Federal Member for Ballarat, Catherine King, this afternoon welcomed the historic agreement between the National Catholic Education Commission (NCEC) and the Australian Government on the Better Schools Plan.
“This is fantastic for Catholic Schools and will see around $1.6 billion in additional funding flow through to Catholic schools across Australia, including in those right here in our region,” Ms King said.
“I have the utmost respect for the integrity and autonomy of our Catholic education system, which for over 150 years has served some of the most disadvantaged communities.
“It is an educational system with a proven track record – from educating some of our best and brightest, to taking on some of the most disadvantaged students.
“I know that teachers and principals of our local Catholic schools want to give every student in every school in our region the opportunity to reach their full potential and compete with the rest of the nation and the world.”
Ms King said the Better Schools Plan will mean more individual attention for students who need it most and for those kids doing well, it will provide more opportunities to excel.
“Our Plan for Better Schools is not just an investment in schools, this is a down payment on the long-term strength of the Australian economy, and will underwrite higher productively for decades to come,” Ms King said.
“The Australian Government has set an ambitious target for Australia to be in the top five in the world in reading, maths and science by 2025 and this can only be achieved by working together with Catholic schools.