Ginninderra News - July 2003

Labor Delivers on Education Promise

As Labor’s pre-election Shadow Education Minister it gives me great pleasure to report that good progress has been made on Labor’s promise to redirect $27 million back to schools from our opponents’ discredited free school bus plan.

Just past midway through this term of the Assembly, this year’s budget provides a further $7.4 million for education in order to fund a set of seven new initiatives. The new initiatives include:

• An overhaul of curriculum across the board from preschool to year 10 in government schools.
• Improved career education.
• More effective counselling services with a youth worker in every government high school.
• Extra funding for non-government schools targeted at years 1-3 and kindergarten.
• A school excellence initiative.
• Schools equity funding for schools with a high concentration of students from low income families.
• Additional funding for Preschools to contribute to cleaning and consumables.

Education is a key priority for this government and new Education Minister Katy Gallagher has demonstrated this. The seven education initiatives are based on advice from the Inquiry into Education funding (the Connors report), the Government School Education Council, the non-government school advisory council and other key education stakeholders. This delivers another election promise—to review education funding and ensure full consultation with the community.

The Labor Government has acted to maximise its investment in the future of the ACT by moving to implement the results of research and consultations that it has conducted over the last twelve months.

Launch of Belconnen High School bike ride