❓ A parliamentary question addresses concerns about potential school closures in the Wheatbelt region, particularly regarding minimum enrolment numbers and the impact on Aboriginal communities. The Minister's response provides general principles rather than specific figures.
AnsweredQoN 878Legislative Council
QuestionView source ↗
EDUCATION —
WHEATBELT SCHOOLS
878. Hon DARREN WEST to the
Minister for Education:
(1) What is the lowest enrolment for a wheatbelt school to
remain operational?
(2) What factors will trigger the
closure of a wheatbelt school?
(3) Can the
minister confirm that wheatbelt schools with enrolments lower than 24 will be
closed; and, if not, why not?
(4) Do the
answers to (1)–(3) apply to schools in Aboriginal communities; and, if
not, in what respects do they differ?
(5) What number
of primary school–aged children does a town or community need for the
department to open a school and appoint a full-time teacher?
WHEATBELT SCHOOLS
878. Hon DARREN WEST to the
Minister for Education:
(1) What is the lowest enrolment for a wheatbelt school to
remain operational?
(2) What factors will trigger the
closure of a wheatbelt school?
(3) Can the
minister confirm that wheatbelt schools with enrolments lower than 24 will be
closed; and, if not, why not?
(4) Do the
answers to (1)–(3) apply to schools in Aboriginal communities; and, if
not, in what respects do they differ?
(5) What number
of primary school–aged children does a town or community need for the
department to open a school and appoint a full-time teacher?
AnswerView source ↗
I thank the
honourable member for some notice of the question.
(1)–(2) Any future decisions to
change schooling provision in any region will be determined on a case-by-case
basis, taking into account the number of enrolments, the educational needs of
the students and the specific circumstances of each school and community.
(3) No. Decisions to
close schools are made on a case-by-case basis.
(4) Yes.
(5) There is no specific number. A number of
factors are taken into consideration, including student enrolments, community
sustainability, isolation and infrastructure and community needs.
honourable member for some notice of the question.
(1)–(2) Any future decisions to
change schooling provision in any region will be determined on a case-by-case
basis, taking into account the number of enrolments, the educational needs of
the students and the specific circumstances of each school and community.
(3) No. Decisions to
close schools are made on a case-by-case basis.
(4) Yes.
(5) There is no specific number. A number of
factors are taken into consideration, including student enrolments, community
sustainability, isolation and infrastructure and community needs.
Explore WA Government Data
Search the full archive in the free dashboard, or query programmatically via API.
Explore more
Government Gazette
Appointments, regulatory notices, planning changes.
Hansard
Debates, questions, speeches and sentiment.
Tabled Papers
Reports and documents tabled in Parliament.
Committees
Committee profiles and recent reports.
Regulations
Subsidiary legislation with filters and summaries.
Bills
Proposed laws and parliamentary progress.
Acts
Current WA legislation and summaries.
Explanatory Memoranda
Bills with EMs (text/PDF) available.
Members
MP profiles, party breakdown and rankings.
Pollie Rankings
Data-driven rankings across 19 categories.
Amendment Chains
Track how schemes and regulations evolve over time.