Grievances
Sorrento Primary School—Air conditioning
Grievance
Mr Liam Staltari (Carine) (9:26 am): My grievance today is to the Minister for Education. I thank her for being available in the chamber. The matter I am raising is one of great concern to an amazing and much-loved school in my electorate, Sorrento Primary School. I raise it on behalf of the school's passionate parent community. Some of the parents, including the chair of the school board, Mark, and the P&C president, Jesse, are in the gallery today. I want to acknowledge and thank them for their time.
The grievance relates to longstanding issues with broken and inadequate air conditioning in the school's south block. This issue has been raised with the government over many years, but, sadly, with no proper redress. The minister will, of course, know that Sorrento Primary School is a longstanding public school in Sorrento on our northern coast. It commenced in 1970, so it has now marked 55 years serving our local community. It is fair to say that it is much more than a school. It really is a linchpin. It is very well regarded and respected in Sorrento. It has now educated generations of Sorrento locals. Each year, its staff of outstanding teachers, led by an outstanding principal, educate and nurture so many of the kids in our area.
I remember very well my first interaction with Sorrento Primary School. I was a few short weeks into being the candidate for Carine when one of the parents reached out and shared the story of the school's south block. I was immediately impressed by her passion and her persistence. It turns out that that same passion and persistence is shared by the board, the P&C and the parent community, and I want to recognise that today.
I come to the issue itself. For years, the school's south block has had to operate with an outdated and inefficient evaporative cooling system. In the summer months, which we are now in, it forces students to endure extreme heat, with internal classroom temperatures often exceeding 30 degrees Celsius. The issue became so bad that some years ago, the school began to record temperatures to demonstrate the issue. It was very concerning. It is an urgent issue, and it has been an urgent issue for years. The school advocated fiercely to my predecessor, the former member for Carine, and to the former Minister for Education and Training. I mean no disrespect when I say that they received no firm commitment back, and we have not seen the fix that the school has asked for. They have had to endure many hot summers since. Most disappointingly, when the government announced its Cool the Schools initiative for aircon upgrades earlier this year, Sorrento missed out. The list included 45 schools—all very deserving—but, sadly, Sorrento did not make the cut despite its effort, advocacy and clear need.
The practical consequence is that students in the south block are frequently at risk of being dehydrated or distracted and unable to concentrate. That is especially the case for students with complex needs like autism. Of course, their amazing teachers are made to endure those conditions and expected to run classes in those conditions as well.
This grievance follows my letter to the minister in September. I thank her for her response, and I acknowledge the 2019 investment in the other blocks that she noted. The response advises that a February 2025 departmental inspection found that the aircon was "determined to be operating as designed". Respectfully, I have visited the south block on hot days and it is not operating as designed. If it is as designed, I think we have broader concerns. When you walk into that block of classrooms at Sorrento Primary School, the heat hits you immediately. I was there viewing it for only a few minutes; I was not there for a school day, school week or school term in the hotter months. I note the advice in the minister's reply that the Department of Housing and Works is now assessing the site's power needs, and I welcome that. I really urge the minister that that work be progressed as soon as possible, because there is a power upgrade requirement, and I think it has been known for some time. That is a critical piece in solving this puzzle.
The letter I provided included testimonials from the school community, because they really say it better than certainly I or any other member of Parliament could. They live with this every day; they see what the kids in the south block and their teachers have to endure. I encourage the minister to please read the letters again—I am sure she read them—and also the departmental leaders, because they are heartfelt, they are humble, and they are really asking for a basic comfort that the south block students have been denied for too long. I was proud during the election campaign to bring forward a commitment to upgrade the south block under an elected Liberal government. Of course, my side did not win; that is how it goes, but I am certainly committed to fighting fiercely for that and to working constructively with the government to get it upgraded, which is what the families in Sorrento are seeking.
I will close by reflecting on what we all know. It has been a hot this week; it was a record hot start to summer. We sit today in an air-conditioned chamber in Parliament. We are very fortunate to be able to do that, but the students in south block do not have that luxury, and when they come back in term 1 and it is still very hot, they again will not have that luxury. They will be sitting in conditions that, frankly, none of us in this chamber would put up with. I note that a few weeks ago the aircon in this chamber broke in the morning and it was fixed just like that. How on earth can we as politicians demand that standard for ourselves but not provide it to our kids and their teachers, especially in this most prosperous state in the nation with, of course, the royalty windfall that was announced this week?
