Ten-year old Maddy is on a "crusade to stop the shade".
A development application for a five-storey apartment building next to her school, Holy Trinity Primary in Curtin, will leave the playground and grass area muddy and slippery in winter, she said.
Maddy will have left the school by the time the apartment complex is built, but is committed to opposing it for her one-year-old sister, who will be enrolled in the coming years.
"I didn't want her to have a muddy playground. I feel like she should have the same playground and equipment and rights of having a nice grass playground that I have," Maddy said.
The year-five student has started a petition that she hopes will encourage the developers to rethink their plans for the former presbytery next to the school.
So far, she has collected signatures from her own class, the next door class and her brother's class.
"They may listen to the kids, because all the kids here I'm trying to get them to sign it," she said.
Maddy is just one of many in the school community who have raised concerns since the Archdiocese of Canberra and Goulburn submitted an application to have its social services agency, Marymead CatholicCare, build a 54-unit affordable housing development next to the school.
The proposed plans, which were put before the planning authority in February, show the building's shadow would cross over onto the school's playground until about 3pm in winter.
Parents at the school told The Canberra Times communication with the archdiocese about their concerns about the overshadowing, as well as traffic safety, student privacy and noise disturbance had been inadequate, and felt like a brush-off.
"There seems to be no consideration for the overall responsibility that the diocese has towards its flock," one parent said.
Diana Killen, a grandparent, said there was "a clear conflict of interest where development impinges on the safety and education of the children under its care in an adjacent school".
Another parent said they had felt "guilt-tripped" about their objection, because it was misconstrued as an opposition to affordable housing.
Marymead CatholicCare chief executive Anne Kirwan said the majority of schools in the ACT were surrounded by residential living, and that the design of the proposed building was made with the school in mind.
"We have taken care to recognise the proximity of this development to the lower section of the school oval in the design, turning lines of sight away from the school and lower playground, introducing screens and reducing window size to increase privacy," Ms Kirwan said.
The playground was already significantly shaded during winter, Ms Kirwan said, which the building would increase by about 15 per cent.
"We understand there are some concerns raised by some members of the community, and as part of the Development Application we will work to respond to these now that the first phase of the Development Application has closed," she said.
A spokesperson for the archdiocese said it remained committed to both strong safeguarding practices and contributing positively to the wellbeing of the wider community through supplying affordable housing.
"We recognise and understand that some parents and residents have concerns regarding the proposal, particularly in relation to children's safety, privacy and the school environment. These concerns are being taken seriously," the spokesperson said.
The spokesperson confirmed the archdiocese safeguarding manager, as well as representatives from the Catholic Education safeguarding team, had assessed the site and not identified any concerns that would affect the proposed plans.
