Julie Collins (Franklin, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I rise this evening to update the House on Bridgewater High School, which is located in my seat of Franklin. Members may recall that I reported to the House on the devastating arson attack back in October last year. I have been an ardent supporter of the re-establishment of a high school on its original site. I have been working closely with the local community since the devastating fire that razed the high school to the ground. I know the grief that the school community and the wider community have endured over the past 11 months since that fire.

It was with pleasure that I welcomed Premier David Bartlett’s announcement last Friday accepting the Bridgewater and Southern Midlands Education Renewal Taskforce’s recommendation to build a new facility on the original Bridgewater High site, one that will include grades 9 to 12 as well as an adult learning provision. The community, and in particular the Keep Bridgewater High on its Original Site steering committee, should be congratulated, especially Ronda Cockshutt, for all their hard work to ensure a diverse range of educational opportunities continue to be available for the secondary students of the Bridgewater and wider Southern Midlands community.

This new school will be a state-of-the-art education facility, with the state government setting aside up to $40 million for the vital infrastructure. I am aware that there is some community disquiet around the permanent location of the Bridgewater and Green Point primary schools; however, I am sure Premier Bartlett will continue to work collaboratively and closely with the community on all stages of this most important project for the people of Bridgewater. I look forward to the high school being built very soon.