The majority of funding for the ACT's new literacy and numeracy initiatives is coming from redirected resources within the Education Directorate.
Budget documents show only $1.7 million for the Strong Foundations policy is new funding, with the majority of the promised $24.9 million spend over four years coming from existing sections of the directorate.
It includes redirecting the teaching and learning team to support professional learning for teachers and focusing the student-centred improvement framework to the literacy and numeracy reforms.
A pilot program for free meals in five public schools is expected to begin in Term 3. This was a promise Labor took to the election in 2020 but no money was spent on the program in 2023-24 with funding moved to the following financial year.
The new enterprise agreements for teachers and other ACT public service staff have increased spending by $22.5 million in the 2024-25 budget compared to what was estimated in 2023-24. The Directorate deferred $10.886 million in spending to future years.
New spending on school infrastructure includes refurbishing the Lyneham High School gym at a cost of $5.7 million. The public school roof replacement program will continue with a further $7.7 million over four years.
The Majura Primary School modernisation project has received an extra $12.6 million in funding to meet higher construction costs, bringing the total expected cost to about $52 million.
The Watson school caters for 700 students and the expansion project will add capacity for an extra 300 students as well as create a new gymnasium, hard courts, green spaces and specialist learning spaces.
The tender process will begin soon with the project slated to be finished by December 2026.
The Education Directorate will continue its program of building new and expanded schools. Modernisation works at the 101-year-old Telopea Park High School are expected to be complete by December 2026.
Design work will continue for North Ainslie Primary School but no funding has been included to build an expansion at the inner north school.
The new Taylor High School is expected to be complete in December 2024 and the Whitlam Primary School is expected to be finished by December 2025.
The Strathnairn Primary School will also be delivered by December 2025, with budget papers showing the government spent $17.2 million on acquiring the land for this school.
A long-awaited expansion of Garran Primary School to bring the capacity to 975 students from preschool to year six is expected to be finished by June 2026.
A second Gungahlin College is expected to be ready by December 2027 and the Narrabundah College expansion should be completed by June 2026.
