Constituency statement- West Greenwood Primary, Nollamara Lions, Children of Courage Awards, Stirling Adriatic Centre

20 March 2024

Dr ALY (Cowan—Minister for Early Childhood Education and Minister for Youth) (09:49): There's a lot that's been happening in the wonderful electorate of Cowan, and I rise to just give an update on a few of those things that are happening.

First of all, last week I visited West Greenwood Primary School, where they've just completed the capital works for their new undercover area. I was quite excited to check it out because, when Labor made the commitment to deliver this project at the last election, I knew just how much this would mean to the students at West Greenwood primary. The undercover has not seen any upgrades for—get this—the last 40 years, so you can just imagine how excited the students and the school community were to have their favourite play area renovated, with fresh new carpets and equipment. I want all students to have access to quality facilities to learn and to play, and West Greenwood Primary School is just one of the 22 commitments that Labor made to public schools in Cowan at the last election. I also take this moment to acknowledge the Minister for Education, Jason Clare, and the WA Minister for Education, Tony Buti, who have delivered full funding for all WA public schools.

I also visited the Lions Club of Noranda for the Lions Children of Courage Awards, and what a heartening event that was. It was so inspiring because it was an event that was filled with incredible stories of bravery and resilience. The awards are a testimony to the extraordinary bravery shown by children with complex needs every single day—not just them but their siblings and their carers as well. As parents, we all want our children to be courageous, brave and strong, but these children demonstrate such qualities every single day of their lives. It was really amazing to see them acknowledged for the bravery that they and their siblings and carers show. Congratulations to the 30 recipients of the awards. Their strength and resilience inspire us all.

Lastly, I visited the Stirling Adriatic Centre, a local bowls club in my electorate that has been there forever. I went to check out their new solar panels, but when I got there they wanted to take me to see something else that they were very excited about. Boy, let me tell you: when I saw it I was super excited too. They have donated some land and infrastructure to build an early childhood education centre at the club. The centre will be run by Wanslea, which is a not-for-profit. It's amazing to see a community coming together to build a not-for-profit facility to provide children in the area with access to quality early childhood education.