Tuesday, 3 October 2023

Vermont South Special School

John MULLAHY (Glen Waverley) (13:12): It was an absolute delight to attend Under Construction: The Case of the Missing Toolkit, the 2023 Vermont South Special School production. It was a great production, all about the $10.1 million investment currently being undertaken at Vermont South Special School. As part of these works, we are building brand new teaching and learning spaces for students to enjoy for years to come, and construction is now well underway. I would like to take this opportunity to give a huge shout-out to the cast, led by Indiana, Blake, Agrem and Borrell, who with their peers did a stellar job acting, singing and dancing. A big thankyou too to principal Jane Henderson for the invitation to the production and for always advocating to make her school the best it can be.

I am proud to be part of the Allan Labor government, because we are not just delivering a $10.1 million upgrade at Vermont South Special School but investing more than a quarter of a billion dollars to upgrade every single special school across Australia, plus we are creating co-located before- and after-school care and appointment spaces for NDIS navigators at every single special school too. Our investments in special schools are life changing, and it was terrific to see the positive impact it is having on the students at Vermont South Special School. I look forward to working closely with Victoria’s new Minister for Education the Deputy Premier as we continue our bold transformation of special schools across the state not just at Vermont South Special School but also at Glenallen School in my electorate. Congratulations again to all involved in the Vermont South Special School production and all the teachers and education support staff who create a thriving learning community every single day.