Finniss Electorate

Mr PENGILLY (Finniss) (17:02): I would like to spend a few minutes talking about a couple of the educational facilities in my electorate. Firstly, I would like to talk about Victor Harbor Primary (R-7) and the outcome from the disastrous fire there early on 8 November. It was devastating for that school community and for the wider Victor Harbor community. It has been handled admirably by the principal, Mr Brenton Robins, and the governing council through Ms Kylie Love. I am also grateful that the minister actually went down on the Saturday. She paid a visit to Victor Harbor to see the damage and things are coming together quite quickly. The school is open again today and the students are being looked after.

I do need to comment on the enormous effort that has been put in by the local community by way of assistance to the school and forthcoming fundraisers. I do not want to make the quotes at the moment, but I am aware of some of the moneys that have been promised in fundraising by service clubs, and let me tell you that I am involved with the business group in organising a rather large fundraiser early in December. Out of what was a disaster on the night, we hope to get a lot of good things happening down there for that school.

In addition, it was terrific to see the staff and some students come to the Remembrance Day service at Victor Harbor the other day. They could not teach. They had had a staff meeting, so they came down en masse with Brenton Robins and attended the Remembrance Day service, which was significantly noted. We look forward to Victor Harbor R-7 getting up and about again and I look forward to assisting the school, and working with the minister and the department, on replacing those buildings. Hopefully by the start of 2016, if we are lucky, we might have something in place to accommodate them.

The other issue I want to talk about relates to the three campuses of the Kangaroo Island Community Education, which operates through three heads of campus and a principal, Mr Ian Kent. It is worth noting that Mr Kent in his time on the island has turned around what was a disaster and created something very special. He is a unique principal, highly experienced and skilled. A couple of weeks ago he received the John Laing Award, nominated by his peer principals through the Principals Australia Institute, which is an extremely prestigious award for service to educational leadership. It was an outstanding effort by Mr Kent. As I said, along with his heads of campus in Peter Philp at Parndana, Maxine McSherry at Kingscote and Leanne Woods at Penneshaw, Mr Kent has a unit over there which is a great joy to see.

The Premier, in his former life as education minister, visited the schools. I think we visited all campuses that day, from memory, but he was highly impressed with what was going on. They have things to contend with. There are never enough resources in public education anywhere, as you well know, Deputy Speaker. Children with disabilities create problems in an area like Kangaroo Island and there seems to be a rising number of children with autism who provide even more problems to the extent that staff physically feel the brunt of what is going on. I know that it has been extremely difficult for staff who have spoken to me in dealing with some of those situations.

The island is very fortunate to have Mr Kent as the principal. I am of a different political persuasion to him but the thing about Mr Kent is that you can have a blue or a difference of opinion with him and then you get on with it, so I am pleased with where it is going. I believe that he should be congratulated on receiving that John Laing Award a couple of weeks ago. I hope it is brought to the minister's attention and that she may write to Mr Kent.

The schools over there are going ahead in leaps and bounds, as I said. I attend different things there. The school communities are functioning particularly well. Indeed, at the Kingscote campus the first farmer's market was held a couple of weeks ago which was a rip-roaring success. It is very much a part of the community and, Deputy Speaker, there are probably schools in your and other electorates which are the same. I am delighted that it is all going so well. If we go back a few years when I sat down with former education minister Hon. Jane Lomax-Smith when things were in a complete pickle to where it is now, we can take pride. With those few words, I finish my contribution, but I think it is most important that Victor Harbor Primary R-7 and KI Community Education were picked up on today.