New preschools will be 'wonderful for community'

Across NSW, 100 new public preschools will be built in the next three years to address areas in desperate need - after a decade of declining learning outcomes. Almost half of those schools will be built in regional areas and all will be located alongside existing primary schools.

Running the preschools alongside existing schools is hoped to assist with the cost-of-living crunch and make the transition to school easier on students, staff and parents.

In the Murray, five schools will benefit from having newly attached preschools including Deniliquin South Public School, Beelbangera Public School, Hanwood Public School, Leeton Public School and Leeton Parkview Public School.

The schools were decided based on a specific assessment, covering educational need, children's development and socio-economic factors of the areas selected.

Relieving principal at Hanwood Public School Gary Workman said that having the preschool would be a huge asset both educationally and socially.

"Preschools provide a high-quality standard of early education and they provide a positive transition to school. It will also help staff address any learning difficulties," he said.

"It's a wonderful opportunity, having a preschool here on our school site is really wonderful for the community."

Deputy Premier and Minister for Education Prue Car said that the additional schools would be go a long way to ensuring all families can access high-quality education.

"Postcodes should not act as a barrier to accessing the best start in life, and every child should have access to high quality resources from a young age, including having access to preschool," she said.

Member for Murray Helen Dalton wasn't as thrilled, putting attention back on the teacher shortage across the region.

"We still have a drastic teacher shortage in the electorate of Murray," she said.

"Hopefully this shortfall will be addressed soon with government offering incentives to attract teachers to rural and remote communities like ours."