As the deadline for the merger of Centralian Middle School and Centralian Senior College fast approaches, staff at the two schools hold significant concerns over the lack of funding committed to infrastructure upgrades for the new Alice Springs College. At a recent combined meeting of union members from both CMS and CSC, those present unanimously endorsed a call for “a drastic increase in funding and details of plans for the infrastructure upgrades required to meet the complex and varying needs of our student cohort, today and well into the future”.
The Northern Territory Government has currently committed just $500,000 to infrastructure upgrades for Alice Springs College. This falls woefully short of the investment needed to build the school environment that the students of Alice Springs College deserve. As the only public high school in Central Australia, this school must be equipped to offer a full range of curriculum opportunities for a wide range of educational needs. Infrastructure limitations at the new comprehensive high school will become limitations on the academic outcomes and career pathways for its students, while limiting the ability of staff to ensure their wellbeing.
In the next two years, hundreds of additional students will be crowded onto the CMS campus, losing access to the facilities at CSC while it undergoes redevelopment as a trade training hub. The buildings at CMS are over 50 years old and many areas are inaccessible to students and staff with disabilities. The recently announced acquisition and development of the school oval will reduce space for future growth. Some of the infrastructure concerns raised by members include:
• A school hall and library that are too small to accommodate additional students
• Computer labs, a home economics kitchen and science lab that cannot accommodate a full class of 27 students
• Ageing air conditioning that struggles to cool effectively in summer
• A lift that often breaks down, and one upper floor with no lift access at all
• Small and dark classrooms created by walling off open-plan flexible learning spaces
• A lack of breakout spaces for small-group learning and additional support
• A noisy and congested breezeway that provides the only access between buildings
• Insufficient parking for additional staff.
The majority of current CMS and CSC students are Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander, and over 40% come from non-English backgrounds. These students deserve equitable access to quality school infrastructure. There are over 1,700 students enrolled in public primary schools in Alice Springs, but fewer than 700 in the two public high schools. ACARA’s My School data shows alarming levels of socio-economic segregation between the town’s public and private secondary schools. The new Alice Springs College should be a school of choice for all families in the region. This will not happen without significant investment in infrastructure.
In 2024, the Commonwealth and Territory Governments signed the Better and Fairer Schools Agreement, a landmark deal to fully fund all public schools in the NT. This has brought much-needed additional needs-based funding into Territory schools, particularly in Central Australia. However, recurrent funding for students can only accomplish so much when the basic infrastructure that should underpin a quality education is severely lacking. The AEU NT calls on the NT Government to urgently develop a plan to upgrade Alice Springs College that ensures it will be equipped to deliver an equitable and excellent education to every student who walks through its doors for many years to come.
“In a climate in which millions have been spent on truancy officers and hundreds of millions to upgrade prisons and build work camps, why has the same financial commitment not been given to invest in the young people of Alice Springs and build them the school they can be proud of and deserve? Alice Springs College needs to be a school that supports them to reach their fullest potential as the future leaders of this town.” (Union representatives at the two schools. Note: We have chosen not to identify members at the two schools by name to avoid the risk of breaches of the NTPS Code of Conduct.)
“The new Alice Springs College provides a once in a generation chance to build a genuine school of choice for all families in Alice and end the social segregation that is at the root of so many of the town’s problems. The funding allocated so far doesn’t even scratch the surface of what is required to do this”. (AEU NT Branch President, Brian Gray)
Article in the NT News: Alice Springs College merger: Union slams ‘woefully short’ funding | NT News
Interview with Brian Gray on ABC Alice Springs Breakfast: