Page 2330 - Week 11 - Wednesday, 1 November 1989
Next page . . . . Previous page . . . . Speeches . . . . Contents . . . . Debates(HTML) . . . . PDF . . . .
areas of government administration. Within the Department of Education several areas were identified in which savings could be achieved - let me emphasise, Mr Speaker, could be achieved - without affecting the quality of service provided to ACT students.
The preschool area was one of these areas in which savings could be achieved without reducing the general level of service to the community. It needs to be recognised that, even after the proposed savings have been achieved, some $224,000 extra will be spent on preschool education in 1989-90 over 1988-89.
The original concept of amalgamation as a way of reducing expenditure this time was derived from the Chase review of 1989. The background to the Chase review is quite important because during the budget discussions the proposition was put forward from some sectors that were concerned about the Government's proposed expenditure savings in the education area that the people of Canberra were prepared to pay more than the people of other parts of Australia in order to have a superior education system.
The Chase committee had its origin directly as a result of that theory being tested. An opportunity was provided for people to pay more for preschool education, to cover the level of overfunding, and that was in the form of the $6 a week preschool fee. We know the history of that. That proposal was rejected outright by the preschool community, and a very successful and effective campaign of boycotts was adopted. People were not prepared to pay for it. That is the reality.
This document came out of that situation. The members of the Chase committee included representatives of the Schools Authority, the ACT Administration, the Canberra Pre-School Society and the ACT Teachers Federation. There were five participants in the Chase committee review. I think it is important that the Chase committee made recommendations which were intended to realise some savings in preschool education without affecting the quality of preschool education, in an effort to achieve some of those savings required by the Grants Commission figures. Some of those proposals that came from the Chase committee were about the amalgamation of preschools. I would like to quote from pages 30 and 31 of that report. It states:
At present there are 17 part time single unit preschools in the ACT. These preschools have a maximum enrolment of 25 children each. There are also eight double unit preschools which have one vacant unit.
As the preschool population declines in some areas, the number of part time preschools and the number of vacant units will increase. While the operation of part time preschools means that there is easy access in all neighbourhoods, they do add
Next page . . . . Previous page . . . . Speeches . . . . Contents . . . . Debates(HTML) . . . . PDF . . . .