Page 2553 - Week 08 - Tuesday, 9 August 2016
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they are actually stepping in and starting to dictate to the non-government schools how they are going to spend their money.
That is not something that I have chosen to do; it is not something the Chief Minister has chosen to do. I will be interested to understand exactly how the Liberal Party are approaching that question, and I hope they spell it out. They will be obliged to at the various education election fora along the way. When both sectors have raised this question with me, I have said to them that the government could dictate how they should spend their money, but we choose not to do that. In the system we have in the ACT there is an acknowledgement that the non-government systems have a freedom to spend their money as they see fit. That is the practice that has developed over time. If there is to be a change to that, people need to be up-front and honest about it.
In terms of infrastructure, this budget allocates funding to improve learning environments across Canberra, including money for better schools for Belconnen with the expansion of preschool facilities in Weetangara and Hawker and contemporary learning spaces at Maribyrnong Primary School. In Tuggeranong we will see upgraded library and science laboratories at Calwell high, improved parking and traffic management at Wanniassa Hills primary and food technology facility upgrades at Lake Tuggeranong College. In Woden we will see a replacement roof at Mount Stromlo high as part of the roof replacement program, and in our inner suburbs we will see new facilities at Alfred Deakin and Campbell high schools and upgraded science facilities at Dickson College. Right across the city we are seeing allocation to schools as we continually update.
We know some of our schools are getting older. A significant program needs to be rolled out to continue to keep our school learning spaces up to date and to the standards our community expects. This year sees a significant investment in Gungahlin. In the last five years in Gungahlin there has been a 44.8 per cent increase in the population, and this is obviously putting significant pressure on our schools in the area. In response, in the 2016-17 budget the government is investing $20 million for the expansion of Gungahlin schools. This will provide capacity for the growing student numbers and provide enormous economic and social benefit to the Gungahlin community. The government has planned this growth, which will increase student places by 680 in the region. This funding, of course, is in addition to the $28.6 million allocated in the 2015-16 budget to build a new primary school in the north Gungahlin suburb of Taylor, ready for the 2019 school year.
The $20 million allocated in this budget provides Amaroo School with 12 new learning spaces to cater for 300 secondary students, an expanded gym to accommodate more students and allow for additional community uses, and installation of new hard courts. Harrison School will see the installation of eight new learning spaces for 200 primary and middle school students, and the Neville Bonner and Palmerston primary schools will see new and expanded primary and preschool facilities.
Turning to issues of information and technology, the ACT schooling system has excellent information and technology particularly through our Google schools apps and the rollout of Chromebooks across our city. It is really pleasing to see Google
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