Newland Electorate

Ms SAVVAS (Newland) (15:19): Unlike some, I like to use grievance time to talk about some really positive, exciting announcements for my community, and I think today is a really good opportunity to talk about our incredible investment at Fairview Park Primary School. It has been almost 50 years now since some transportable buildings were put down on Hamilton Road there at Fairview Park to service the needs of a growing community in Tea Tree Gully, and for 49 years there has been a beautiful school community housed in those buildings.

Despite that, and despite the incredible work of teachers, the incredible work of staff at that school and a really, really beautiful school community, those buildings have needed some work and they have been crying out for investment from a government that will listen and build a purpose-built school at the site for the needs of students in our community, for not just for this generation but of course generations to come.

Last week I was incredibly pleased after advocating for some years for upgrades at Fairview Park Primary School to announce, alongside the Minister for Education and the incredible principal, Becky Jones, that the government will be making a $10 million investment in that school so that there will be purpose-built buildings at the site for the first time. We know that the only real investment that has been there at the site in that 49-year period was, of course, the new library as a result of the Building Education Revolution funding a few years back now.

Aside from that, the majority of the school has been these transportable DMAC-style buildings and has been needing actual school buildings to service the community for generations to come. It is such a pleasure to have been on that journey with the school, to have met with the governing council, to have continually met with parents and to have advocated to the minister's office, to the government, for much-needed investment at a beautiful school set there in the foothills right across from the Tea Tree Gully golf course. What a beautiful setting it is for a new school in Fairview Park.

I would also like to take a moment to acknowledge a really special milestone for Bene Aged Care. Many of you would be familiar with Bene as they are aged care facilities run by the Italian Benevolent Foundation, as they are known, in multiple parts of the state. But, of course, the original Bene site was the Italian Village at St Agnes which is, of course, still there on Mumford Avenue in my electorate. For 50 years, the Bene group of aged care homes has been servicing our community and providing culturally appropriate, linguistically appropriate, aged care services for Italian residents here in South Australia.

I have a bit of story with Bene myself. When I was in year 10, it was actually where I went and did work experience at the Italian Village in St Agnes. I think it was actually a place like that that gave me a real love for community service, and showed me once and for all that I really wanted to continue working with people. Of course, then when I was elected to the council and then of course elected to state parliament, I continued my relationship with the incredible people at Bene, and it has been a real privilege to attend a number of events at the site over the last few years.

On a personal note, however, the real privilege has been watching a loved one go into Bene at St Agnes over the last few months and getting to see how it works from the other side of the coin, that other perspective as you watch someone you love going into aged care. I would really like to put on the record my personal and sincere thanks to Bene for the care that they are giving a loved one for me, but also for loved ones across the state, and they have been doing so for 50 years.

It was really lovely to celebrate that incredible work that they have done at Government House last week alongside a number of colleagues and, of course, leaders in the Italian community who have been fundamental in the service that Bene has provided across our community here in South Australia. I do look forward to continuing to celebrate their incredible work and hopefully watching them continue to progress and provide that incredibly important service for Italian residents, and, like my loved one, non-Italian residents who just really love Italian food, here in South Australia for many years to come.