Chaplaincy services are resuming to 89 Tasmanian Government schools following the appointment of three service providers.
The Devonport Chaplaincy, Hobart City Mission and the Scripture Union have been selected following a tender process to make up a Panel of Providers.
The Tasmanian schools receiving funding through the Federal Government's National School Chaplaincy Program can now choose their preferred provider and resume the service.
While overall Commonwealth funding for the program has reduced, it is important to remember that if the Tasmanian Liberal Government had not agreed to the new program, which our political opponents were urging us to do, chaplains would no longer be funded to work in our schools.
The chaplains provide valuable support for the emotional wellbeing of our students and the broader school community by providing pastoral care services.
They join a broad range of support workers already supporting our students, including social workers, psychologists, speech and language pathologists, and school support managers.
There are also specialist support workers in our schools, including Respectful Schools Support Teams, Students with Disability Support, Autism Consultants, Aboriginal Education Workers and Officers, and English as an Additional Language Service.
I wish the chaplains and their school communities all the best for year ahead.
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