By Cam Lucadou-Wells
Dandenong North Primary School has been allocated a $6 million upgrade in the recently announced State Budget 2021-’22.
The works include a new competition-grade gymnasium and a modernized Block E.
It is one of 52 Victorian schools upgraded in the budget.
Dandenong MP Gabrielle Williams said she was “proud” that the school was getting the upgrade it had been calling for.
“Every child deserves a great classroom.”
The State Government also announced $900,000 towards the City of Greater Dandenong’s Springvale Boulevard project.
The project aims to attract new visitors by modernising and beautifying the Springvale Road precinct.
It would “make this important local shopping strip safer, more accessible and more vibrant,” Keysborough MP Martin Pakula said.
Generally, the Government’s “caring” budget was headlined by a $3.8 billion boost to mental health services, including separate streams for infants/children and for young people.
According to the government, the Budget is a job creator. It will “support” an average of 38,000 jobs a year for the next four years.
It claims its school building program “supports” 3500 jobs, as well as creating 3000 mental-health workers and 6000 early-child educational roles.
The State Opposition says the $5.8 billion of new taxes and tax increases will “destroy” jobs.
“Victorians are paying the highest taxes in the country, and Dandenong cannot afford massive new tax increases which will destroy local jobs,” South Eastern Metropolitan Liberal MP Gordon Rich-Phillips said.
Dandenong’s manufacturing sector would be hard hit by steep rises in land tax and new payroll taxes, he said.
They will deter businesses from employing local people in Dandenong, which has higher than the state average unemployment rate.
“The Andrews Labor Government has no plan for Victoria’s economic recovery and is still playing catch-up from its covid failures.”
Some Budget highlights include the roll-out of free public IVF and the launch of funded three-year-old kindergarten in 2022.
In the latter case, each pupil will have access to at least five hours a week of funded kinder, saving families an average of $1150.
By 2029, 15 hours of funded three-year-old kindergarten will be offered, the Government stated.
The network of specialist family violence courts will expand to Dandenong.
The court is designed to be less daunting for family violence victim-survivors with separate entrances and exits, safe waiting areas and dedicated space for children.
Dandenong’s Youth Prevention and Recovery Care (YPARC) will also be upgraded.
