, the Brethren won a temporary exemption from testing their children for computer literacy, from the then education minister Brendan Nelson.

Last year, these matters clearly troubled Kevin Rudd.

Back in Opposition, Rudd was at pains to point out that Exclusive Brethren kids were at a considerable disadvantage to their contemporaries in mainstream schools: “I believe that there are real problems with the provision of modern education to kids under their system where they, for example, are not given full range of access to information technology.”

But today in Government apparently, Rudd has no such cause for concern.

As election promises go, it might rate as non-core, but Rudd’s 180 degree turn shows he talks the talk in opposition but fails to walk the walk in government.

Or when he does, he often goes in reverse.

OVER TO YOU ...

Prime Minister Kevin Rudd has rejected the pleas of former members of the Exclusive Brethren for a broad-ranging inquiry into the sect, saying such an investigation would "unreasonably interfere" with their right "to practise their faith freely and openly".

Yet, before the election last year, Mr Rudd described the Brethren as an "extremist cult" whose activities "break up families" and, in the days leading up to the November election, he called on four federal agencies — the police, the tax office, the Australian Electoral Commission and anti-money-laundering agency Austrac — to investigate their activities.

Former members of the Brethren seized on the comments and, in February, wrote to Mr Rudd asking for an inquiry, particularly into its "disproportionately high taxpayer funding of Brethren schools, dishonest political campaigning, their charitable status in relation to rate and tax exemptions, and their well-known intimidatory tactics during traumatic Family Court cases".

The letter was written by former Brethren member Peter Flinn and signed by 33 others. Attached were 13 stories outlining the misery inflicted by practices of the sect, including the doctrine of separation, which keeps lapsed members from contacting their families.

Mr Rudd's chief-of-staff David Epstein wrote in reply last week that the Prime Minister "does not resile from the views he expressed last year," and that he "remains concerned about the reported imposition of doctrines that weaken family bonds" and "prevent children accessing online learning tools".

Mr Epstein also added that religious observance "should not be regarded as a shield behind which breaches of the law can be hidden", and urged anyone with details of criminal behaviour within the Brethren to tell police.

However, he wrote, on religious freedom grounds, the Prime Minister would not be instituting an inquiry.

Mr Rudd's stance suggests the Government also will vote against a motion by Greens Senator Bob Brown calling for an inquiry into the sect, its tax concessions, public funding, and practices that may harm children or families.

Senator Brown tabled notice of the new motion, his third proposed inquiry into the Brethren, in the Senate on Thursday.

Senator Brown described Mr Rudd's position as "appalling", saying his priority "should be the welfare of children and families, and the taxpayers' money that is going to this organisation".

But Mr Flinn told The Sunday Age the Exclusive Brethren could take no comfort from Mr Rudd's response: "Whilst Mr Rudd did not give a specific commitment to an inquiry, he acknowledged the 'moving personal accounts'."

Mr Flinn also pointed out that Mr Rudd reiterated his Government's commitment to "enhancing transparency in the Australian electoral system, with reforms recently announced relating to the disclosure and sources of donations".

"We have no desire to interfere with the fundamental right of any religious group to freely and openly practise its beliefs. We just want to highlight other equally fundamental human rights, such as access to family who remain Brethren members, a right callously denied by the Brethren," Mr Flinn said.

The Exclusive Brethren is a wealthy Christian-based group that practises a radical doctrine of separation from the world. Its leaders became very close to former Prime Minister John Howard over many years of lobbying and political activism, and, in 2004, they poured $370,000 into his re-election campaign.

Under Mr Howard, Brethren schools enjoyed similar funding to schools for disabled and Aboriginal students, even though, by their own admission, Exclusive Brethren members are in the top echelon of income earners. Mr Rudd has continued the funding arrangements, worth $50 million over the next four years.

A spokesman for the Exclusive Brethren could not be contacted.

The Prime Minister has backflipped on a key issue for the second time this week, denying ex-members of religious sect the Exclusive Brethren an investigation into the organisation.

Thirty-three ex-members of the radical sect wrote to the Prime Minister in February requesting that he investigate their influence and structure, Fairfax Media reports.

Mr Rudd had prior to the election labeled the Exclusive Brethren, of whom the former Prime Minister John Howard met regularly, an extremist cult.

However in a return letter from the Prime Minister's office, Mr Rudd says that an inquiry into claims of "disproportionately high taxpayer funding of Brethren schools, dishonest political campaigning, their charitable status in relation to rate and tax exemptions, and their well-known intimidatory tactics during traumatic Family Court cases" would not go ahead.

The then Labor Leader had previously called on all four Federal police agencies to investigate the Exclusive Brethren.

In the letter, Mr Rudd's chief of staff David Epstein writes that the Prime Minister "remains concerned about the reported imposition of doctrines that weaken family bonds" and "prevent children accessing online learning tools".

