By Violet Li
Labor has pledged grants for six community language schools in the seat of Holt if re-elected.
The recipients are Payam Dari School (Narre Warren South), AI-Hussein Arabic School (Narre Warren South), AI Mustaqbel Arabic School (Cranbourne East), Sankalp- Ek Nishchay (Cranbourne East), Cranbourne Gyanjyoti Pathsala (Cranbourne West), and Sikh Community Gurmat Centre (Devon Meadows).
The languages involved include Arabic, Indian languages, and Nepali.
The exact amount for each school will be shared later.
The grants are part of Labor’s $25 million package, announced during the ANZAC long weekend, to support 600 community schools across the nation that help more than 90,000 students learn 84 languages.
About $5 million of the whole package will go to a specialist Asian languages funding stream to help more students, regardless of their background, become fluent in Asian languages through to Years 11 and 12, according to a media release from Labor.
Incumbent MP and Labor candidate Cassandra Fernando said language was the cornerstone of culture, and the grants would continue to help these crucial institutions thrive.
“We’re blessed with many in our community speaking a language other than English at home, and the Labor Government will make sure our children continue to learn these languages and keep them alive,” she said.
The seat of Holt is one of Australia’s most culturally diverse areas.
According to the 2021 Census, only about 53.3 per cent of Holt residents were born in Australia, compared to 65 per cent across Victoria and 67 per cent nationally.
The diversity is reflected in the languages spoken at home.
Almost half of the households used a non-English language. Punjabi was the top second language used at home (6 per cent), followed by Hazaraghi (4 per cent), Sinhalese (3 per cent), Dari (2 per cent), and Hindi (2 per cent).
