Delivered via $3.6 million of Victorian Government funding, Yalingbu Yirramboi – Royal Children’s Hospital will provide patients with a full education from Prep to Year 12.
Yalingbu Yirramboi means ‘Today and Tomorrow’ in the local languages of the Boon Wurrung and Woi Wurrung peoples, representing the idea of continuing health services to the community.
Minister for Education Ben Carroll said it is important that excellent learning opportunities are provided for all students in the state.
“The opening of the Yalingbu Yirramboi will ensure that young patients don’t miss out on the good quality education they deserve,” Carroll said in a statement.
The school will ensure that children and young people who spend extended periods of time in the hospital stay on track with their learning and can achieve their full potential.
Governed by a School Council and led by principal Naomi McBride – the new school will initially employ 22 registered teachers and six education support class staff.
Students will receive individualised teaching and learning programs aligned with the Victorian Curriculum and VCE via flexible teaching modes, including classroom sessions, small group sessions and individual bedside support, depending on individual patient needs.
Acting Minister for Health Ingrid Stitt said no child should miss out on the education they need if they’re unwell.
“... we’re giving Victorian children access to a world-class education, easing the burden on parents to keep their child on track while they are unwell or recovering,” Stitt said.
The school will also provide remote learning opportunities for students recovering at home but not yet well enough to attend school.
When a child is well enough it will support students to transition back to their original school once they leave hospital.
Establishing a registered school at the Royal Children’s Hospital will create a more consistent approach to operating Victorian hospital schools, aligning it with other models of hospital-based education in Victoria, such as the Monash Children’s Hospital School.
Member for Northern Metropolitan Region Sheena Watt said the new school ensures that our young people staying at the Royal Children’s Hospital have access to “a world-class hospital school in a world-class hospital”.
