Page 2787 - Week 08 - Tuesday, 13 August 2019
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I do not hear people criticising staff. I hear about our ageing facilities and the lack of planning for the future. That is where I would like to see the focus go: not just talking about how much money we are spending, but talking about how we can spend it well so that we can better support the hardworking, caring, compassionate, highly skilled staff in our hospital and health system.
Proposed expenditure agreed to.
Education Directorate—Part 1.4
MS BERRY (Ginninderra—Deputy Chief Minister, Minister for Education and Early Childhood Development, Minister for Housing and Suburban Development, Minister for the Prevention of Domestic and Family Violence, Minister for Sport and Recreation and Minister for Women) (3.27): I am here to talk today on the ACT government’s commitment to high quality and accessible education and learning opportunities to ensure that every child and young person gets a great start to life. With 88 public schools and almost 50,000 students the ACT’s public education system is growing rapidly.
The growth has been fuelled by population demand but also by more families choosing public education for their children than they ever have before. This is an exciting time for education in the ACT because with growth comes the chance to reach more children and young people with the life-changing potential of a great education.
The 2019-20 budget will deliver a record investment into new and expanded schools for our growing suburbs and recruit more teacher professionals to continue to advance our world-class education system. The government is investing more than $47 million into the planning, design and construction of new primary school for Throsby. From 2022, 132 preschool and 450 primary school children will call this their new school and they will be the start of a brand new school community with room to grow in the years that follow.
The ACT government is investing in a new high school for Gungahlin that will be ready for 800 students in 2023. In 2019-20 further work will be undertaken towards the planning, design and construction of this school. Gold Creek senior campus will also be expanded by an additional 200 spaces by the beginning of 2022 with an investment of $6.4 million over the next three years.
For college students the government is investing $1.3 million for modifications to Gungahlin College to increase the number of staff areas as well as more specialist teaching facilities such as wet science lab areas. The flexible timetable that operates at Gungahlin College has allowed an increase in student numbers. This investment will provide more space for the increase in staff needed to support the larger student population.
For younger children the government is investing $29.5 million to expand Franklin Early Childhood School. This investment fulfils the government’s election
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