My question is to the Minister for Education.
St Kilda Primary School has been a thriving school for 150 years. However, it is in drastic need of an indoor community hub for school and community use.
When the previous sports hall was demolished there was an understanding that there would be a replacement built. The state government has not allocated funds to build it.
This means that the school currently has nowhere for indoor PE, assemblies, graduations, performances or extracurricular activities.
Not only that, but with the majority of students living in apartments and townhouses there is a really limited amount of open space and a real need for indoor sports and basketball and netball courts.
So I ask the Minister for Education: when will St Kilda Primary get funded for their indoor community hub?
Response from the Minister for Education:
The Victorian Government’s ongoing responsibility is to balance and prioritise the needs of over 1,580 Victorian government schools all with varying requirements.
The government has allocated $16.9 billion over the past 10 years to build, upgrade and maintain school infrastructure across Victoria.
St Kilda Primary School’s upgrade and modernisation project was allocated $5.46 million in the 2018–19 State Budget. A further $503,400 was allocated in the 2019–20 State Budget and a further $4,530,600 in 2020.
This project delivered a large multi-storey education building, demolished an old classroom block on the Chapel Street side of the school, and replaced it with new classrooms.
The project was completed in the second quarter of 2022. Additional landscaping and car park works were completed in the second quarter of 2024 using left over funding from the school’s Building Works project.
In 2018, $200,000 was allocated to a project in the fourth round of the Inclusive Schools Fund to build an inclusive indoor learning space and outdoor sensory play area.
These works were completed in 2019 and I trust that students are enjoying these facilities.
Regarding the need for a large indoor space at the school, I am advised that a future stage of the school’s masterplan includes a full-sized gymnasium with associated storage and amenities.
When allocating funding for school upgrades and subsequent stages of existing projects, the government uses all available information, including condition assessments, enrolment projections, and pre-existing project plans.
I can assure you the needs of all schools, including St Kilda Primary School will continue to be considered when determining future priorities for the capital works program. We will continue to use all available data when allocating funding in future State Budgets.
