‘Quiet revolution in our school buildings’

The
Catholic Weekly
Online

Sydney
22 February 2004

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‘Quiet revolution in our school buildings’

IMPROVED FACILITIES: Students at St Therese Primary, Sadleir-Miller, enjoy their new play area – part of the ‘quiet revolution’

Building projects totalling more than $40 million will begin in Catholic schools in the archdiocese this year in a major construction phase to modernise, improve and extend education facilities.

Since the last review of the archdiocesan school system in 1994 almost $290 million has been expended on building works.

Terry Keogh, director of financial services at the Catholic Education Office Sydney, who has co-ordinated these changes, says the $330 million total expenditure over 10 years has resulted in “a quiet revolution in our school buildings”.

Primary and secondary systemic schools in the archdiocese of Sydney have been undergoing a major facelift.

Over the past decade 98 of the 114 primary schools and 33 of the 35 secondary schools have undertaken major refurbishments and the construction of new buildings, or are well advanced in the planning process to begin in 2004 or 2005.

They include four new parish primary schools on the growing south-western edge of Sydney at Hoxton Park, Prestons, Carnes Hill and Holsworthy and the new regional secondary College at Hinchinbrook.

Planning is also proceeding for a new secondary college at West Hoxton Park.

Br Kelvin Canavan, executive director of schools in the archdiocese, says he is particularly pleased that “the 62,500 students who attend our schools are being provided with excellent facilities to learn in and that our teachers will have the very best of facilities in which to teach the contemporary curriculum”.

John Day, head of the school facilities and planning unit from 1992 to 2003, says the last major building blitz for Sydney’s Catholic schools was almost 40 years ago – in the mid-1960s – at the time of the introduction of the Wyndham scheme.

“However, by the 1990s it was time again to undertake major refurbishments, brought about by the age of buildings, safety requirements, the changes to the curriculum and also to teaching methods,” he said.

Local communities initiate nearly all projects, he said.