David Pocock (ACT, Independent) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Today in Parliament House up in the glass gallery we have educators, parents, grandparents and more than 40 very small children who've come to ask for our support. They've asked for our support because their early education centre is going to close. It's not just one centre but four centres on campus just down the road at the ANU that face closure in January next year.

My office has been inundated with the most heartfelt letters and pleas for assistance from not just current parents but former parents and even former students. One young person wrote to me saying that they attended Heritage Early Childhood Centre from the baby room with Meg until finishing preschool. They are now a university student and an aspiring clinical neuropsychologist. A parent said, 'My daughter should not be ripped away from her community without consultation or a plan to maintain continuity of care.' The praise for these centres and the community's cries for them to be allowed to remain are echoed in letter after letter. These community led early education centres are among the best not only in Canberra but in Australia and have even received global recognition. Some have been a part of our community for more than half a century. One educator has been there for 51 years. I thank and acknowledge Senator Gallagher and the member for Canberra, Alicia Payne, for their strong support and advocacy for these families and educators.

I recognise some of the challenges the ANU has identified with the upkeep of these centres in heritage buildings, but these are challenges that they need to work with the community to overcome. Making four much-loved centres bid for just two licences is not an answer. Transferring those children from their cherished buildings and grounds to two purpose-built facilities—which are, in fact, nothing more than demountables in car parks—is also unacceptable. ANU is our national university. It occupies a special place, and with this, comes greater responsibility, and I urge them to please do better.