Go-ahead for $36m of school projects

A total of 48 government schools have been given the go-ahead to begin planning for building projects worth over $36 million.

Schools including Hampton Park Secondary, Footscray City Secondary, Edithvale Primary, Upfield Secondary and Mont Albert Primary will be able to prepare or confirm detailed master plans which will be used for future capital works submissions.

It is expected the schools will be included in the 2000/2001 capital works budget. The projects will be funded using State and Commonwealth funds.

A further 57 projects worth around $54 million are already at various stages of planning and will be funded over the next two years. These include Strathmore Secondary (estimated) $2.3 million, Wantirna Secondary (estimated) $2.2 million, Ringwood Secondary (estimated) $1 million and Echuca East Primary (estimated) $1.32 million.

The Minister for Education, Mr Gude, said the government had introduced a fair and effective process for identifying and prioritising capital works and schoolmaintenance needs.

"As a result of the government introducing this process schools now have surety over their future building needs and timelines," he said.

"Improvements to the planning process have helped streamline construction and have meant school communities are able to make informed decisions about how they use their funds."

"When the government came to office in 1992 we were faced with a $670 million maintenance backlog. We are well on the way to turning around a decade of Labor Party neglect of our schools."

(News Release, Office of Minister for Education 23 September, 1998)