A grant fund to help people on low incomes cover the costs of sending children to school will not do enough to assist "middle bracket" families, the Canberra Liberals have said.
Opposition Leader Elizabeth Lee said the fund, which opened for applications on Wednesday, was a knee-jerk reaction that showed the government had no new ideas to ease family budget pressures.
"When you have a look at the result of the support that was provided last year, it says that they supported 5000 students," Ms Lee said.
"Now 5000 students out of almost 82,000 students in the ACT doesn't come close to supporting the very families that are really, really needing support."
Education Minister Yvette Berry on Wednesday acknowledged demand for the equity fund, a 2020 Labor election commitment, had increased from 3000 students in 2022 to 5000 in 2023.
"I don't expect that figure to go down particularly, given the cost of everything else is going up. We'll have a look at how it's going and how the fund's going, and how families are accessing it, and if we need to access additional funds ourselves in the government that'll go through a budget process," Ms Berry said.
Ms Lee said the program would not reach families who had previously not needed support but now required help as a result of increased cost-of-living pressures.
"It is clear that this government has no new ideas and no willingness to actually address the significant cost-of-living crisis that is plaguing many, many Canberra families," she said.
Ms Lee would not say whether the Canberra Liberals would offer grants without a means test to families if the party forms government after the October election.
"I will have more to say in relation to this issue over the next couple of weeks," she said.
Families who qualify for the ACT government's existing program can access $400 for preschool students, $500 for primary school students and $750 for high school and college students.
Families applying for the grants need to prove their low-income status, either by producing a means-tested health care card or Centrelink card, or providing other evidence of being on a low income or sustained financial stress.
Ms Berry defended the government's support for students in schools.
"We do, in the ACT, provide additional funds to support families who might be experiencing financial difficulty. We do that in a range of different ways [with] lots of different funding arrangements across different schools to support families," she said.
"We've provided Chromebooks for senior secondary students for a number of years now, free Wi-Fi access to families who need it, access to hygiene products, sports equipment."
ACT Council of Parents and Citizens Associations executive officer Veronica Elliott welcomed the government opening applications for the support fund in January, when parents and carers were often buying supplies for the school year.
"What we're hearing from our P&Cs is that families are coming forward and asking their school, and their P&C and their local school communities, for support," Ms Elliott said.
"Parents are often worried about putting their hand up and saying, 'I need some help', so they don't actually come forward and announce that to their community, but they definitely are asking for more help. Our P&Cs are doing their very best to support that, as are our schools."
