Julian Simmonds (Ryan, Liberal National Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

It's a great pleasure to inform the House about one of our great local institutions in the Ryan electorate, the Glenleighden School. On 30 August, just a little while ago, it was a pleasure to celebrate with staff, past students, local supporters and the community to celebrate the 40th anniversary of the Glenleighden School. This is a local school that is unique in the best sense of the word and is one that I am very proud to have been a supporter of for almost 10 years. For 40 years, the Glenleighden School has been a leader in enabling better outcomes for children with speech, language and communication needs. One in 14 children are affected by developmental language disorder in Australian classrooms. It's often called a hidden disability because there may be no outward signs of disability and no obvious physical indicators until a child has problems communicating in everyday life.

This is a unique school. It's the only one of its kind in Australia and, in fact, the only one of its kind in the Southern Hemisphere. Such is its popularity and the good work that it does that families move from all over the country—Darwin, Perth, Sydney and Townsville—to the western suburbs, to the Ryan electorate, in order to be part of their curriculum. They've modified the Australian curriculum to ensure it is individualised to meet the needs of the unique young people they support, each having a developmental language disorder or a language disorder. The school is the largest employer of language-disorder-specific teachers, school assistance, speech language pathologists and occupational therapists. Among their team, along with the school administration staff, is a physiotherapist, a psychologist, a music therapist, a school counsellor and a chaplain.

What's really unique about this school is its inception. It was built by the local community 40 years ago, in 1979, by members of the local Rotary Club. It still enjoys significant community support. That was on show on 30 August during the 40th anniversary gala dinner. Community members from right across Ryan and people who donate their time and their money to support the school came together to celebrate the achievements of past and present students. In my journey over 10 years with the school I have seen some young people make remarkable transitions. They were shy, reserved and hesitant to communicate because of their disorder, but have come out of their shells.

One student who spoke at the event is in the process of doing an apprenticeship. He is becoming more independent from his family. You hear these kinds of stories more and more. They support over 102 students every year. Every one brings a tear to your eye. They are very brave students and very brave parents. I congratulate Jan Morey and the whole team at Glenleighden School on 40 excellent years. I look forward to supporting them in the future.

Trent Zimmerman (North Sydney, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

In accordance with standing order 193, the time for members constituency statements has expired.