Tuesday, 9 December 2025

 Wendy LOVELL (Northern Victoria) (22:14): (2231) My adjournment matter is for the Minister for Education, and the action that I seek is for the minister to intervene to prevent the removal of two modular buildings housing four classrooms from the Wodonga Primary School. Wodonga Primary School has been informed by the Department of Education that early in 2026, two modular buildings housing four classrooms will be removed from the school campus. The principal as well as the school council president have written to the department to explain why the buildings should remain and asked them to reverse the decision. These classrooms are in full use by over 90 students and provide essential spaces for the delivery of the school’s disability inclusion program. Removing them would reduce the school’s capacity to provide equitable and inclusive education, contradicting the department’s own policies, which mandate accessible facilities on the basis of inclusion principles. Taking away the rooms would also increase class sizes and disrupt the learning environment for students with special needs who require smaller class sizes, accessible spaces and focused attention in order to thrive. This in turn will place additional pressure on teachers and negatively affect staff wellbeing and morale. Removing the classrooms would also be financially irresponsible. Significant investment has been made in equipping the classrooms with desks, computers and electronic whiteboards as well as installing disability accessible ramps to make them safe and inclusive. Taking the classrooms back now means that the investment would be entirely wasted, which is a poor use of government and school resources and will incur further costs to the school when ramps have to be removed and the site rectified for safety.

I understand the government operates a relocatable capacity adjustment program, but I am concerned that there is no publicly available information outlining its criteria or methodology, and the lack of transparency has left parents in the local community uncertain and worried. Wodonga Primary School has a strong record of academic achievement and is a school of preference in the local area, which families choose for its excellence. Forcing children to relocate because of zoning adjustments is unreasonable. The negative impact on a child and the upheaval to families in changing a child from one school to another because they do not meet zoning requirements is unreasonable and arbitrary. Restricting enrolment and removing classrooms also seem to be very short sighted decisions, as the area surrounding the school is planned for significant housing development and the population is expected to increase, meaning the classrooms that are removed will need to be replaced in the near future. I urge the minister to intervene immediately, halt the planned removal, review the decision in full consultation with the school and ensure that these two relocatable buildings remain at the Wodonga Primary School beyond 2026.