Ex-members say that the Prime Minister's position is a let down, given claims of child abuse and disconnection from families.

The Exclusive Brethren has been the subject of much criticism in the last five years, including claims of political campaigning for the Liberal Party and secret donations.

The Greens are set to introduce a bill for an inquiry into the organisation's tax-exemption status and Government support.

Prime Minister Kevin Rudd has rejected the pleas of former members of the Exclusive Brethren for a broad-ranging inquiry into the sect, saying it would unreasonably interfere with members' rights to practise their faith freely and openly.

Last year Mr Rudd said the Brethren was an extremist cult whose activities broke up families. In the days leading up to the election in November, he called on four federal agencies - the Australian Federal Police, the Australian Taxation Office, the Australian Electoral Commission, and the anti-money-laundering agency Austrac - to investigate the Brethren's activities.

Former members seized on the comments and wrote to Mr Rudd in February, asking for an inquiry, particularly into "disproportionately high taxpayer funding of Brethren schools, dishonest political campaigning, their charitable status in relation to rate and tax exemptions, and their well-known intimidatory tactics during traumatic Family Court cases".

The letter was written by former Brethren member Peter Flinn and was signed by 33 others. Attached were 13 life stories outlining the misery inflicted by the sect, including a doctrine of separation, which prevents lapsed members from contacting their families.

Last week Mr Rudd's chief of staff, David Epstein, replied that the Prime Minister "does not resile from the views he expressed last year" and he "remains concerned about the reported imposition of doctrines that weaken family bonds" and "prevent children accessing online learning tools".

Mr Epstein urged anyone with details of criminal behaviour within the Brethren to bring them to police, but he said Mr Rudd, on grounds of religious freedom, would not institute an inquiry.

The move suggests the Government will vote against a motion by Greens senator Bob Brown calling for an inquiry into the sect and its tax concessions, public funding and practices that harm children or families.

Mr Brown said Mr Rudd's position was appalling and the "priority should be the welfare of children and families and the taxpayers' money that is going to this organisation".

Mr Flinn said the Exclusive Brethren could take no comfort from Mr Rudd's response.

"We just want to highlight other equally fundamental human rights, such as access to family who remain Brethren members, a right callously denied for decades," he said.

An Exclusive Brethren spokesman could not be contacted for comment.

Living with the Exclusive Brethren is like living in the Big Brother house, a contestant on the Channel Ten reality show says.

David Tchappat, 33, escaped the religious sect when he was 19, leaving behind family and friends.

Tchappat has begun to open up about his life with the sect during the filming of Big Brother. He has described a life of no television - and countless rules.

On Big Brother last week he said: "Look, I don't like to say it's a cult, but it basically is. My whole life was controlled. I didn't have a say in it myself."

He described his life growing up with the Exclusive Brethren in Gosford. "It's based on Christian values but it's very strict," he said. "So I had no TV, no radio, no computer, never been to a movie or a restaurant or kissed a girl - you name it, I didn't do it."

His cousin, Andrew Tchappat, escaped a few months later.

Extract:

A cult survivor called David.

You see David looks like your average well-muscled fireman. But at the age of 32 he’s only been living in the real world for 13 years. He had to start from scratch after escaping an extreme religious sect at 19. Before then he’d never seen a movie, kissed a girl, listened to the radio or eaten at a restaurant. The group was called the Exclusive Brethren and they have some kooky folks. They live apart from the rest of us in their own isolated communities. And get this: they don’t vote in elections because it interferes with God’s right to ordain who rules – but they do fund the Liberal Party. You tell me the logic there and I’ll buy you lunch. Speaking of lunch – Exclusive Brethren can’t even share a meal with people outside their sect. David will never be able to break bread with his family ever again. And there are 15,000 in Australia.

Bet you didn’t know about these guys… but you know Big Brother is boring.

Armidale is soon to have a new school.

Work has started on the school, being built on a block in Maude St (off O’Dell St) that backs on to Donnelly St.

The new school comes under the umbrella of the Sydney-based Meadowbank Education Trust (MET) run by the Exclusive Brethren.

To be known as MET Armidale Campus, it will cost $1.64 million but is eligible for funding from the Federal Government.

It replaces a school which the Brethren previously operated in Allingham St.

All access to the new school will be from the end of the Maude St cul de sac.

The Express sought comment from a representative of the Brethren in Armidale, but received no response.

Construction will be in three stages:

Stage 1 - main administration building and classrooms (two storeys);

Stage 2 - covered outdoor learning area; and

Stage 3 - auditorium and technics building (single storey).

The project includes roadworks in Maude St and on-site manoeuvring for small buses.

A derelict dwelling fronting Donnelly St will be demolished.

The Armidale school, designed for a maximum of 110 students for Years 7 to 12, is one of 16 which form a MET ‘super campus’ based at Meadowbank, Sydney.

