Santa Sophia Catholic College, Gables: School opens to students
Teachers and students experienced their first day of school following the opening of a multimillion-dollar high-rise Catholic College in Sydney’s northwest.
Hills Shire
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Students at Santa Sophia Catholic College had their first opportunity to experience the state-of-the-art high-rise school at Box Hill, after the college opened to staff and students.
The $150 million school, which will cater for 1860 student in Sydney’s North West Growth Area, opened to the school’s cohort on November 8.
Catholic Education Diocese of Parramatta executive director Greg Whitby told NewsLocal the landmark new school is “all about providing local students with great opportunities to learn and grow”.
“Santa Sophia Catholic College builds on what we’ve learnt through the new schools we’ve brought to the community in suburbs like Marsden Park, Rouse Hill and Stanhope Gardens.”
Meanwhile, principal Mark De Vries said the opening of the college to staff and students was an exciting time for their community.
“We’re so pleased to be able to welcome our students and staff onsite this year so that everyone can settle in,” he said.
Santa Sophia Catholic College was built in just 16 months offsite to reduce construction time.
A series of specialist learning areas, a cafe style canteen with commercial kitchens, an industry-standard creative and performing arts centre with a professional-quality sound studio, and advanced STEM facilities were included in the plans.
There is also an on-site childcare centre for 60 children, before school care from 6.30am and an after school activities program until 6:00pm featuring a homework club supervised by teachers.
“It’s so amazing,” Year 8 student Darcy Zahra said on opening day.
“The facilities here are incredible, especially the basketball court and the fact it’s on the roof is so cool. “The learning opportunities are endless and suit so many different students.”
EARLIER:
OPENING DATE FOR HIGH-RISE SCHOOL REVEALED
Hundreds of students are set to experience their first day at the multimillion-dollar high rise Catholic College in Sydney’s Northwest in just a matter of weeks.
Santa Sophia Catholic College Principal Mark De Vries said the Box Hill school will welcome its first students on November 8 — as the school community prepares to move in to their new home.
The finalisation of construction on the $150 million coeducational school — which will span six storeys filled with learning areas, creative and performance hubs, open space, sporting facilities and an on-site childcare — comes despite Covid-19 construction delays.
“This is such an exciting time for our growing community,” Mr De Vries said. “We’re so pleased to be able to welcome our students and staff onsite this year so that everyone can settle in.”
The high-rise school will cater for 1860 students ranging from Kinder to Year 12.
Mr De Vries said the college was built in just 16 months through an innovative “prefabrication strategy and game-changing industry collaboration”.
A Catholic Education Diocese of Parramatta spokeswoman said the school would welcome 1000 new students in term one next year, “after operating from smaller temporary locations for several years and 30 new teachers have been hired to support this growth”.
“Enrolment demand is extremely strong with a waiting list established for some grades,” she said.
Catholic Education Diocese of Parramatta would not specify how they would manage all its 1860 students starting at the school.
The spokeswoman did not respond to questions on what Covid guidelines would be put into place nor confirm whether parents will be allowed to attend the site on the first day.
COMMUNITY CONCERNS OVER ‘DANGEROUS INTERSECTION’
The Hills community has expressed their concern over the school’s opening — raising the alarm over the current road infrastructure being unable to cope with the influx of motorists in the area.
An intersection at Old Pitt Town Rd, Terry Rd and Fontana Dr, which is metres away from the school, has been the site of a series of serious crashes in recent months.
Residents and crash victims shared an online petition calling for an urgent upgrade at the Box Hill intersection earlier this year which attracted thousands of signatures.
Evana Geering, who started the petition, said the intersection was dangerous because of an “overlap” between the right-hand turning lanes from Old Pitt Town Rd into Fontana Dr and Old Pitt Town Rd into Terry Rd.
The petition also stated that visibility was also an issue when the intersection was banked up with cars.
With the opening of nearby school Santa Sophia in five weeks, the community expressed their concern over unfamiliar motorists trying to navigate the dangerous intersection.
Natasha Karamanis, of the Gables, was hospitalised after a serious collision at the same intersection in July.
“It’s going to be so bad when they open. And they haven’t done anything at the intersection,” Ms Karamanis told The Hills Shire Times. “When it’s busy and you’re turning you can’t see the people going straight. People are going to have to take risks.
“What it really needs is a roundabout.”
While the mother-of-four said she didn’t have a problem with the new school, she said she was “nervous” about how much busier the intersection will get.
“It will 100 per cent be more dangerous,” she said.
Ms Geering, who started the petition, said council has since installed temporary billboards on Old Pitt Town Rd calling for motorists to slow down and fixed the painted lane lines.
Yet she said their calls for a temporary roundabout fell on deaf ears.
“Santa Sophia will be open for at least a year with the intersection in the current format,” Ms Geering said. “Council has said basically all we can do is sit and wait for the lights which will likely be end of next year.”
Hills Shire Council is working on a design including the installation of traffic signals at the intersection which will have to be approved by Transport for NSW.
New 40km/h school zones on Red Gables Rd and Fontana Dr will also kick in from October 5 ahead of Sancta Sophia’s opening.
School zone signs and line markings will also be installed, according to a Transport for NSW community flyer.
A Transport for NSW spokesman said: “The school zone for Santa Sophia Catholic College at Box Hill starts operation on Tuesday 5 October.
Transport for NSW is committed to working with Hills Shire Council to address traffic flow and safety concerns for the intersection of Old Pitt Town Road, Terry Road and Fontana Drive in Box Hill.”
Hills Shire Council was approached for comment.
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