The National Catholic Education Commission has welcomed the Australian Government’s announcement to expand the Exceptional Circumstance Supplementary Payment to support early childhood education and care services that are not eligible for the JobKeeper payment.

The supplementary payment applies to eligible early childhood and care services associated with non-government schools, that have experienced increased demand, were not operating during the reference period, or have seen a significant decrease in attendance from the 6 April.

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The National Catholic Education Commission (NCEC) welcomes the appointment of Jim Miles as Executive Director of Catholic Education Melbourne (CEM), by the Archbishop of Melbourne Peter Comensoli today.

National Catholic Education Executive Director Jacinta Collins congratulated Mr Miles saying she looked forward to continuing to work with him.

“Jim is currently the acting Executive Director for Catholic Education Melbourne - which is the largest Catholic school system in Australia - and has been an NCEC commissioner as part of that role,” Ms Collins said.

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The National Catholic Education Commission has welcomed the Australian Government’s announcement today of an additional $10 million to improve COVID-19 hygiene measures in non-government schools.

National Catholic Education Executive Director Jacinta Collins said the additional funding will be welcomed by school communities who are spending significantly more of their operational budgets on stronger hygiene and cleaning protocols.

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The National Catholic Education Commission (NCEC) has commissioned the Australian Catholic University’s (ACU’s) La Salle Academy to review the effectiveness of the Framework for Formation for Mission in Catholic Education.

The national framework, published in 2017, was developed as a resource for school leaders and school governance bodies with responsibility for the faith formation of staff in Catholic schools, to support the evaluation of their current practices and provide a strategic context for the enhancement of their formation programs.

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The Catholic education sector has welcomed the National Principles for School Education response to COVID-19 agreed at the National Cabinet today.

National Catholic Education Commission Executive Director, Jacinta Collins, said the National Principles reiterate the commitment of federal, state and territory governments for the continuation of quality schooling for Australian children during the COVID-19 pandemic.

“The National Principles show a continued commitment by governments to ensure Australian students receive a high quality education, while allowing for the delivery of remote schooling as needed during the pandemic,” Ms Collins said.

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Catholic education has welcomed the Australian Government’s JobKeeper wage subsidies to support families facing job losses and stand downs. However, the National Catholic Education Commission (NCEC) is concerned the support does not work for essential services such as low fee schools.

NCEC Executive Director Jacinta Collins said under the current arrangement high fee private schools will access federal wage subsidies to retain crucial staff, but low fee non-government schools will be left out.

“A business approach to schools simply won’t work,” said Ms Collins. “High fee Independent schools will be assessed as losing more income because they are starting from a much higher base.” 

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The National Catholic Education Commission has welcomed the Australian Government’s extension of funding to early childhood education for 2021.

The federal government will extend their national partnership funding to provide $453.2 million for next year to support early education for nearly 350,000 children.

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The National Catholic Education Commission has welcomed the Australian Government’s rescue package for early childhood and care services across Australia.

Under the plan, the federal government estimates around one million families will receive free childcare, and the government will pay 50 per cent of the sector’s fee revenue up to the existing hourly rate cap. The support would also apply to before and after school care and vacation care services.

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Catholic schools across Australia will extend school fee relief for families facing financial hardship due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

National Catholic Education Executive Director Jacinta Collins said Catholic schools have a long tradition of offering school fee relief and assistance to families facing financial difficulties.

“Catholic schools keep their fees as affordable as possible, but we know many families will be facing serious financial difficulties during this challenging time,” Ms Collins said.

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National Catholic Education Commission Executive Director, Jacinta Collins, said Catholic schools will adhere to the Australian Government’s advice to remain open and operational.

“While there is significant concern and debate regarding school closures in Australia to minimise the spread of COVID-19 (Coronavirus),” Ms Collins said, “It is our view that the government and public health authorities are in the best position to determine whether schools should remain open and we will adhere to this advice.”

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