As the Federal election looms, ICPA (Aust) is reaffirming its call to all parties to introduce a Rural Hardship Education Fund (RHEF), which received bipartisan support in the Senate in October 2019 when put by Senator Pauline Hanson.
A Rural Hardship Education Fund is required to address the grave concerns of the many families in rural and remote areas who struggle to afford to educate their children in times of rural hardship, be that an adverse weather event (fire, flood or drought), industry impact or a personal crisis. A RHEF will ensure their children’s education continues uninterrupted during these times and should be available to families supporting students who are boarding away from home, attending a local rural school/kindergarten, or studying via distance education due to geographic isolation. A RHEF would ensure that for those families in desperate need, assistance would be available immediately following such an event.
ICPA (Aust) Federal President Alana Moller said “For families in rural and remote Australia it is necessary to educate their children in unique educational contexts such as distance education, boarding schools, or small rural schools and as a result, when these families face a hardship, their children’s education is at risk of being negatively impacted due to the distinct nature of their situations. ICPA calls for a Rural Hardship Education Fund to be implemented as a matter of urgency to eliminate this risk.”
Read ICPA (Aust)’s complete Federal Election requests at Federal Election Media Release | ICPA
Further information and comments please contact:
Alana Moller, Federal President
Suzanne Wilson, Federal Publicity Officer
