Demand forces $1.4m temporary expansion of Mitcham Girls High School ahead of $5m permanent upgrade
Temporary classrooms have had to be dropped into an Adelaide school after a massive influx of Year 7s but the government insists it’s the right site for the pilot program.
Education
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Enrolment demand at a school piloting the Year 7 move was so great that a $1.4 million temporary building project had to be constructed over the holidays, ahead of a $5 million permanent fix.
Mitcham Girls High School’s tennis courts have been completely covered with eight transportable classrooms in four buildings that had to be craned into place in sections, plus a toilet block.
There are 158 Year 7s and a large Year 8 intake of 195 girls, which the Education Department says was another reason behind the temporary build.
Education Minister John Gardner insists the Kingswood school was the right choice for the pilot. That’s despite its highly constrained site and the fact that, when a $5 million permanent development is completed later this year, only one of the three courts will be usable again.
Beginning in May, the permanent, more compact project will include modular buildings with eight classrooms, two multipurpose rooms, and a new reception area with meeting rooms. The dance studios and fitness centre will also be upgraded.
By October all the temporary buildings should be gone, leaving “outdoor learning decks” overlooking the single remaining court.
The only other major outdoor areas are the main courtyard, which the school has landscaped with new plants, seats and shading from its own funds, and a single soccer pitch.
Both the temporary and permanent solutions provide capacity for 900 students. Enrolment was 541 last year. The department said this year’s total enrolment was “not yet available”.
In a statement, principal Linda Baird said sport remained “well catered for” through the soccer pitch, gym, pool, dance studios and fitness centre. Outdoor fitness equipment would be installed around the campus later this year.
“We have created spaces that promote interaction,” she said.
“Parents who have been on site in person and seen the temporary buildings have been exceptionally impressed with the quality and size of the classrooms.”
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Ms Baird said being a pilot school had “provided opportunities to create exciting units of work across all areas of the Australian Curriculum (and) build outstanding home/school partnerships with parents and caregivers”.
Mr Gardner said Mitcham was chosen as one of three pilot schools because of its “unique context as an unzoned school” and its “enthusiasm”.
“We expect the insights from their experience will be valuable as we work towards the statewide transition (of Year 7 into high schools) in 2022,” he said.
“We are confident that … students and families will see the benefits of teaching Year 7 in a high school setting.”