Next page . . . . Previous page . . . . Speeches . . . . Contents . . . . Debates(HTML) . . . . PDF . . . .

Legislative Assembly for the ACT: 2004 Week 03 Hansard (Wednesday, 10 March 2004) . . Page.. 943 ..

I think we need to work on a system that does not rely solely on the principal and on the funds being available. We need a central fund administered by the education department that is dedicated to covering the cost of voluntary but vital extras. I do not want to see the situation where schools suffer because voluntary payments do not come through. School budgets are already stretched and many schools rely on those voluntary payments to offer diverse educational items. But that should not be at the expense of those who cannot afford to pay.

What I am proposing is a scheme where parents can apply for assistance to cover the cost of things like excursions, school camps and those course fees. We do have a similar scheme in place for some public school students, the junior secondary bursary scheme, but it is only available for 14 and 15-year-olds from low income backgrounds. This scheme or something similar could be extended to cover all students at primary and secondary levels from low income backgrounds. Alternatively, a new scheme could be based on models that already operate in Victoria and South Australia.

I have left my motion specifically vague so that the government can work out the best model for the ACT, the best working model for our system of education, but I think it is important that the Assembly today sends the message that we want to support all kids to get the best they can out of their school environment. And it is something that needs to be done sooner rather than later before more kids miss out on vital parts of their education. So my motion leaves it open for the government to decide the eligibility thresholds. They could even set a maximum level of assistance that each individual student could access. It is not a financially irresponsible motion. It is not an onerous motion. It is an attempt to get the government to fix a problem that has affected generations of ACT public school students from low income families.

We have a situation at the moment that reinforces their disadvantage; it does not help them. Tomorrow we debate the Education Bill, which includes a right to a high quality education. This right will be meaningless if the ACT’s most vulnerable families are priced out of a quality and nominally free education system. I commend my motion to the Assembly.

MR CORBELL (Minister for Health and Minister for Planning) (10.44): On behalf of the government, I am responding to this motion for Ms Gallagher, who is absent this morning. The ACT government school system is one based on the principles of equity, universality and non-discrimination. I would like to assure you that there is no provision to levy parents any compulsory financial contributions for public education in the ACT. The ACT public system does encourage parents to make contributions to their children’s schooling wherever possible but such contributions are entirely voluntary. There is no legal provision that requires parents to contribute financially. This is clearly outlined in the parental contributions to school finances policy.

I would like to take the opportunity to outline the contents of this policy for the benefit of members. The policy states that parents who feel they are not in a position to contribute financially are not expected to do so. The policy’s language is clear:

Parents must not be coerced and students must not be discriminated against for non payment of parental financial contributions.

Next page . . . . Previous page . . . . Speeches . . . . Contents . . . . Debates(HTML) . . . . PDF . . . .