$300k in stimulus funding went to private schools that shut

THE federal government gave almost $300,000 in BER funding to private schools that were forced to close.

Mick Daley

THE federal government gave almost $300,000 worth of BER funding to private schools that rented their buildings, but went broke and were forced to close.

The Victorian Department of Education is now trying to recover $285,326 of schools building stimulus program money from two private schools that were operated in the state by Independent Colleges Australia.

The colleges in Melton and Casey, connected to the bankrupt ABC Learning childcare group, went into voluntary administration last November after it could not pay its landlord.

The landlord has since sold the Casey site to a nearby Christian school and the Melton site to another company, which is working with parents to reopen the Melton school in July under another name.

The schools were originally entitled to almost $3 million of school building program funding, but the remaining unspent money is being kept by the Victorian Independent Schools Block Grant Authority to return to the commonwealth. But questions have arisen over how the federal government will get the $285,326 back from ICA Colleges, since it is unclear whether the funding was spent upgrading facilities owned by the landlord and whether the project got off the ground.

A spokesman for Skills Minister Chris Evans said the recovery action was a longstanding practice of governments, which meant taxpayers got a share of any profit made by a landlord who sold a school that had received taxpayer-funded capital works.

Australian Education Union president Angelo Gavrielatos said the collapse of the schools highlighted the risks and costs associated with funding private schools.

Federal MP Brendan O'Connor, who is now Home Affairs Minister, warned four years ago that children should not be the guinea pigs for Independent Colleges Australia, which had never run a school.

Staff and parents of Melton College, in Caroline Springs 30km northwest of Melbourne, were shocked when the company that owned the school went into administration last November.

After a six-month battle to find an investor and get government approvals, Melton is now preparing to reopen to students next term as Southern Cross Grammar.

Parent Mick Daly remembers seeing plans in the school foyer for new classrooms to be constructed under the Building the Education Revolution program.

Mr Daly, who is now chairman of the Southern Cross Grammar board, thinks that's as far as it went, but is hopeful of getting the unspent BER funding. "We'll take any gift from anyone that's willing to donate to the school so we can increase our infrastructure."