Canberra's oldest schools are not being left to ''crumble and fall away'' at the expense of building flashy multi-million dollar schools in newer suburbs, educators say.
ACT Education Directorate has defended accusations money is being wasted on building extravagant schools in new suburbs while others are left in disrepair.
Director-general Jim Watterston said yesterday that every public school in the capital had benefited from the Schools Infrastructure Program over the past five years, with some schools receiving grants of $7million.
The $162.1million program had funded projects as large as building new gymnasium and arts centres, down to small upgrades in heating, cooling, flooring, toilets, security, playgrounds and electricity.
A further $2.8million had been allocated over the next two years for roof repair and replacement.
''It's not about old and new suburbs or high and low socioeconomic areas, it's about responding to areas where the needs are greatest,'' Mr Watterston said.
''Our capital works team engages school personnel extensively to ensure we provide solutions that are tailor-made to the local community.
''Even with the federal government's [Building the Education Revolution] program we were unique in the ACT because we allowed schools to custom-design their own facilities.
''We have a personalised service ... that is focused on upgrading and improving all facilities, not just the new ones.''
The response follows a mixed reaction to yesterday's Canberra Times report on the opening of multi-million dollar schools at Gungahlin ($71million), Harrison ($79million) and Kambah ($56million) over the past two years.
While some readers praised the investment in public education, others complained that their own children's schools were being denied new roofs, heating and cooling systems and play equipment because the government supposedly could not afford the works.
The Australian Education Union and ACT Council of Parents and Friends Associations have distanced themselves from the claims, saying the government generally kept on top of its school maintenance schedule. But the union's president, Penny Gilmour, admitted that the system sometimes struggled to cope with unexpected problems that fell outside regular maintenance.
''One of the problems is that there doesn't seem to be [sufficient] flexibility in funding for a big injection into schools when something unexpected happens,'' she said. ''It is obvious from the difficulty the [directorate] has had with identifying savings from efficiency rounds that there is nothing left to give.''
Mr Watterston rejected this claim, saying any cuts in the directorate had been made centrally and did not affect planned capital works.
Meanwhile, the parents council has warned parents to be cautious of placing too much emphasis on the look of a school rather than the teaching provided.
President Vivienne Pearce said resources, such as specialist teachers, had a greater impact on education than ''a flashy foyer or architectural award-winning design''. She was hesitant to label the multi-million schools as a wasted investment. ''[The government] should be congratulated on making new schools more sustainable because ... the carbon footprint in some of our older schools is huge.''
This reporter is on Twitter: @breanna_tucker
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