Council Backs Calls for Chapel in New Bankstown Hospital

Canterbury-Bankstown Council unanimously recommended on 27 October that the state government include a Christian chapel in the new $2 billion Bankstown Hospital. Deputy Mayor Rachelle Harika drafted the motion, which seeks to replicate the existing facilities at the current Bankstown Hospital by providing a Christian chapel and two separate prayer rooms at the new site.

The proposal follows two petitions on change.org that gathered nearly 10,000 signatures. One petitioner stated that the absence of a dedicated Christian space would create logistical difficulties for the area's multi-faith community, as people of various creeds would be forced to share limited multi-faith spaces. The petitioner argued that the Christian population of Canterbury-Bankstown requires a specific space for prayer and worship.

The new 14-storey teaching hospital is being built on Chapel Road at a former TAFE site. The Canterbury-Bankstown local government area is one of the most religious and diverse in Australia, with approximately 75 percent of the population professing a religion. This includes 42 percent who are Christian and 24 percent who are Muslim.