Schools, Capacity Projections

Mr BOYER (Wright) (14:17): My question is again to the Minister for Education. Has the minister received advice from his department about the need to address capacity pressures impacting on Prospect and the surrounding areas in the member for Adelaide's electorate? With your leave, and that of the house, I will explain.

Leave granted.

Mr BOYER: The chief executive of the education department earlier this year cited the Prospect area as one in need of a new school in evidence given to the Budget and Finance Committee on 10 May this year.

The Hon. J.A.W. GARDNER (Morialta—Minister for Education) (14:18): I thank the member for Wright for this question because I am aware that the Labor Party has been pushing this line to a range of journalists this morning, trying to put words in the mouth of the chief executive of the education department. I am really pleased to have the opportunity now to share—

Members interjecting:

The SPEAKER: Members on my left!

The Hon. J.A.W. GARDNER: —the actual comments that were made by the chief executive of the education department, without cherrypicking. If I've got more than four minutes, I hope you ask some more questions because then I can get them all in.

Members interjecting:

The SPEAKER: Order!

The Hon. J.A.W. GARDNER: Indeed, Kyam Maher—I think he was the Chairperson—asked Mr Persse about an article in The Sunday Mail on 23 March, in which Mr Persse identified some of the challenges in the Prospect, Adelaide and Adelaide Botanic High School zone. Rick Persse said:

I certainly do hold the view, Chair, that there is a lot of pressure on our shared CBD zone. What we are experiencing is a lot of urban infill and so on in that Prospect and surrounds area. There are new developments going on there and traditional larger blocks are being knocked down, with two four-bedroom homes on them.

Obviously, we have wonderful schools in Adelaide High and Adelaide Botanic, which are in demand. I think that, should that demographic trend continue, we will need to consider either adding additional capacity at either or both of the CBD schools, but I do believe that not having a school between Adelaide Botanic and Gepps Cross is something that we need to provide best advice and a business case to government on.

Mr Persse was then asked, 'Is a business case being developed—

Members interjecting:

The SPEAKER: The member for Wright is warned for a second time.

The Hon. J.A.W. GARDNER: Mr Persse was then asked:

Is a business case being developed for exactly the prospect that you think needs a business case?

Mr Persse answered:

No, we are not at the business case development phase at the moment. What we are doing is doing all the demographic analysis, which is over seven years.

Then he went on to talk about one of the other senior officers:

I am happy to see whether Ben wanted to talk about any of that. Obviously, it's a bit tricky in the sense that you can predict this to a point and bring as much science as possible to it, and then parent choice comes into it as well. We are certainly not at a business case development stage but we are doing that analysis.

This is the alleged smoking gun that the Labor Party brings to the document. There is clearly pressure on a number of our schools. There is pressure in the Adelaide High School shared zone. That is why the Liberal Party took the difficult and challenging decision to change the Adelaide High School zone a couple of years ago.

Were it not for that difficult decision, the existing pressure would have been exacerbated by an extra 600 students in that zone, which would have been impossible to predict. At the time, I recall deafening silence from Labor when I asked them whether they would have reversed the choice, because to continue that trend would have been challenging. However, we acknowledge that that trend of enrolment in the inner city suburbs and the urban infill in Prospect—

Members interjecting:

The SPEAKER: The deputy leader is called to order.

The Hon. J.A.W. GARDNER: —has continued and puts pressure on. The numbers comparing the eastern suburbs to that Prospect area are quite dramatically different and that's why the education department's focus for some time and their advice to me has been that that was the most significant priority. However, there is work going on at Prospect.

Later on Mr Persse, in response to a request from the Chairperson, Kyam Maher, identified where there is stress in relation to those schools with a capacity management plan: Adelaide Botanic, Adelaide High, Aldinga Payinthi, Aldinga, Brighton Secondary, Burnside Primary, East Marden Primary, Felixstow, Glenelg Primary, Glenunga, Henley High, Linden Park, Magill, Mark Oliphant, Mawson Lakes, North Adelaide Primary, Norwood Morialta, Riverbanks College, Roma Mitchell, Rose Park Primary, Trinity Gardens and Walkerville Primary.

He went on to say, 'I would stress that with the year 7 transition to high school in 2022, we expect that most of those capacity challenges in managing current primary schools will be alleviated.' This is the evidence that the member refers to in his question and I think it backs up everything that the government is doing.