Unions NSW – Get on board with Gonski Bus Makes Tracks Across the Country

Get on board with Gonski bus makes tracks across the country

Posted on March 31, 2017

The NSW Teachers Federation has been campaigning hard throughout March as part of a national campaign to secure the Gonski needs-based schools funding model.
Campaign buses have toured from Brisbane and Adelaide into NSW to visit regional and marginal electorates and grow the already substantial public support for Gonski funding in the lead up to the Council of Australian Governments (COAG) meeting – now postponed from April until June - and the decision on schools funding for 2018/19.

On the bus, Federation member Stephen Kelly said the turnout at local events has been strong, despite some unfavourable weather, and that community support was evident in every town they visited.

“It’s great to see so many people getting involved in community actions to support needs-based funding in schools,” he said. “Everywhere we go people are coming up to us to voice their support and get involved in the campaign.”

The buses ended their journey in Canberra last week with a delegation of parents, principals and teachers from all over Australia. There unions met with politicians to discuss the ways in which Gonski funding is making a difference for students in schools, and plans for future improvements if the full Gonski model is secured in the coming months.

With the COAG decision on education postponed, the campaign will now focus on the Federal budget in May.