Advocacy

Federation of Parents and Citizens Associations of New South Wales (P&C Federation) believes and supports the rights of all children in New South Wales regardless of whether their location is in a metropolitan, regional, or rural area to attend a public education system that is free, secular, and open to all irrespective of culture, gender, academic ability, and socio-economic class and empowers students to control their own lives and be contributing members of society. Now, more than ever, it is important to ensure all New South Wales children have access to a school system that provides the resources to meet their learning needs in a safe and welcoming learning environment.

P&C Federation advocates for students across New South Wales in public education in various ways, such as councillors sitting on committees, lobbying parliament, lodging enquiry submissions and building strong relationships with stakeholders.

P&C Federation calls upon P&C Associations across the state for their input and to assist in its endeavours to advocate for students by lobbying Members of Parliament, on behalf of your local school and community to ensure the best possible outcomes for all. As P&C Association members, parents, carers, and citizens it is vital we place our children’s education at the forefront, being a voice for continual quality and improvement in public education to ensure the best possible outcome is achieved for our children and our nation’s future.

Members of Parliament NSW (Both Houses) Contacts

Actions

Current Actions

In 2015, at the Annual General Meeting our members brought forward a motion that resulted in, ‘That the P&C Federation lobby to ensure that the enrolment form includes all SRE, Ethics and non-scripture options.’

Government’s rejection of recommendations regarding scripture in NSW schools

The NSW Government’s rejection of many worthwhile recommendations in a review of Special Religious Education (SRE) has left P&C Federation mystified. The review stemmed from a 2012 Upper House inquiry into ethics classes in the state. P&C Federation believes that the removal of all references to ethics classes on enrolment forms appears to have been done to cater to the purely ideological objections of certain parties, and that withholding information on enrolment forms is to the detriment of public education. It is disappointing that the government rejected enrolment forms include the ethics classes even though the Education Act 1990 Section 33A states special education in ethics as a secular alternative to special religious education. To read about the SRE in Education Act, please Click Here. It raises questions about what the government is concealing as it is also very resistant to tracking the enrolment numbers of these classes.

P&C Federation is highly disappointed that the government also rejected a recommendation that students not enrolled in these classes be allowed to complete their regular schoolwork during scripture time. P&C Federation believes our children are being disadvantaged due to the political expediency. Read P&C Federation’s recent media release titled ‘Government Continues to be Coy about Religious Classes’

P&C Federation representative, Terry Timms, was on air on 2NUR FM Newcastle for a radio interview on 24^th April 2017, with Mark Rorke of 2NUR FM Newcastle, to discuss the state government’s rejection of recommendations regarding scripture in NSW schools. Click Here to listen to the radio interview.