Almost 40 per cent of Moorabool students are leaving school before completing VCE, according to Moorabool mayor Paul Tatchell, revealing the need for a skill-based or agricultural school.
“Kids leaving before year 10 can’t drive and they tend to fall out of the loop while waiting to enter the workforce,” he said.
“They lose their work ethic, and that’s not right. Everyone has something to offer.”
The National Party candidate for the new state seat of Buninyong, Sonia Smith, is backing calls for a TAFE or technical school in Ballan, saying the growing community has been waiting more than 40 years.
“The school will be well adapted to the region’s needs, so it’ll have a strong base in agriculture and other practical skills. It won’t just be another academic school,” Ms Smith said.
She said 2020 was a realistic timeframe for the project, as council projections show Ballan’s current population of 2889 will reach 3164 by 2019 and 3508 by 2027.
“Education and skills are a driver of growth, not something you tack on after growth has happened,” she said. “We need to look after our youth population by providing skill-based learning, apprenticeships and job opportunities.”
As reported by the Weekly, TAFE teacher and Ballan mother Gail Fiander has formed an action group to push for a secondary school for Ballan.
“Judging by the current kinder enrolments, by 2021 there’ll be more than 100 kids ready to start year 7 in Ballan alone,’’ she said. ‘‘That’s a year level.”
The Education Department has complex criteria that an area must meet for a new school. A spokeswoman said the usual long-term enrolment target was 1100 students.
“Usually this would require a potential opening enrolment of at least 300 and an expected growth rate of 150 a year to reach long-term enrolment of 1100.”
