Another high school for Adelaide’s needed, Treasurer says, but education department waiting to check numbers

The new Rostrevor high school won’t be enough, the Treasurer says. While education bosses are cautious, he’s highlighted several spots.

Demand for places in another new government high school must stack up before detailed planning begins, the Education Department says.

The state budget allocated $84.4 million for a new high school in Rostrevor but Treasurer Rob Lucas said there would still be pressure for another school, nominating the inner north or western suburbs as possible locations.

However, departmental chief operating officer Ben Temperly was cautious.

“New schools are big investments and there needs to be sustained demand to warrant the commitment,” he said.

“Demographic analysis has been carried out for the inner-northern suburbs as part of the department’s assessment of demand across the state.

“Initial modelling suggests growing demand in the area but further work on long-term trends is needed before deciding whether a business case should be developed.”

The number of students in SA government schools has increased each year since 2014, up 10,386 since then to an estimated 175,619 this year.

The 6.3 per cent over that period outpaced population growth of about 5 per cent for South Australians aged 5 to 17.

“There is no doubting there are growing pressures for additional government schools in the state,” Mr Lucas said on Tuesday.

While Rostrevor was identified as a “ready solution” it was not the only area facing enrolment pressures.

The city centre high schools – Adelaide and Adelaide Botanic – were under pressure, as were primary schools in the inner east and there was a growing need in Mount Barker and new housing estates in the outer northern suburbs, Mr Lucas said.

Mr Temperly said the department would first use zones, capacity management plans or adding new buildings to existing sites.

There are now 21 schools with capacity management plans – formal limits on how many new students can be accepted.

There is little opportunity for any students outside the school to gain a place unless they are high achievers in a sport or academic course offered as a special interest.

Opposition education spokesman Blair Boyer was sceptical about why the Rostrevor site, which is in Education Minister John Gardner’s electorate, was being developed.

“Schools should be built using population data to predict demand,” he said.

“That is why Labor built the second CBD high school and committed to the new schools in the north and south of Adelaide.”

Prospect mayor David O’Loughlin said the council would welcome a government high school in the inner north because there was huge demand.

A major difficulty would be finding a site to accommodate a school, playing fields and carparking yet be accessible to public transport.

“Access to land is a huge problem,” he said.