Lettesha Burt has been a strong advocate for keeping the facility open and has been working with Federal Liberal Member for Grey Rowan Ramsey.

Mr Ramsey will present the petition to parliament.

Mrs Burt said people were coming to her, asking to sign the petition.

“It was not just parents that signed it, but the community in general,” she said. “Some people would chase me, if I missed them, just so they could sign it.”

She said most of the people thought that closing the college was ridiculous.

“They thought it was like the old Risdon technical college when it first opened,” she said.

Letters have been sent to federal Education Minister Julia Gillard, but no response has been received.

Mrs Burt said she has had five or six weeks to respond.

“We thought she might give some sort of response,” she said.

Parents are being encouraged to enrol the children in their previous high schools, but Mrs Burt said they were still being kept in the dark.

“Even shop people have been concerned,” she said.

“The closure would have a negative effect on the community.”

Mr Ramsey said the government still had not declared the closure, but had issued its staff with retrenchment notices.

“The public has so strongly defended the technical college,” he said.

“You have to hope the government will sit up and take notice.”

He said people could see how upset the community was about losing the facility.

“I will remind Ms Gillard that she should respond to the community’s concerns,” he said. “To ignore people is no answer at all.”