Letter to the Education Minister calls for a beacon school

The following letter was sent to the State Education Minister on 09/09/2011.If you would like to tell Minister Dixon what you think about secondary education in Coburg, write to him at Minister for Education, Martin Dixon, PO Box 4367,Melbourne 3001 or email him martin.dixon@parliament.vic.gov.au or Martin.Dixon@minstaff.vic.gov.au

Dear Minister Dixon
Thank you for your time and interest in planning a High School for Coburg.

We are the parents of two very bright, and well-balanced boys. As educators we understand the importance of secondary education. We also acknowledge the value in having children participate in education in their own community. We want this for our own children. We are left in the unenviable position to look at moving out of our much-loved community to educate our children. We do not want our children to attend an Independent, Religious or Single Sex school. As residents of North Coburg our options are truly limited. Families who are in the same predicament surround us.

The numbers strongly show that a high school is necessary, however we write to you to consider not just establishing a school – but a beacon school. A legacy. Coburg already has a Senior High School that is growing rapidly in reputation, and presenting exciting work to the education community. A High School for Coburg is a real chance to explore the exciting research in the Middle Years. We are passionate as educators that a Middle Years Program be implemented in our area, in a State School.

Buildings are one aspect to a school; we know that there are buildings that could be used now on the current Senior High School Site. But what makes a school truly great is its resources, teaching staff and commitment to the latest pedagogy and educational ideals.

We beg you to give our children not only a local school, but also a school that is exceptional – and this can be achieved in Coburg. The passion from the community demonstrates the strong value this community places on quality education.

Our children deserve, and have the right to quality education.
We look forward to supporting you in this exciting endeavor,

Richard Giles and Emma Cornish-Giles

On behalf of Dexter and Gus

My family live in the “Secondary School Black Hole” of Coburg North

On 29/07/2011, a concerned parent wrote the following email to the Regional Director of the Northern Region of the DEECD.

Subject: No Open level Secondary School in Coburg
To the Regional Director,
I am writing to formally complain about the lack of school facilities in the Coburg area. There is no Open level High school in Coburg or surrounding suburbs which is accessible to all within our community.
My family live in the “Secondary High School Black Hole” of Coburg North and my children need a secondary school to commence year 7 in 2015. Currently there is little option for my children. We don’t believe we should need to move to the next suburb so we can access a decent secondary school as residents there are able to do.
I am aware of the outstanding work being undertaken by The High School for Coburg Group and commend them for their efforts. I am hoping that your Department can make a commitment as soon as possible towards a resolution to this grossly inequitable situation.
Wendy Dun

This was his response:
Deptartment of Education Northern Region Director Wayne Craig Letter to Wendy Dun 26 Augst 2011

Wendy wrote another letter, this time to the State Education Minister on 08/09/2011.

Dear Mr. Dixon,
I am writing about the lack of secondary school facilities in the Coburg area. As you are aware, there is no Open level High School in Coburg or surrounding suburbs which is accessible to all within our community.
My family live in the “Secondary School Black Hole” of Coburg North and my children need a secondary school to commence year 7 in 2015. Currently there is little option for my children. Many of the surrounding schools once available are now imposing strict enrolment limitations as they are and will continue to experience increasing demand.
Utilising existing facilities and resources such as the ex-Moreland College site off Bell Street appears to be the most obvious and cost effective option which should be considered by your Departments. A Secondary School open to Year 7 -12 built on that site would form a vital and essential part of the local community.
A quality Public Secondary School accessible to all should be viewed as an entitlement and not a privilege available to selected suburbs. We don’t believe we should need to move to the next suburb so we can access a quality secondary school as residents there are able to do.
I am aware of the outstanding work being undertaken by The High School for Coburg Group and commend them for their efforts. I am hoping that your Department can make a commitment as soon as possible towards a resolution to this grossly inequitable situation.
Wendy Dun

If you would like to tell Minister Dixon what you think about secondary education in Coburg, write to him at Minister for Education, Martin Dixon, PO Box 4367 Melbourne 3001 or email him martin.dixon@parliament.vic.gov.au or Martin.Dixon@minstaff.vic.gov.au

Mummy, why don't you just yell at them?

by Cate Hall
Here is a quote from my six year old this morning about the need for a high school for Coburg - "Why don't you just yell at them?" This follows a picture she did a year ago of Mummy and "The Man" squared up against each other wearing boxing gloves with him saying "No" and Mummy saying "Yes!"

In contrast to my daughter's take on the campaign - HSC are still optimistic it is not, and should not be, a fight but a collaboration between community and government for the good of the whole community.

HSC community meeting

The Community Meeting last Monday night (05/09/11) was wonderful! Thank you to all the passionate and engaged parents from at least seven primary school communities who attended. We had parents with children at schools in areas ranging from Moonee Ponds Central up to Pascoe Vale North and over to Brunswick East! It was great to meet you all and we discussed where the campaign is at the moment and strategies for the near future.

The High School for Coburg working group are thrilled that so many of you want to be involved, come to future meetings and pass on information to your school communities. On Wednesday 14/09/2011 HSC will be meeting with the Partnerships Division of the Office for Government School Education, DEECD. The purpose of the meeting is to clarify where we are with secondary school provision in Coburg and what the next steps are.  HSC is planning another community meeting to share what we learn at that meeting. We'll let you know where and when!

Minister Dixon acknowledges the need

HSC commend Martin Dixon for acknowledging the need for secondary education provision in Melbourne's inner suburbs, including Coburg when he spoke on the subject in Parliament on 30/08/2011.

You can read the full Hansard here, what follows is an excerpt very relevant to Coburg

The member for Prahran has requested that I come to his electorate to talk to members of his community and look at some sites.

An issue he raised with me before he was elected and one that has been well and truly in the news is the need for the further provision of government secondary college education, and Prahran is one area where there is that need. There is also a need in areas of the inner suburbs of Richmond, Coburg and Yarraville, and there is a need for primary school education in the area between North Melbourne and
Page 2885South Melbourne. We are working on a number of fronts with some community groups.

Our department is looking at the whole issue. It is no good just looking at needs in isolation; we are looking at the overall provision in the inner suburbs. There have been great population changes in a lot of the inner suburbs, and we are committed to giving parents a choice of education by offering them diversity. That choice is not between government and non-government schools; that choice is about a range of schools that can fulfil the needs of students and parents. School values, the curriculum, the size of the school and where the school is located are all important considerations that parents take into account.

We firmly believe in the need for diversity, and that is why we want to build up our government school system -- so that there are choice and diversity in the system. We are looking at a range of needs for government school education, especially in inner suburban areas. We will be making a number of announcements as we complete the various studies that we have undertaken. We are certainly listening to the member for Prahran and have allocated money for a study in his area. I look forward to being on the ground with him to look at sites and to talk to community groups about their need for government secondary education.

HSC community meeting

Come and join us next Monday night. We can fill you in on the work we have been doing and the disheartening buck-passing we are currently witnessing. We'd like to hear your concerns and ideas. Have year 7 placements gone well? Where to next for HSC?

When?

05 September · 19:30 - 22:00

Where?

Coburg Library Meeting Room

Corner Victoria and Louisa Streets Coburg

HSC have written a letter to Minister Dixon and whatever the content of the letter of response coming from Minister Dixon,it's high time that High School for Coburg met some more of our large support base. Come and join us for an informal meeting to share your ideas and concerns, to discuss the letter and what's next for HSC.