Page 3782 - Week 10 - Wednesday, 19 September 2018

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The new community outreach programs that are offered by the School of Music, and funded by the ACT government, have a renewed focus on women, girls, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander youth and broad community participation, noticeably with rock and jazz as the key genres. The new outreach programs offered by the School of Art & Design have a renewed focus on Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander community members, on people experiencing disadvantage and on professional development for burgeoning artists.

ACT school students continue to have many ways to access music programs, including the School of Music’s new developing musicians program and other ACT government-funded music programs included through music for Canberra at the Ainslie Arts Centre and music engagement activities by the Canberra Symphony Orchestra. School students also have access to a number of other opportunities to engage with music through the ACT government’s instrumental music program as well as many ACT schools providing music programs as part of their curriculum. There are also a number of community organisations that provide in-school music programs.

ACT government community outreach funding supports not only the ANU. It also funds a range of other important activities that are delivered by Tuggeranong and Belconnen arts centres and the Canberra Symphony Orchestra. It also funds access to Llewellyn Hall for music organisations that cannot otherwise afford the venue hire. MusicACT is also providing funding for capacity building programs for musicians and bands, including in artist management, recording, touring and promotion.

Madam Speaker, I can assure you and the Assembly that the government is committed to ongoing discussions with the ANU School of Music on the community outreach program as new potential programs are further developed and refined. We will continue to support the ANU’s provision of H courses through the $120,000 per year ANU extension program deed of grant. The ANU have provided assurances that no other H courses are under review and that they have no intention to discontinue their provision. I commend the amendment to the Assembly.

Debate interrupted in accordance with standing order 74 and the resumption of the debate made an order of the day for a later hour.

Sitting suspended from 12.27 to 2.30 pm.

Questions without notice

Schools—asbestos

MR COE: My question is to the minister for education. Minister, on what date was WorkSafe ACT notified of the potential and confirmed asbestos at Harrison School?

MS BERRY: As I informed the Assembly yesterday in my statement to the Assembly, the question was asked on Monday of the principal of the school about whether or not there was asbestos in the school. The school forwarded the email to the Education Directorate on the same day. They forwarded it to ACT Property Group. A priority


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