Schools ‘dissatisfied’

Catholic Education in the Archdiocese will express its extreme dissatisfaction with ACT Chief Minister and Treasurer Andrew Barr over the lack of investment in Catholic schools in the ACT Budget.

The budget delivered $21.5 million in funding for public schools to respond to recommendations of the ‘Schools for All’ report while not providing “a single dollar to enable Catholic schools to meet the same outcomes for their students”, Catholic Education director Ms Moira Najdecki said.

Chair of the ACT Catholic Education Commission Associate Prof Patrick McArdle said governments had “a core responsibility to meet the needs of all students in the Territory, especially those with particular and complex needs, regardless of the choices of their parents about the type of education that meet their family requirements.

“Since over 25 per cent of all students in the ACT attend Catholic schools, government spending should reflect this distribution of students.

“In this budget, the ACT Government is showing that education funding for ACT Catholic schools is a low priority.”