LNP CANDIDATE for Redlands Henry Pike has slammed the Labor government over failure to plan for a new public high school in Redland Bay.
However Redlands MP Kim Richards said the state government had invested more than $35 million in the last two years on new school buildings and upgrades.
Mr Pike said despite significant population growth, he felt the current government does not believe a secondary school will be required in Redland Bay until potentially 2041.
"Redland Bay has grown from a population of 6000 to 16,000 over the last twenty years," Mr Pike said.
"The Shoreline development will add an additional 10,000 residents on top of that over the coming years."
Ms Richards said the government monitored school enrolment growth across the state, including the Redlands.
"New housing developments typically attract young families into the area, and this is exactly what the Department of Education has identified through their local area assessment," she said.
She said a new primary school to support the new Shoreline development may be required by 2024.
However, Mr Pike said the LNP were of the view that a high school for Redland Bay would be required far sooner than the government was predicting.
"Labor are trying push the limits of our current schools to save money, but it will ultimately be our local kids who will pay the price," he said.
According to Mr Pike Redland Bay State School has nearly 1000 students this year and Victoria Point High School has more than 1300 enrolments. He said both schools were rapidly approaching capacity.
Ms Richards said Victoria Point State High School currently had adequate capacity to cater for students in the area.
"We've invested more than $3 million in upgrades for the resources centre and hall expansion. Of course, should more classrooms be required in the future, we will invest in the facilities students need," she said.
"This is what we've done across Redlands with $1.6 million of new classrooms at Redland Bay State School, $700k of new classrooms at Bayview State School, and at Redland District Special School, where we're delivering more than $9 million for a new learning precinct."
Mr Pike said that planning for a new high school had become time critical.
He cited his 11-month-old son, Christian, as an example of a generation of kids who were being ignored by the state government
"My son could be 22-years old by the time the current government gets around to a new high school in Redland Bay," Mr Pike said.
"We aren't just facing a significant rise in student numbers, we're also facing the real risk of no suitable sites remaining in Redland Bay."