Tamworth also has a MET campus, with students there moving into a newly-built school for the start of the 2008 school year.

Earlier this year, the Exclusive Brethren were under fire following a claim they had structured their educational arrangements in such a way as to maximise Federal Government funding.

A Sydney Morning Herald report claimed that, by registering schools that are in some cases hundreds of kilometres apart as campuses of the Meadowbank School, the organisation was able to access a much higher rate of funding.

Federal Education Minister Julia Gillard has promised a review of the SES (socioeconomic status) funding model over the next quadrennium ‘to see what if any improvements can be made to the model for funding arrangements beyond the 2009-2012 quadrennium’.

The SES model transfers money to all non-government schools based on the relative wealth of the area where parents of students at each school live.

The scheme does not take into account what facilities a school has or what fees are charged.

The Exclusive Brethren a controversial fundamentalist Christian sect has bought a 6ha site in McDonalds Rd to build a church.

The new church will replace one at East Gosford but other than that the group has no plans for the remainder of the land.

On Sunday about 60 people, mainly Lisarow residents, attended a public meeting nearby to protest against the development.

They say their main concern is the impact on the quiet area, particularly in relation to traffic movement.

They fear the new church, capable of accommodating 500 people, is the thin end of the wedge and will be the forerunner to other development on the site, including a school.

But church spokesman John Trimmer said residents had nothing to fear.

He agreed there were some traffic issues to be sorted out, but said they were not insurmoutable and certainly nothing of the order some residents believed.

Mr Trimmer said the site was divided into two separate titles with the new church to be built on one lot while the other would retain its rural character.

Initially meetings would be held in a renovated house with the new and larger church to be built later.

"We have been looking around for a site for about seven years to build a new church," he said.

"As most people will know there's not many suitable sites of that type in the area and when this one came up for sale we went ahead with its purchase even though it's larger than we require."

Mr Trimmer said the group's East Gosford church catered for about 160 people while the group also owned a smaller meeting hall at Wyoming.

Many who came to the church's meetings were families, who arrived in the one vehicle.

Larger combined services with brethren members from other parishes were held intermittently.

Mr Trimmer said all services and meetings would be held indoors and would not involve any noise that would disturb the area.

"Most of our churches worldwide are of similar design and the one planned for Lisarow will be no exception," he said.

Plans by the controversial Exclusive Brethren sect to build a church and school in a semi-rural area on the Central Coast have upset residents who had meetings with Gosford councillors yesterday to raise their concerns.

Days after an Exclusive Brethren school proposed for a small town near Lake Macquarie was rejected, Gosford City Council is considering a development application from the sect to convert a one-storey house in MacDonalds Road, Lisarow, into a church accommodating 40 people. The sect has spoken to the council about a longer term plan to build a church for up to 500 people, and a school.

Residents are worried that what they describe as a peaceful rural valley will be turned into a "bitumen parking lot" and that the one-lane dirt road leading to the property will be clogged with traffic.

The Brethren could not be contacted for comment.

A private school for Exclusive Brethren children will be built in Blenheim adjacent to Forest Park Rd.

The Marlborough District Council has granted resource consent and the building is in the planning stages. The school will be able to cater for up to 100 students from year one to 13, although it is expected the roll will be around 40.

It will be headed by the principal of Blenheim's Westmount School, whom the school will not publically name. Westmount is the name of every Exclusive Bretheren school worldwide. Schools were set up around the country, including in Blenheim, in 2004.

According to a 2007 Education Review Office report on the Blenheim school, there were nine teachers and 35 students at the school. It was classified as "efficient". The new school will include two storeys with junior and senior student classrooms. There will be a library, administration and technology area, a school hall and a 50m by 25m playing field.

School planning committee member Ben Beatson said a lot of details were to be worked out with the council.

An application to build an Exclusive Brethren school at Barnsley will now be determined by the Land and Environment Court after a unanimous rejection by Lake Macquarie Council on Monday night.

The council determined the development was out of context with the locality and had significant bulk and scale issues.

The Exclusive Brethren, a secretive community with strong Christian beliefs, has already submitted its plans to the court for a deemed refusal hearing.

Exclusive Brethren spokesman David Craddock told the council meeting the organisation was in urgent need of better educational facilities.

"We believe we have a fine school and a fine proposal," Mr Craddock said.

Barnsley resident Lezette Callinan said the development would dwarf its neighbours and dominate the landscape.

"This proposed establishment does not protect the prevailing character of the suburb," Ms Callinan said.

"It will not provide any benefits to Barnsley residents. They will not be able to utilise any of the facilities."

The proposed school was found by council staff to have too significant an impact on neighbouring properties, was of insufficient size for the site, was reliant on the use of public space (Taylor Park) and failed to provide adequate disabled access.