Nationals Member for Euroa Annabelle Cleeland has called on the new Minister for Education to step-up where his predecessor could not and fund a public secondary school in Kilmore.
Speaking in Parliament this week, Ms Cleeland made it clear that an opportunity to provide Kilmore with a new school had slipped through the Government’s hands.
“The lack of urgency and care from your predecessor has seen a golden opportunity missed, and I hope you are able to rectify this,” Ms Cleeland said to the Minister.
“Despite thousands of local residents signing petitions calling for the State Government to purchase the former Colmont School campus, it has been sold to a private company.
“Your predecessor was made aware of this opportunity on multiple occasions and was invited to meet with local families to hear about how desperately locals needed this school.
“Instead, she did nothing, demonstrating a short-sightedness and arrogance that has resulted in hundreds of families being left without reasonable, local education options.”
Ms Cleeland said the former campus would have been an excellent opportunity for Kilmore, which is the largest town in Victoria without a public secondary school.
“This former school campus was ready-made, conveniently on the market and had the opportunity to provide a cost-effective solution to a very real issue for this town,” Ms Cleeland said.
“Alternative options now would mean acquiring land and building an entire school from scratch. This is without a doubt a more expensive, more time-consuming, and less-effective option.”
Ms Cleeland has re-launched a petition calling on the State Government to fund a new school for Kilmore and encouraged all members of the local community to sign it.
The petition is available to sign at https://www.annabellecleeland.com.au/petitions/.
