ALMOST a quarter of Tasmania's government schools are less than half full.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
The state's smallest school, Ouse District School, has an estimated capacity for 150 students yet just 22, or 14.8 per cent, were enrolled, according to the latest state Education Department figures from the 2013 first term census data of full-time equivalent student enrolments in government schools.
Of the 185 primary, secondary and combined schools, 43 have an occupancy rate of less than 50 per cent.
The six least populated schools have an occupancy rate below 25 per cent.
From tomorrow principals around the state are expected to release to their school communities the new revised out-of-home area guidelines and map aimed at a more consistent approach by all schools as to whom they allow to enrol.
The out-of-home area guidelines have been developed by the department and were shown to principals around the state two weeks ago.
The review of out-of-home areas is the first of three main recommendations that came out of the school viability report, which will then look at catchment areas, transport and the associated subsidies.
Geeveston Primary School, which took advantage of the state government's $3.5 million school transition fund announced in the 2012 budget and which aimed to encourage small schools to close, downsized to a primary school this year and has the second lowest occupancy rate at 19.3 per cent.
The new Andrews Creek Primary School, which is an amalgamation between Wesley Vale and Moriarty schools, has 36.3 per cent occupancy.
Westerway Primary School, which took students from the Maydena school that closed at the end of last year, now has an occupancy rate of 94.7 per cent.
Opposition education spokesman Michael Ferguson said that after 15 years, the government was lacking in ideas on how to address the issue.
``Their only plan to deal with this issue is to close schools and dictate to families where they can enrol,'' Mr Ferguson said.
``The Liberals believe that we need to increase the number of kids in our schools.
``Our plan will see more options for students and parents and, for the first time, a focus on making sure kids in regional and rural areas can go from prep to year 12 in their own community.''
Of the state's 20 least populated schools, four - Avoca, Edith Creek, Geilston Bay and Warrane - were on the top 20 hit-list proposed for closure by Education Minister Nick McKim in the 2011 budget.
Some of the schools named on the hit-list and which campaigned strongly to survive have reasonable occupancy rates, such as Bracknell Primary School (68.4 per cent) and Stanley Primary School (56.8 per cent).
