Portfolio — 25 May 2026

Education Minister Jason Clare announced the details of the $21 million Connected Community School Trial, the operational centrepiece of Australia's $2.8 billion, decade-long funding commitment to Western Australian public schools under the Better and Fairer Schools Agreement [TA-260519-educat-544ba30e7b03]. The trial pilots a full-service school model across four sites — Ashburton Drive Primary, Clarkson Primary, Roebourne Senior High, and Girrawheen Senior High — with the four-year program having commenced in 2026 [TA-260519-educat-544ba30e7b03].

The model is notable for the breadth of wraparound services it embeds within school infrastructure: at Girrawheen Senior High, the pilot deploys a speech pathologist for assessments and small-group work, culturally appropriate health screening for Aboriginal students via Derbarl Yerrigan Health Service, and extracurricular wellbeing programmes including Music Club, an Afterschool Homework Club, and a Maths Academy [TA-260519-educat-544ba30e7b03].

The full service offer also extends to financial literacy workshops, cyber-safety sessions, emotional-wellbeing support, EAL/D assistance, case-management home visits, and free eye-health screenings delivered in partnership with the University of Western Australia Optometry department [TA-260519-educat-544ba30e7b03]. The portfolio's framing positions early intervention and tailored wellbeing services — rather than curriculum investment alone — as the primary lever for improving student participation and outcomes, particularly in communities with complex needs.

The inclusion of culturally appropriate Aboriginal health screening and home-visit case management signals deliberate targeting of disengagement risk factors that operate beyond the classroom. No parliamentary record accompanies today's release; the Note covers the comms stream only.