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Local Schools To Benefit From Sustainable Schools Grants

Mark Coure, Member for Oatley, announced the local recipients of the NSW Government’s inaugural Sustainable Schools Grants.

Mr Coure said he was excited that Blakehurst High School, Georges River College Peakhurst Campus and Lugarno Public School, had all received grants in the new student-led program that is focused on improving the environment at schools.

“I am thrilled that several local schools have been successful in their grant applications,” Mr Coure said.

“The Sustainable Schools Grants empower students and school communities to implement projects that benefit the environment by helping to save energy or water, reduce waste, or improve biodiversity.”

“I look forward to seeing these wonderful projects come to life in the coming months.”

Blakehurst High School received $15,000 for its biodiversity garden which will be a learning habitat for science students and provide a hands-on project for students interested in horticulture.

$15,000 was also granted to Peakhurst Campus for Project Watergate which will allow Marine and Aquaculture Technology students to conduct studies in recirculatory aquaculture systems and aquaponics.

Lugarno Public School received $1,100 in funding to implement a school wide compost system by collecting food scraps from classrooms, the office and playgrounds.

Education Minister Sarah Mitchell said 194 NSW public schools received Sustainable Schools Grants ranging from $1,000 to $15,000 each.

“I’m very glad that schools from across the state embraced the new Sustainable Schools Grants whole heartedly,” Ms Mitchell said.

“The standard of all the submissions was very impressive, and I commend all the participating schools on their efforts.”

“Grant applications included innovative sustainability projects such as kitchen gardens, water storage strategies, and even bee highways to improve biodiversity.”

“I encourage other schools to start thinking of applying for the next round of grants.”

The Sustainable Schools Grants program, which provides a total of $10 million over four years, is open to all NSW public schools with the next application round to open in November.

The NSW Government is investing $6.7 billion over four years to deliver 190 new and upgraded schools to support communities across NSW. In addition, a record $1.3 billion is being spent on school maintenance over five years. This is the largest investment in public education infrastructure in the history of NSW.