SOS

'Save our Schools' has been the cry in small communities around Tasmania for the past week, after the State Government delivered its cost slashing budget last Thursday, recommending the closure of 20 schools, amongst them Franklin Primary School just down the road from us.

The school was established in 1860 making it one of the oldest in the State. Currently, 108 students attend. Bizarrely, Franklin Primary was the recipient of $850,000 under the Federal Government's 'Building the Education Revolution' stimulus funding during the global financial crisis, and the beautiful new library building only this month won a 'People's Choice' in the Tasmanian Architecture Awards. What a dreadful waste if the closure goes ahead.

I don't have children, so clearly it doesn't affect me personally, but the impact of decisions like this are felt throughout small communities, affecting not only the kids and their parents but potentially also local businesses, rural industries, sporting and social groups, community events and so on. It is great to see how everyone in Franklin is rallying around the cause, with protests, meetings, lobbying and a Facebook page set up by parents and friends of the school.