My respectful request to the minister is that we act. I urge the government to commit to an urgent power supply upgrade for the south block and then to an air conditioning upgrade in the south block that will fix this issue once and for all, because that is not much to ask for. I think we would all agree that basic air conditioning and comfort is not much to ask for, or at least should not be, but the students, teachers and families of Sorrento, including those looking on in the gallery, absolutely deserve it. I thank the minister for her time and look forward to her response.
Ms Sabine Winton (Wanneroo—Minister for Education) (9:32 am): I am really happy to take the member's grievance today, and I appreciate the prior notice he provided. I also want to acknowledge the parents, staff and students who have taken the time to raise their concerns about the air conditioning and power capacity at Sorrento Primary School. The board chair, Mr Mark Wells, and the P&C have also raised concerns over an extended period of time. I want to reassure them that I share their commitment to creating positive learning environments for our students and teachers. When families and teachers tell me that their school environment is uncomfortable, I listen.
I appreciate this opportunity to outline the work that is already underway at Sorrento Primary School and the steps we are taking on the issue that the member has raised. Since 2019, Western Australia has taken a consistent, forward-looking approach to improving air conditioning in our schools. Thanks to the updated design requirements introduced under our government, all new schools and major school refurbishments now include modern reverse-cycle air conditioning as part of their build. I am very proud to be part of the government that has taken those steps. That is, of course, why Sorrento Primary School received new reverse-cycle systems in 2019, following the replacement of roofs and ceilings in the school's north and east blocks. That was a critically important first step; however, I do appreciate that the south block still relies on evaporative cooling, and that is the basis of the concerns that the member raised.
The Department of Education also undertakes routine inspections and maintenance of evaporative cooling systems, twice a year, right across the public school network throughout the state. I am advised that the most recent inspection of Sorrento occurred in late September 2025. The system in the south block was assessed and the advice to me is that the units are in fair condition and operational. I acknowledge, though, that that does not invalidate the concerns raised by the school and the community in terms of optimum performance in learning environments. We know that an evaporative system performing as designed may still not offer the same comfort or efficiency of reverse-cycle systems, especially on warm days and in summer. I absolutely understand that distinction, and that is why we have already taken proactive steps.
I am advised that the Department of Education has been working with the Department of Housing and Works on this matter. As a precursor to any upgrade, they are doing a thorough assessment of the site's power capacity, which I understand is due by the end of this term. This is the critical groundwork necessary before any upgrade to a modern air-conditioning system can occur. We must, of course, ensure that the power infrastructure can safely and reliably support upgrades. That assessment will give the department a detailed understanding of the electrical upgrades required to enable the replacement of evaporative units with reverse-cycle systems. That will ensure that the project can be considered as part of future capital works programming.
I want to be very clear with the school community: I am aware of your request. The planning work is already underway and it will be considered properly. I will also add that Sorrento Primary School is one of many, many schools raising similar issues around the ineffectiveness of evaporative air conditioners. I also want to highlight the government's commitment to the significant statewide rollout of our Cool the Schools program. As part of our election commitments, we committed some $89.1 million for those important air conditioning upgrades right around Western Australia, with the first upgrades rolling out at the start of the school year next year. It is a significant investment and one that recognises some of the issues at Sorrento Primary School that the member highlighted, and it will improve comfort and learning conditions in classrooms right across our state.
It is a priority for me to deliver to those 45 schools the upgrades we committed to, but given the sheer number of evaporative systems still operating across all our government schools, including Sorrento Primary School, replacing them all will take a sustained effort; it is not a quick fix. It requires coordinated planning, the electrical upgrades I mentioned earlier, tendering, installation, and careful phasing to minimise disruption to students. But I can reassure the member that the government is clear when it comes to our election commitment to ensure that we provide good learning environments for our students. It is a priority of our government, and Sorrento Primary School will be properly considered as part of that ongoing work.
I again thank the member for his advocacy, and I particularly want to thank the school community, the school board and the P&C at Sorrento for being such strong and fierce advocates for their students. I do hope that this response reassures you that the concerns you have raised are being taken seriously and are real; they are concerns that have also been raised by a number of schools throughout our state. We are taking practical steps to ensure that we can support more schools to achieve the goal that we want for all schools throughout the state—a comfortable, modern and supported learning environment for every child in this state. Thank you.
The Speaker: Thank you, minister. Before I give the call to the member for Kimberley: members, there are a number of side conversations going on within the chamber at the moment, and the level of noise is increasing and making it difficult to hear. If you want to have a conversation, please do it outside.
