The Allan Labor Government’s first Budget is dedicated to helping families in Bentleigh.

Whether it’s helping with the cost of living, making sure our kids can be their best, record funding for our healthcare system or continuing to invest in more of the services families rely on – the Victorian Budget 2024/25 invests in our community.

With the current cost of living, covering supplies and extracurricular activities can be hard on families doing it tough. Uniforms, camps and excursions – it all adds up.

That’s why we are providing a one-off School Saving Bonus to help cover the costs. This $400 bonus will help make sure our kids have everything they need for the school day, supporting families with children at government schools and families at our non-government schools who need it most.

Dedicated to helping cover the cost of learning essentials and the extracurriculars that make school fun – we’ll work with schools to make it available for the start of the 2025 school year.

We’re also tripling our free Glasses for Kids program – making sure even more young Victorians can be their best in the classroom, and beyond. Having already helped 34,000 kids across our state – this investment will help 74,000 more, providing free vision screening and prescription glasses for students who need it.

And because we know that learning isn’t limited to the classroom, we’re investing $6 million to extend our Get Active Kids vouchers – providing up to $200 to help eligible families with the cost of sporting club registration, uniforms and equipment.

Community sport brings families together and keeps kids active. That’s why the Labor Government is investing $325,000 to deliver upgrades for the pavilion at Highett Reserve to ensure our local families get the facilities they need.

Last year, our Free Kinder program saved around 140 000 families up to $2,500 in fees, helping with the cost of living and ensuring cost was not a barrier to participation. This year’s Budget continues this investment with an additional $129 million to continue delivering Free Kinder and the statewide rollout of Three-Year-Old Kinder.

An extra $19 million will deliver new Building Blocks grants – enabling kinders to renovate and upgrade early learning facilities. From expanding classrooms to funding native gardens, upgrading technology or transforming outdoor play spaces, these projects are an investment in our youngest learners.

The Metro Tunnel will transform the way we move around our city and state. Opening next year, it will be the biggest, most transformational public transport project since the City Loop opened more than 40 years ago. It’ll also mean Frankton Line trains can go back into the City Loop, improving services for passengers. This year’s Budget invests more than $233 million, getting passengers ready for Day One. This includes continuing to recruit and train drivers, timetabling and signaling work, and completing final testing.

There is no place for discrimination, antisemitism or Islamophobia in Victoria – and every young Victorian deserves to feel safe and supported at school. We’re providing $6 million to faith-based non-government schools for additional security upgrades to make sure communities feel safe.

Only Labor Governments truly invest in our hospitals, and in this year’s Budget, we'll continue to support the health services families in Bentleigh rely on. That means expanding the Monash Medical

Centre with new operating suites, bigger maternity care facilities, and a new intensive care unit – ensuring local families have the care they need, close to home. We’re also investing $5.1 million to help Victorians with eating disorders – including at Monash Medical Centre.

Since we came to government, Victoria’s public hospitals now employ over 5,000 more doctors, and over 13,000 more nurses. During the pandemic, when our health system was stretched like never before, we acted decisively – providing record funding to bolster our health system.

Since the pandemic, the cost of running our health system has continued to increase – but every cent is worth it to keep Victorians healthy. That’s why we’re making the biggest multi-year investment in our health system in Victoria’s history. It’ll mean our hospitals have the long-term certainty they need over the coming years.

Each investment is an investment in the people of Bentleigh.

Because this is a Budget – and a government – dedicated to helping families.

Quotes attributable to Member for Bentleigh, Nick Staikos MP

“This Budget will make a real difference to families. Our $400 School Saving Bonus will help cover the costs of kids’ uniforms and activities – giving families one less thing to worry about.”

“Community sport keeps families active and healthy. Upgrades to the Highett Pavilion will help local families kick goals both on and off the field.”

“The Allan Labor Government continues to deliver better health infrastructure and support in Bentleigh. An expanded Monash Hospital Emergency Department means better emergency healthcare for families.”