In the 2009 Bud­get, the Nation­al Gov­ern­ment announced an 80% cut in the fund­ing pro­vid­ed to schools through­out New Zealand to run night class­es or Adult Com­mu­ni­ty Edu­ca­tion (ACE).

In 2010 all school ACE fund­ing will be replaced with a new approach that rein­vests approx­i­mate­ly 20% of cur­rent school-based ACE fund­ing to re-focussed pri­or­i­ty areas, such as lit­er­a­cy and numer­a­cy. It is like­ly that there will be only a small num­ber of schools receiv­ing ACE fund­ing for 2010 and beyond.

- Bud­get 2009 Fact Sheet [PDF, 42 Kb], avail­able on the TEC Web­site

In essence, this deci­sion will spell the end to over 100 years of night class­es in New Zealand, and some­what unsur­pris­ing­ly the Com­mu­ni­ty Learn­ing Asso­ci­a­tion through Schools organ­i­sa­tion has organ­ised a march tomor­row (Tues­day 4th August) in protest. 

(unre­lat­ed protest pho­to via KiwiFren­zy On Loca­tion)

Join the march against the fund­ing cuts to ACE, leav­ing from Welling­ton High School (from Gate 4 at 249 Tarana­ki Street) at 2.15pm.  March down Tarana­ki Street, along Dixon and Vic­to­ria Streets, through Man­ners Street into Willis Street, down Lambton Quay, and arrive at Par­lia­ment around 3pm.