School sites silent as cash dries up

By Kath Gannaway
BUILDING on Prime Minister Kevin Rudd’s education revolution has come to a grinding halt in the Yarra Valley.
Contractors downed tools last month after it was discovered the plans for several schools had blown the budget.
Earlier this year Coldstream Primary School was told it was to receive $850,000 under the Federal Government’s Primary Schools for the 21st Century initiative.
The cash was to be used to build three new classrooms and a common area.
But after having two portable classrooms demolished to make way for the new building, construction was suspended until further notice.
Principal Peter Donaldson said when the template they had been allocated went to tender it was discovered it could not be built for $850,000 and the project went back to the drawing board.
“What we have now is a fence around a hole and people trying to find a template to fit the budget,” said Mr Donaldson who believes the likelihood is a downgrade to two classrooms and a common area.
He told the Mail the whole process had been “a sorry saga” which had been badly handled from the outset.
“There are two components of the stimulus money, Primary Schools of the 21st Century funding and the National Schools Pride component which is $75,000 and can be spent on anything the school needs,” he said.
“What we allocate the Schools Pride money to is dependent on knowing what form this other building was going to take,” he said.
He said despite all the hold-ups and the fact that contractors were not available until February there was still pressure on the school to have the money spent by 20 December – the initial aim of the stimulus money to provide a quick design and quick spend to stimulate the economy.
“As a middle band school our templates were last to appear – delayed because we were in the middle band that no-one was particularly interested in, so we were behind the eight-ball from the start, having to argue about the funding model and not getting the templates in good time,” he said.
A Federal Government spokeswoman said the money was provided to the relevant education authority which was responsible for building works.
The Mail contacted the Education Department but was unable to get a response before going to print.