Shellharbour councillors want to know when funding will be provided for Flinders High School. Photo: Shellharbour City Council.
Shellharbour City Council has unanimously backed a push for answers on State Government funding to finally deliver the long-promised Flinders High School, after more than a decade of community frustration over delays.
Councillor Kane Murphy brought the motion to Tuesday night’s (26 August) council meeting, calling for a letter to be sent to Shellharbour MP Anna Watson asking why funds for the school were excluded from the State Budget and when the project would be fully funded.
Cr Murphy expressed concern and disappointment over the continued lack of funding for the long-awaited high school, urging Ms Watson to advocate to deliver the funding necessary to get the school “off the drawing board and into construction”.
“This is not a new issue. Our community has been raising its voice on this matter for over a decade,” he said.
“Parents, educators and local leaders have consistently advocated for a public high school in Flinders, a fast growing area that’s home to thousands of young families.
“Yet year after year, their calls have been met with silence or vague promises, and once again, this year’s State Budget contains no allocation, no timeline, no commitment for this essential piece of infrastructure.”
He said the proposed high school could be the first new public high school built in the Illawarra in more than three decades and would serve families of Flinders, Dunmore and Shell Cove.
“We’re not asking for luxuries, we’re asking for a school,” Cr Murphy said.
“The absence of a high school in Flinders forces students to travel long distances, often on overcrowded public transport, to access their right to an education.”
He said it placed unnecessary burden on families, separated children from friend networks and put increased pressure on nearby schools that were at, or already nearing, capacity.
“This is a community that has done its part,” he said.
“It’s grown, it’s built homes, it’s supported local business and has filled our primary schools with eager young learners.
“Now it’s time for the State Government to meet its responsibility, to honour the promise of equal access to education.”
Councillor Kellie Marsh said the school had been proposed for many years and recalled it being included on planning documents more than 20 years ago.
Cr Marsh also pointed to a 2021 parliamentary question in which the Member for Shellharbour raised concerns about overcrowding at Warilla High School, urged the delivery of the Flinders school and asked whether land had been identified for its construction.
She said the response indicated the department’s long-term projections were based on dwelling and population forecasts, as well as continual monitoring of enrolments across the region.
“We still know Warilla High School is at capacity,” she said, noting that since 2021 more homes had been built in Shell Cove and larger blocks in Shellharbour Village and Barrack Point turned into duplex and villa sites.
“Some families have told me they’ve actually put their children into private education for high school, which they simply can’t afford, but it’s just been a necessity. They’ve had to do something.
“I think that it’s a right for all of our children to have access to a local high school.”
She said it was important council assisted Ms Watson and for her to advocate with the State Government to build the high school, because “the longer it goes on, the harder it’s going to be for our children”.
As a former Warrila High teacher, Cr Rob Petreski said the school was “quite full”.
“I think we all would like to see the Flinders High School up, but I think we need to give credit where credit is due,” Cr Petreski said.
“The current State Government has only been in for two years, and I’ve already seen more announcements and more funding come through in the last two years than I have for a long time.
“They’ve already announced the Calderwood school and they’ve announced the planning for the Flinders High School, so it is certainly on the Department of Education’s radar.”
Cr Lou Stefanovski supported writing the letter, but also stressed the importance of being realistic with budgets.
Cr Mitch Ellis said the Shellharbour LGA already had a lot of primary schools, but had a shortage of high schools and it needed to be done right.
The motion was unanimously passed.
