Mike Symon (Deakin, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Hansard source

Because they are much better at performing for a crowd like that than I am, especially the junior class who played music for us—they did a great job, dressed up in very colourful hats and other bits and pieces of clothing—and the senior class, who did a dance routine for the crowd as well. It was really appreciated. I have not seen anything quite like that at a school before, especially from students who have disabilities that make doing that sort of thing very hard. But they particularly like that sort of group activity. I feel most privileged to have witnessed that.

I have opened more than 20 BER projects, and I think this is probably the one that sticks out in my mind as the most individual and the most suited to the school—in particular, by getting rid of old portable classrooms that were suited to a general school and by having purpose-built classrooms put in place for the needs of the school's kids.

Following the ceremony, we had a morning tea where we got to sit down and talk to staff, parents and school council members. We also had a bit of a chat about the upcoming discussions on the NDIS. The Productivity Commission report had not been released at the time; it obviously now has been, and I will be going back there to continue those discussions.

The Croydon Special Developmental School also received $75,000 under the National School Pride Program for a bike path, back in 2009, and that is used daily to get the kids out and mobile on bikes, something they cannot do on the street. I think Croydon SDS is a great example of what the federal government has been able to do to assist great state schools to be even better and to provide better facilities for staff, students and parents of the school community.

Debate interrupted.

House adjourned at 17:00

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