Yass Valley councillor Mike Reid has criticised a NSW Department of Education letter about the Murrumbateman public school for its lack of specific detail.
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The May 17 letter by Gareth Ward MP, Parliamentary Secretary for Education, on behalf of Minister for Education Rob Stokes, was in response to an invitation by Cr Reid for them to visit the village.
“This is in response to an invite to the Minister to honour his promise to visit Murrumbateman and 'see for himself' what we have been saying all along regarding our ability to house a school and also to having the numbers,” Cr Reid said.
“We have demonstrated a number of times that we have met and exceeded all benchmarks previously stated, all to no avail, it seems,” he said.
In the letter, Mr Ward said the Department was undertaking planning in Yass and Murrumbateman to determine a long-term strategic plan to accommodate projected enrolment growth.
“The department monitors population and development trends so that it can plan to meet enrolment needs in schools across NSW.
“The department will continue to closely monitor population projects in this area and will deliver a new school when the local population growth is sufficient to warrant its construction,” Mr Ward said.
Cr Reid said the statement about planning had been the same one made about 40 years ago that they had “been repeating ever since”.
We have demonstrated a number of times that we have met and exceeded all benchmarks previously stated, all to no avail, it seems.
- Mike Reid, Yass Valley councillor
The letter also referenced Yass Public School and the department’s current upgrades at Yass High School.
“Yass Public School can currently accommodate student demand from the local catchment area, including Murrumbateman,” it stated.
However, Cr Reid said he did not understand why the letter discussed schools in Yass, saying it was “beyond me”.
In a response to the Tribune about the matter, a spokesperson for Education Minister Rob Stokes said that the minister was keen to visit the community with the local member, Pru Goward MP.
“We're working to organise that visit at the first available opportunity,” the spokesperson said.
“The Department of Education is assessing the Murrumbateman area to determine a long-term plan to accommodate projected enrolment growth.
“This assessment will identify the best way to accommodate student numbers and deliver new and upgraded facilities for the whole community.”
Previous discussions
In March 2018 after the State Community Cabinet visit, it was understood that the Murrumbateman Progress Association (MPA) obtained a commitment from Mr Stokes to visit and discuss with the community about the need for a public school.
In October 2017, Murrumbateman residents were told at a community meeting that they would receive an update about the planning progress for a primary school by early 2017.
Chief executive of NSW School Infrastructure Anthony Manning and group director of planning and strategy John Neish attended the meeting.
They confirmed the ‘cluster planning’ phase for a school was beginning and that updates would be issued throughout.
Educator and resident Kate Olsen told The Tribune at the time that planning needed to happen sooner rather than later.
“For us trying to get kids into kindergarten in the ACT…we aren’t getting any places,” she said.
“It’s causing a lot of angst, a lot of stress for the community.”
Mr Stokes has been contacted for further comment, particularly on detail about population prerequisites.
