REGIONAL communities across WA have vowed to fight for fair access to quality education for their children following the State government’s sweeping cuts to country schools announced last week.
A teleconference was held on Friday between members of the Isolated Children’s Parent’s Association (ICPA), WAFarmers, the Pastoralists and Graziers Association of WA (PGA), the Country Women’s Association of WA (CWA), The Nationals WA and the WA Council of State School Organisations (WACSSO), where plans to protest cuts to regional education were discussed.
Education Minister Sue Ellery announced savings measures for 2019 would see WA’s five Schools of the Air (SOTA) abolished, the closure of residential colleges in Northam and Moora, 170 education positions axed, several scholarship programs scrapped and four regional camp schools closed.
Changes affecting WA’s five agricultural colleges and the Esperance Farm School will also be implemented in 2019, which will see the Department of Education retain an annual 20 per cent dividend from funds remitted to the Agricultural Education Provisions Trust from income generated from selling produce on the college farms.
ICPA president Tash Johns said the meeting with key stakeholders was the beginning of an ongoing campaign to reverse cuts to regional education.
The campaign was kick-started in Karratha yesterday, where a rally was held outside Pilbara MP Kevin Michel’s office.
Further rallies are planned over the next two days in Geraldton and Kalgoorlie.
Meantime an online petition organised by The Nationals WA has also circulated, gaining more than 23,000 signatures in less than a week.
“I’m astounded, the amount of people from different areas in our community that are just outraged, it’s astonishing,” Ms Johns said.
“It is wonderful to see that rural people have got their back covered by all of these people, we all want to see a reversal of these decisions.
“There’s a lot of anger out here and all throughout the State – it’s not just the families that have been affected, it’s everybody.”
Ms Johns said further rallies had been planned for 2018 at the Education Department and Parliament House.
She said the ICPA had this week written to Ms Ellery and Premier Mark McGowan requesting a meeting.
A letter has also been sent by the presidents of the five SOTA Parents and Citizens’ associations urging the government to reconsider its decision.
Ms Ellery has defended the cuts to education and said they would save the government $64 million across the forward estimates.
She said the tough decisions had to be made to get WA’s finances “back on track”.
“When the dollars are stretched to the limit, the State government – like every responsible business and household – has to do things differently,” Ms Ellery said.
“We’ve asked all parts of the community to help contribute to budget repair – the public sector, business, industry, individuals and families.
“Unfortunately, the Liberals and Nationals blocked a reasonable change to the gold royalty rate and chose to protect profitable gold miners from doing their bit.
“This has meant other parts of the community – like education – have been forced to shoulder more of the burden.
“I understand this process is a difficult and challenging time, particularly for staff and our biggest priority is to minimise any impact on students.”
Ms Ellery said the department analysed the budget, line by line, to avoid a duplication of services and determine where services could be run more efficiently.
As part of these efforts, Ms Ellery said the School of Isolated Distance Education (SIDE) would take over the provision of education services delivered by SOTA.
There are 202 students from 120 families enrolled in WA’s five SOTA’s in Port Hedland, Carnarvon, Derby, Kalgoorlie and Meekatharra, with 2018 enrolment numbers sitting at 162 students.
Ms Ellery said $14m was expected to be saved by delivering SOTA’s services through SIDE and that the same quality of education would be offered to students, including pastoral care services.
“I have already asked the Department of Education to start working with the 120 families across SOTA to ensure we incorporate into SIDE those things, such as the suite of pastoral care measures, that they value in SOTA,” Ms Ellery said.
“The education will be delivered in the same way it is delivered now – using technology.”
However, concerns have been raised by several groups that SIDE will not be able to offer students the same level of interaction and social opportunities provided through SOTA, particularly to primary school age students.
“SOTA is run a lot differently – the kids have smaller class sizes and they have online classrooms four times a week,” Ms Johns said.
“They have morning news with the whole school and they also have a lot of face-to-face opportunities such as camps.
“SIDE doesn’t offer a lot of class activities or face-to-face opportunities, the teachers don’t go out to the homes to visit the kids or see them in their school rooms.
“They just won’t have any idea where these kids are situated, how they live or what they’re doing – it takes great understanding to understand bush kids.”
Ms Johns said the closure of the Northam and Moora residential colleges would also have a major affect on rural and regional families.
In 2017, 32 students were placed at the Moora Residential College, while 19 students were accommodated at the Northam Residential College.
Ms Ellery said both sites were under-utilised and students had other options at residential accommodation in Geraldton, Narrogin and Merredin colleges.
Shadow Minister for Regional Development Jim Chown said the closure of the residential facilities would have a ripple effect on the wider communities of Moora and Northam.
“People come out of the city and go and work in these regional towns and now they can’t have their children looked after,” Mr Chown said.
“They have only one alternative and that’s to return to the city and put them in to schools there.
“That means those service provisions that they provide will be gone and nobody will replace them.”
Mr Chown said the decision was an “attack on regional WA” and that the government was sacrificing the regions to fund its city-centric election promises.
“If they really wanted to save money they would cut back in regard to their election promises in their marginal seats, this is what they need to do to address the budget shortfalls,” Mr Chown said.
“They’re not doing that, they are spending money hand over fist and they’re trying to make up the difference by cutting back on these incredibly important services.
“Regional kids don’t have all of the opportunities that are available to the metro child and now they’re going to have even less.”
Mr Chown questioned the timing of the announcement and warned of a persistent campaign against the cuts from a range of community members.
“Just because the government has decided to release this information after parliament went into recess and just before Christmas, the government needs to understand that this matter is not going to go away,” Mr Chown said.
“They can expect for the next 12 months a dedicated campaign within the parliament and by the community to reverse its decisions.”
The Nationals WA echoed this sentiment, describing the cuts as a “cruel Christmas present”.
Nationals WA leader Mia Davies said the regional cuts followed funding reductions to the Boarding Away from Home Allowance (BAHA) announced earlier this year, which will see a 30 per cent reduction over four years.
“There is no good news for staff, students and families who rely on School of the Air, or attend the Northam or Moora residential colleges - they have been left facing the prospect of finding a new school or a new job,” Ms Davies said.
“It’s time the premier stopped using Budget repair as an excuse to slash and burn services and projects in non-Labor electorates and tell the truth - decisions like this are to help pay for their unfunded, extravagant election promises.”
