High rise classroom building reignites call for new high school

With giant interactive screens and pin-up boards, presentation spaces, tiered seating and colourful furniture, the new classroom building at Bellevue Hill Public School resembles Google headquarters

Education Minister Rob Stokes and Vaucluse State Liberal MP Gabrielle Upton tour the new classroom building at Bellevue Hill Public School. Pictures: John Appleyard

WITH giant interactive screens and pin-up boards, presentation spaces, tiered seating and colourful furniture, the new classroom building at Bellevue Hill Public School resembles Google headquarters.

Education Minister Rob Stokes on Monday joined Vaucluse State Liberal MP Gabrielle Upton (pictured) to officially open the four-storey building, which features 25 new classrooms with movable walls to create an open plan and flexible learning environment.

The $19.3 million project will boost the school’s capacity from about 600 to 1000 students over the next couple of years.

A student sits in tiered seating while watching a giant TV screen.

It also features a library, outdoor learning space, a new canteen, reading and art spaces and Wi-Fi to keep up with the latest technologies.

Principal Sue Bennett said the “unique” building contained presentation and informal spaces as well as collaborative and practical activity areas.

“The new open spaces are designed so the children learn in smaller groups to enable the teachers to cater for different learning needs,” she said.

Mr Stokes said the “state of the art” building incorporated new styles of learning to equip the students for the jobs of the future.

Children taking a class while sitting in beanbags.

Ms Upton said: “This will enable teachers to use a variety of teaching methods and emerging technologies in catering for groups and individual students.”

The near-doubling of the school’s capacity has reignited calls for a new high school in the eastern suburbs.

Bellevue Hill is just one of 10 feeder schools into Rose Bay Secondary College, which is set to exceed its capacity next year.

Wentworth Courier asked Education Minister Rob Stokes on Monday whether he would look at expanding the college or building a new high school in the east.

He said: “There are a whole range of proposals under consideration and a whole range of builds that are currently either in planning or delivery whether that be Alexandria Park, the new Cleveland St high school, Randwick north, Rainbow St or indeed what is happening here.

“We will always look for the most innovative and effective ways to meet the expected increase in enrolments into the future and obviously we are always keen to look at good ideas.”

The classroom building resembles a unit block on the outside and Google headquarters on the inside.

When pressed on whether he accepted a new high school was needed in the east, Mr Stokes said: “On the statistics that have been presented to me, we do have a number of schools in the east where there is additional capacity.

“So obviously we’ll need to make sure we are using our existing assets as effectively as possible before we look to new builds.”

Students at work in the new open plan classrooms.

Licia Heath, eastern campaign leader for Community for Local Options for Secondary Education, said the lack of public secondary places had already reached “crisis” point.

“(That’s) even before you overlay all the development that’s due to occur in our area in coming years,” she said.

“There’s an admission that we have an explosion of school-aged kids in the east without the equivalent recognition that this will flow through to our public high schools.”

Giant pin up boards are scattered throughout the new classrooms.

Ms Heath said parents’ concerns were “increasing exponentially” with the delivery of dozens of new classrooms at Bellevue Hill, Rainbow St, Randwick and Bourke St public schools.

The Courier also asked Vaucluse Liberal MP Gabrielle Upton whether she felt a new high school was needed in her electorate.

She said: “I am always making representations to (Mr Stokes) about how we could best serve my local community”.

Ms Upton said it was a “great day for my local community who have waited two years” for the new classrooms at Bellevue Hill.