Barr denies misleading parents over school’s closure
From ABC News
Education Minister Andrew Barr has rejected ACT Opposition claims he has mislead parents about school closures in Rivett.
The Opposition says Mr Barr told parents at a public meeting that students at Rivett Primary will be able to go to any other school in Weston Creek.
But a spokesperson from Mr Barr’s office says that is not correct because the Minister has been maintaining the Education Department’s position.
The position is school students can be guaranteed a place in any school in the region.
The spokesperson has also taken to comments by the Opposition’s education spokeswoman, Vicki Dunne.
Ms Dunne claims claimed the money spent on special autism units at schools which are listed to close, will be wasted.
The Education Department says none of the autism programs will be lost but they may operate out of another building in future.
And earlier
Barr’s school promises under fire
The ACT Opposition has accused the Territory’s Education Minister of making promises he cannot keep.
It says Andrew Barr has been making untenable commitments because he is under pressure to appease parents over proposed school closures in the ACT Budget.
Thirty-nine schools are listed to shut their doors as part of cost-cutting measures.
Opposition education spokeswoman Vicki Dunne says Mr Barr has told a public meeting that students at Rivett Primary School will be able to choose to go to any other school in Weston Creek when Rivett closes.
“If every child in Weston Creek went to the school of their choice, it could mean that the smaller schools that remained open could be less than viable, in the long-term,” she said.
“The Minister has made a commitment he can’t keep, simply because some of those schools do not have the physical capacity to take the children that live in the area.”
Autism fearsThe Opposition also fears that considerable money put into autism units in schools slated to close will be wasted.
Ms Dunne says a lot of the physical infrastructure in the speciality units cannot be transferred to other sites.
She says there is a high demand for autism programs in the education system.
“The other issue with autism units in particular, is that they are best suited for small schools, which Mr Barr is hell-bent on obliterating,” she said.
“If Mr Barr has his way, there’ll be very few small schools left in the ACT.”