Drinking fountains replaced by bottles at Perth school after water ‘makes kids sick’

Parents at an Australian primary school say the dodgy water supply their students have put up with for years is making them sick.

The P&C at Gidgegannup Primary School, northeast of Perth, says drinking fountains run dry, water is discoloured and the air-conditioning often fails.

WATCH THE VIDEO ABOVE: Bottles replace drinking fountains as water quality investigated at Perth school.

Parents do not know what is causing the issues, but say the saga has dragged on for five years and is affecting the health of their children.

“There was vomiting, there was diarrhoea, stomach aches, just throughout the whole year,” mum Kylea McCarthy told 7NEWS.

“It wasn’t until I took her over to our local GP ... and he said, ‘Yeah, we’ve got a couple of kids coming through from the primary school, and they’re all testing positive with the bacteria, the parasites’.”

The Education Department has stepped in, replacing potentially contaminated fountains with bottled water, but parents say it is not sustainable.

“(My daughter in Year 1) is often too nervous, especially if she has a different teacher, to ask for a bottle of water when hers runs out,” Gidgegannup Primary P&C president Tahlia Macri told 7NEWS.

“I’ll pick her up from school and she’s dehydrated and she’s asking straight away, ‘Mum, I’m thirsty, I’m thirsty’.”

The education department confirmed the water will remain shut off until testing is complete.

“I’m not going to compromise on the safety of our children and staff at schools,” Education Minister Sabine Winton said.

“It is regrettable but it’s important we do keep children safe. We need to do that full testing.”