- New Intensive English Centres to provide intensive English tuition for primary school students who come to Western Australia with limited English language capability
- The two new centres will be located at Ellenbrook Primary School and Atwell Primary School
- Improved accessibility to English language programs to ensure newly arrived students have the best chance of success at school
The Cook Labor Government will invest $12.3 million over four years to establish two new primary school Intensive English Centres to strengthen support for the children of newly arrived migrant and humanitarian entrants to Western Australia.
The establishment of these new Intensive English Centres are in addition to the 14 successful centres that have been operating since the 1970s.
Intensive English Centres are co-located with primary and secondary schools and enrol newly arrived migrant and humanitarian entrants, as well as some locally-born and international students.
These students require intensive English language tuition prior to commencing mainstream schooling. Students typically spend one or two years in an Intensive English Centre.
The two new centres will provide additional places to meet the demand resulting from increased migration to Western Australia in the past two years.
Funding is allocated for each student enrolled, as well as an allocation to cover specialist staff and to enable smaller class sizes for this intensive program.
The funding will also be used for school bus services for students who live a distance from the Intensive English Centre. The two new Intensive English Centres will be operating from the start of the 2025 school year.
Comments attributed to Education Minister Dr Tony Buti:
"This initiative will be hugely beneficial in supporting our culturally and linguistically diverse students, giving them the best opportunity to engage fully in education and reach their potential to thrive in their new country.
"There has been significant growth in the number of students attending Intensive English Centres. I'm pleased we can provide further support to our young people new to WA."
