School building project deadlines close to Year 7 shift date, estimates told

Six South Australian schools are racing against the clock to be ready in time for fast-approaching student intakes.

Six government schools face a tight deadline for building to be ready for Year 7s going into high school in 2022.

All six have a December 2021 date for completion of classrooms – and a further two are scheduled to be ready by November.

“We are on target,” Education Minister John Gardner told an estimates hearing in Parliament on Monday.

However, he added that there were schools “where the anticipated completion date we would not want to go back any further”.

The schools with a December deadline are Adelaide, Glenunga, Norwood Morialta, Port Lincoln, Roma Mitchell and Unley.

Those with a November deadline are Henley and the new high school in Goolwa.

Education Minister John Gardner.

Member for Wright Blair Boyer.

Mr Gardner said there might be some minor works such as landscaping incomplete but “none that would affect the transition of kids” when the shift of Year 7 to high school happens on January 31, 2022.

Mr Gardner was also questioned by Opposition education spokesman Blair Boyer about whether schools where building programs came in under budget would need to surrender the excess to the department.

Mr Gardner said money could be reinvested to upgrade other components of a building project they were “in scope”.

He agreed to take on notice answering Mr Blair on whether The Heights at Modbury Heights had been told to return $2.2m despite an original $10m project including a double gym being reduced to a single gym.

The Estimates hearing also heard:

THERE were no incidents of drug sniffer dogs being deployed to schools despite several requests. In consultation between schools, the Education and SAPol, it was decided to defer deployments given SAPol priorities being on coronavirus measures.

NO prosecutions for truancy took place with two 2017 cases giving impetus for education family conferences to address non-attendance.

TAFE SA has “no intention” to close any campuses in the foreseeable future.

HASTE was blamed for more than 2000 students being told incorrectly by TAFE they had been accepted into courses for 2021.