Ivanhoe electorate early childhood education
Mr CARBINES (Ivanhoe—Minister for Police, Minister for Crime Prevention, Minister for Racing) (09:43): I was pleased last week to host a visit from the Minister for Early Childhood and Pre-Prep in the other place, Ms Stitt, at the new $4.4 million Rosanna Good Start Early Learning centre. Construction is likely to conclude in December and includes a $1.5 million grant for the construction from the Andrews government. There are eight learning spaces, including three kindergarten rooms. In coming weeks we will open the new Bellfield Community Hub that includes a $2 million Andrews government contribution for kinder rooms, adult education facilities, community rooms, a community garden and a social enterprise cafe. That is just near the corner of Banksia Street and Oriel Road in Bellfield. It will be a fantastic development. As a past member of the committee of management of the old Bellfield community centre, to see the new one, over a couple of storeys, coming out of the ground—it is about a $12 million investment across our government and Banyule City Council—is fantastic for the locals. There is also a $1 million grant for the new children’s centre in Heidelberg, with KU Heidelberg childcare centre, kinder and long day care and allied health rooms. That planning work is underway and going very well.
Of course this is all in relation to why we are making kindergarten free for three- and four-year-olds and saving families some $2500 per child every year, delivering immediate relief to household budgets. We will establish, as I just outlined there, some of those new 50 government-operated childcare centres in communities that need it most, because every family deserves access to affordable care close to home, and these works and these investments are changing lives and making families really perform and do so much better together.