School programs spared the axe as PM eyes political legacy

JULIA Gillard has quarantined literacy and numeracy programs in Tuesday's budget.

JULIA Gillard has quarantined literacy and numeracy programs in Tuesday's budget, sparing her signature education policies from the axe while other high-priority spending areas - even defence - face major cuts.

The Weekend Australian understands the Prime Minister has declared sacrosanct about $243 million of previously allocated funding under Canberra's literacy and numeracy partnership with the states, insisting that what is being touted as the toughest budget in years must not undermine her education agenda.

Ms Gillard has declared she wants education to be at the centre of her political legacy, delivering major reforms and lifting spending across the sector, both as Prime Minister and, previously, as education minister.

While defence faces cuts of at least $4 billion and cuts are expected across major spending areas including welfare, Ms Gillard has refused to allow the government's push to return the budget to surplus to imperil her Smarter Schools National Partnership for Literacy and Numeracy, which will expire at the end of June next year.

Under the partnership, the government has pumped extra resources into schools to develop programs to help boost reading, writing and maths through measures such as hiring literacy and numeracy coaches, designing tailored learning plans for battling students and helping students struggling with core skills.

The government has reported that since the national partnership began in 2008, significant gains have been made where the extra resources have been targeted, and with the $540m funding expiring this year, unions had feared the $243m allocated for its continuation in the forward estimates would be reduced or scrapped.

However, School Education Minister Peter Garrett yesterday confirmed that Tuesday's announcement would allow the partnership to continue for 18 months, after which the government expected to deliver a new school funding formula informed by its Gonski review into education, which recommended major increases in funding as well as a needs-based system with funding loadings for disadvantaged students, such as those with disabilities. "Schools taking part in the initiative have reported improved student results," he said.

"We know how important the Gillard government's investment in literacy and numeracy has been in boosting student achievement, and we want to ensure that concerted action on literacy and numeracy continues."

Australian Education Union president Angelo Gavrielatos welcomed the news yesterday, but said his union also wanted the government to heed Gonski's call for greater fairness in school funding.