Victorian families who choose to send their child to a non-government school will be backed by a $199.7 million boost under a future Brumby Labor Government, to drive new opportunities for students and boost professional development for teachers.
Education Minister Bronwyn Pike announced that a future Victorian Labor Government would increase funding to the Catholic and independent schools to $711 million by 2014.
“We know how important it is to give our children the best possible start in life and that’s why education is the Brumby Labor Government’s number-one priority,” Ms Pike said.
“Our Government has a strong record in increasing funding to Victoria’s non-government school sector because we recognise that many Victorian parents choose to send their children to non-government schools.
“The Brumby Labor Government’s disciplined financial management means our AAA credit rating is secure and we have strong budget surpluses over the forward estimates, giving our Government the capacity to provide additional funding to non-government schools.
“That’s why we will deliver the independent and Catholic schools sector three times the level of funding compared to when Labor came to office.”
In 2010, more than 310,000 students attended over 700 non-government schools in Victoria.
Ms Pike said the Victorian Labor Government had increased the amount of money provided to students in non-government schools, with recent funding targeted towards support for students with a disability and those from a disadvantaged background.
“We want students in our non-government schools sector to receive even more support and we want to deliver more professional development opportunities for teachers and principals from needy non-government schools,” she said.
“Today’s commitment builds on the Non-Government Schools Funding Agreement signed last year that saw a record $2.1 billion delivered to non-government schools over four years and will provide a guaranteed funding stream for schools into the future.”
A $194.7 million investment will bring the funding per student in the non-government school system to 25 per cent of the cost of educating a student in a government school.
This provides a guaranteed funding stream as Labor will establish an ongoing 25 per cent linkage for Catholic and independent schools. Labor will also provide $5 million towards professional development opportunities for teachers and principals from needy non-government schools.