Page 900 - Week 03 - Tuesday, 16 March 2010
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This group supports the department, the Catholic Education Office and the Association of Independent Schools to address agreed COAG reform priorities. This ensures that we are aware of and can communicate ideas, concerns and views of the systemic and independent Catholic schools to the other states and to the commonwealth government so that I know that, when I speak at ministerial councils and when the Chief Minister speaks at COAG itself, we can speak for all students in all Canberra schools.
As part of the national agenda, Catholic schools have also been involved in the literacy and numeracy national partnership, which supports the ACT government’s literacy and numeracy strategy 2009-13. This is aimed at improving the literacy and numeracy outcomes for all students in all sectors. Seven Catholic primary schools are taking part in this initiative.
Catholic schools will also benefit from the teacher quality national partnership, which is designed to drive reform and innovation to improve the quality of teaching and leadership in ACT schools and to sustain a quality teaching workforce.
In an historic move—and Mr Smyth referred in his speech to his personal participation—the Catholic system has received $400,000 in funding to establish two preschools within the Catholic education system in the ACT, one that commenced in 2009 in Gowrie and another one this year. This funding has been provided under the early childhood universal access national partnership. Furthermore, a successful application to establish a trades training centre has been made by MacKillop Catholic college, which I understand is soon to have a new name.
The Canberra region pathways trade training centre will receive up to $6 million in funding to construct industry standard building and construction facilities at MacKillop Catholic college and St Francis Xavier’s college and to upgrade hospitality facilities to industry standards at St Clare’s and Merici. The ACT department will discuss the successful proposal with MacKillop and explore the potential for shared use of the facilities for government schools in that region.
Finally, the single and biggest item under the building the education revolution program has seen significant capital upgrades in every ACT school, and local Catholic schools have received more than $44 million under that program. Just in the past few weeks I have had the pleasure of attending the opening of St Edmund’s new library, opened by Ms Annette Ellis, the federal member for Canberra. That was a fantastic event that morning.
This government has delivered record levels of funding for Canberra’s Catholic schools. Since coming to office, the government has increased funding to non-government schools by a massive 62 per cent on a per capita basis. In other words, an extra $75 million has flowed directly to Catholic schools because of the policies of this government. This funding assists with the everyday running of all Catholic schools in Canberra. We have also developed a variety of new and innovative measures to support our Catholic schools and to work with Catholic school communities, particularly in relation to support for parents groups.
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