LOCAL building experts have labelled the Rudd Government's schools stimulus scheme "an absolute rort" after more than $80,000 was spent designing a straightforward renovation of Rankins Springs Public's library.
The school was granted $250,000 to refurbish its library but just $103,000 was spent on the actual renovation, while the balance was sucked up by design and project management costs.
The project, which was contracted to local supplier Coachwood Constructions by building giant Laing O'Rourke, is one of many local public primary schools that have come under scrutiny.
Yoogali Public received $850,000 under the $16.2 billion dollar Building the Education Revolution (BER) program for a new library, but little more than a quarter went towards the building, with a staggering $613,849 going towards other expenses.
Similar examples of inflated pricing are evident on projects at Goolgowi Public, Lake Wyangan Public and Darlington Point among others, with only the works completed at Bilbul and Tharbogang schools appearing to meet with competitive industry standards.
A local builder with more than three decades in the industry said there was no doubt contractors were inflating their prices to take advantage of the scheme.
“One building for nearly $900,000? It’s just a joke.
They’re vultures just taking government money,” the builder, who did not wish to be named, said.
“Normally your project costs should be about 10 per cent – if that. Most of my mates in the building game are just shaking their heads laughing ... but they’re pissed off about it because it’s taxpayers’ money.”
The NSW Coalition and Greens combined last week to order a parliamentary inquiry into the program, which Opposition education spokesman Adrian Piccoli said routinely sees contractors charge “three, four and five times what building costs ought to be”.
“Some of these schools are getting very little for a lot of money and I think the disappointment is that handled differently, a lot of these schools could be virtually rebuilt,” Mr Piccoli said.
“There’s no suggestion of anything being done illegally, but ... the cost breakdowns that are on the (BER NSW) website seem quite extraordinary.
“For example, Lake Wyangan Public School, which got $850,000 for a 13m by 13m library and had $148,786 spent on design.
“That’s nearly 20 per cent of the construction costs that’s gone into design documentation. I mean, seriously.”
Local building designer Carmel La Rocca, who drew up the plans for St Mary’s Yoogali’s $850,000 new and refurbished classrooms, said the contracting of projects to company’s like Laing O’Rourke – which is responsible for 329 primary schools in the Western NSW and Riverina regions, had contributed to the problem.
“With the private schools they actually had to get their own designers and their own builders, whereas with the
public schools it was a centralised system,” Mrs La Rocca said.
“They thought it would be quicker and more efficient – but in my experience some of those costs just aren’t normal.”
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