$5.2m Federal Government funding to save troubled Malek Fahd Islamic School for now

Australia’s largest Islamic School has been saved for another term after Federal Government officials agreed to hand over more than $5 million in an 11th hour funding move.

Malek Fahd Islamic School has been saved for another term.

AUSTRALIA’S largest Islamic School has been saved for another term after Federal Government officials agreed to hand over more than $5 million in an 11th hour funding move.

Malek Fahd Islamic School, in Sydney’s south west, lost $19 million in taxpayer funding in April after an audit found its board, then run by the Australian Federation of Islamic Councils, was not spending all of the money on educating its 2400 students.

A new interim board won a reprieve later that month when the Administrative Appeals Tribunal ruled funding be restored until an appeal was decided. However the Federal Government continued to withhold funds.

On Tuesday last week, Federal Court judge Steven Rares ordered Federal Education Minister Simon Birmingham urgently pay the school $5.2 million after lawyers said it risked trading while insolvent from week’s end.

Students protesting at Malek Fahd Islamic School in February of its governance.

Education Department and Training officials visited the school on Thursday and interim board chairwoman Miriam Silva confirmed on Friday she had been told the payment would be made.

“As always we are committed to satisfying all requirements under the (Australian Education Act) to ensure that our school is compliant,” she said in a letter to parents.

An Education Department and Training spokesman confirmed the school would be paid what it was “entitled” to for the April quarter.

The school’s lawyer Rick Mitry said on Monday the K-12 campus would now remain open for at least another term.

“Hopefully by the end of the term, and even before, the requirements that the (department) are suggesting that they don’t comply with ... will be complied with to the satisfaction of the department officials,” he said.

Interim board chairwoman Miriam Silva said the school was committed to satisfying the Education Department’s rules.

But the Education and Training spokesman said the decision didn’t mean further funding was guaranteed and “the department will continue to monitor Malek Fahd Islamic School Limited’s compliance with its obligations under the Australian Education Act 2013”.

Two more payments due this year, reportedly worth $10.4 million, are still in doubt if the department decides the school is still not compliant with financial and governance rules.

The school’s former board, made up of AFIC members, was thrown out in March and an interim board brought in to address these issues.

As part of the Federal Court order, Malek Fahd must also launch proceedings to recover millions possibly owed by AFIC.

Mr Mitry said he has spoken to several parents, who said their priority now was getting Year 12 students through their HSCs and alleviating the stress caused to students by the uncertainty.