Parents continue push for secondary school in Greenvale

ANXIOUS parents are leading a push to build a secondary school in Melbourne’s northwest that was earmarked more than a decade ago.

School children (14-18) raising hands in class

ANXIOUS parents are leading a push to build a secondary school in Greenvale that was earmarked more than a decade ago.

State Government land at the corner of Barrymore Rd and Glencairn Drive was set aside for a secondary school more than 10 years ago.

In 2004, residents thwarted a proposal to sell the land, but the site remains vacant.

The Education Department has revealed there are “no immediate plans” to build the school, but a spokesman said they would review enrolments and population change annually to assess the demand.

Hume councillor Geoff Porter said that the need was there.

“Hume is very quickly growing and developing in the northern corridor,” he said.

Rebecca Wright, founder of the newly established Greenvale Education Collective, slammed the department and demanded transparency around their calculated figures.

She said it was unacceptable that Greenvale students were zoned to attend high schools in Roxburgh Park and Broadmeadows when children outside of the area were attending Greenvale for earlier education.

“Going to school in their local area, the ability to do things like walk to school that we promote — you couldn’t possibly do that if you (have to) travel to Broadmeadows or Roxburgh Park,” she said.

“People are really stressed about it.”

Greenvale Primary School principal Angelika Ireland said their enrolments had climbed from more than 660 last year to close to 750 for next year.

She said families were travelling outside the area for secondary education, some as far as Rosehill College in Niddrie and John Fawkner College.

She said it made sense to have another option close by to cater for development in Greenvale west.

The sentiment was echoed by Greenvale Residents’ Association vice president Charlie Grech, who felt the issue was being treated “as a bit of a joke” by the State Government.

Yuroke state Labor MP Ros Spence said she supported a secondary school being built but it would happen once the population allowed for “the requisite number” of students.

Roxburgh College principal Fernando Ianni said there were good schools in the area that could cater for Greenvale.