By Brendan Rees
The State Opposition has responded to Labor pledges to deliver a massive upgrade to Cranbourne South Primary School if elected in next month’s State Election.
Shadow Minister for Small and Medium Enterprises Neale Burgess announced on Wednesday 24 October that the Liberal Nationals would provide the school with $5.9 million to upgrade Block A, and the administration building including the removal of asbestos.
Teachers would also benefit with a brand new staff-room and extra toilets to cater for the growing staff numbers at the school as well as establishing a suitable car park for parents to safely park.
Mr Burgess said the upgrade would provide the “very best educational facilities” and fix the “maintenance backlog” left by the Andrews Government.
According to Mr Burgess the school had been “badly neglected,” and Labor had previously announced it would close the school.
“Under a Guy Liberal National Government, Cranbourne South families will get the quality school facilities they deserve and desperately need,” he said.
Liberal candidate for Cranbourne Ann-Marie Hermans also joined Mr Burgess for the announcement at the school.
“I am proud to have stood alongside the Cranbourne South community, collecting signatures on a petition that ultimately produced this outcome,” Ms Hermans said.
“This community can’t afford four more years of Labor,” she added.
Cranbourne South Primary School has nearly 400 students and is one of the fastest growing in the region, the Liberals argue.
In August, the Labor Government announced, if re-elected, to invest $5.9 million into the school to completely refurbish and modernise classrooms and facilities in Block A, and upgrade the car park and playing fields.
Cranbourne MP Jude Perera at the time said: “Cranbourne South Primary is a great local school and only Labor will make sure our kids and their teachers have the state of the art classrooms and facilities they need to achieve their best.”
School council president Jodi Price welcomed the announcement, saying the school was desperate as it had 16 classes currently operating out of portables.
“It’s everything that we’ve been fighting for – it’s a massive relief,” she said.
She said the portable classrooms were “not ideal” and hoped the funding would be first spent on getting rid of the asbestos.
“We have to hold a lot of our specialist classes like arts, performing arts, and drama in the main building. To get that fixed up would be ideal,” she said.
