Toowoomba private schools plan significant expansions, revamps

With Toowoomba enjoying a significant spike in population, many of the city’s top schools have forged ahead with major expansions and campus revamps.

Some of Toowoomba’s top-performing schools are investing tens of millions of dollars into expanding and upgrading their campuses, as the region prepares itself for a post-Covid student population boom.

Toowoomba Grammar, Downlands, Concordia, St Joseph’s and Glennie are among the seven schools that have either proposed, started work on or recently completed major constructions projects on their grounds.

Along with the creation of new learning areas and catering for entirely new year levels, many schools have started upgrading their existing campuses.

It is understood all projects will ensure the city can cater for thousands of new students who have either moved here or born of couples who migrated domestically.

As of 2021, there were nearly 30,000 kids attending either preschool, primary or secondary school in Toowoomba — up nearly 3500 from just five years prior.

Toowoomba Grammar most recently took a big step forward in the first phase of its multi-year masterplan, while Concordia has officially lodged its own plans to unite all its students onto one campus.

Here is a list of some of the major expansions occurring at a school near you.

Concept art for Concordia Lutheran College's 15-year master plan in Toowoomba, which will see the school unit all its campuses into one site on Stephen Street in Harristown.

1. Concordia Lutheran College

In a plan that will take some 15 years to fully realise, Harristown’s Concordia Lutheran College has moved forward on consolidating all its campuses onto one site.

Tipped to cost upwards of $10m, the masterplan will see the school a state-of-the-art junior school precinct at its primary campus on Stephen St.

It means the school will hope to have as many as 800 students in the one college by 2038, up from about 750 currently.

The application submitted to Toowoomba Regional Council recently also includes a proposal for more than 90 car parks and drop-off bays to meet the demand created by the new junior school.

“Concordia has entered into a contemporary learning framework, in terms of how we do teaching and learning, and the time has come for us to honour our learning philosophy by offering state of the art infrastructure,” head of college Anton Prinsloo said in July.

“It’s a 10-15 year plan that we’ve put in place, but the new junior college precinct will be in place within the next five years.”

Concept art for the upcoming Toowoomba Grammar School master plan.

2. Toowoomba Grammar School

One of the city’s most prestigious colleges is also busy, having secured a preliminary ministerial infrastructure designation for the first stage of its sprawling master plan for the East Toowoomba campus.

As part of stage one, a TGS spokeswoman said the elite school would upgrade its aquatic centre, junior school car park (to reduce traffic congestion on Herries St) and a new design, engineering and technology facility.

Concept art for the upcoming Toowoomba Grammar School master plan.

“Carpark refurbishment is expected to be completed in March 2024 and the design, engineering and technology facility is expected to open at the beginning of 2026,” she said.

“The new facilities within our masterplan will cater to existing and new students.

“We will be able to provide students with innovative and creative learning areas and access to technologies that will enhance both our curriculum and co-curricular offerings, equipping students with necessary skills for the future.”

The school is expected to know the final cost of stage one following a tender process.

St Joseph's College Mary Rice extension project

3. St Joseph’s College

In a bid to improve the student experience and attract new families, St Joseph’s in Rangeville is hoping to finish the first phase of its $10m campus expansion and upgrade by early next year.

The two-stage project will see a new car park, along with specialist science labs, gymnasium, outdoor and flexible learning spaces, nine new classrooms and toilet blocks.

According to a St Joseph’s spokeswoman, the project will revitalise sections of the campus that were first built in the 1950s.

“This expansion goes beyond bricks and mortar; it represents our dedication to forging new learning opportunities for our students by providing them with the latest in resources and educational practices,” she said.

“Our focus is always on the student and how we can enhance their learning journey.”

Toowoomba's Mater Dei Primary School has lodged plans to demolish a home covered by a character neighbourhood overlay, to make way for an expansion that will cater for an extra 100 students.

4. Mater Dei Primary School

A growing Toowoomba primary school in one of the city’s wealthiest suburbs wants to demolish a ‘unique’ but decaying home to make way for a significant expansion.

Mater Dei Primary School in East Toowoomba lodged plans with the council in recent weeks for a variation request over the land it sits on along Curzon St.

According to the school’s 2022 masterplan documents, the house will make way for the creation of new classrooms and learning buildings, catering for more than 100 new students.

The document said the expansion would also unite all grade levels into one learning environment.

“The proposed new early years precinct in the new location within the school campus will be designed and arranged to make strong connections with the heart of the school as well as the new PE covered area and the outdoor space the east of the Good Samaritan block,” it said.

Concept art for Downlands College's $14m junior school expansion. Hutchinson Builders has been appointed as the lead contractor.

5. Downlands College

One of the first schools to look at expansion recently was Downlands College which welcomed its first junior students this year following the completion of a $15m campus.

Downlands started take Prep to Year 3 students across two streams from 2023, adding an extra 176 students to the school’s population.

It completes the school’s 90-year transformation from a boys boarding house to a P-12 coeducational college.

Principal Stephen Koch said the project would not have been possible without significant funding from the Queensland government.

“We’re thankful to have received $5.7m from the state government grant by Queensland Catholic Education to aid in this project” he said.

Concept art for the proposed new creative hub at the Glennie School in Toowoomba, which has been lodged with the council. Designs by Burling Brown Architects.

6. The Glennie School

Glennie will transform part of its historic campus into a “creative hub” to nurture its students’ talents.

The school lodged plans with the Toowoomba Regional Council recently to demolish the back half of its administration building to construct the hub.

The two-stage project would see the Anglican diocese-run girls school create a series of student gathering, socialising and studying areas, including a “social pantry”.

A spokeswoman said the project had taken three years of planning before it could be lodged with the council.

“The Glennie School has a reputation of providing an excellent educational environment where young women can enjoy optimal learning experiences,” she said.

“Through the construction of this building, the School is responding to the way 21st century students navigate the all-important adolescent years of learning.

“The building will be a foundation to cater to future changes in educational delivery through design flexibility and aesthetic sensitivity, facilitating girls to feel connected to each other and engaged in school life.”

APPROVED: Glenvale Christian School has been given the green light by the Toowoomba Regional Council for a campus expansion including new learning spaces.

7. Glenvale Christian School

Sitting in one of Toowoomba’s fastest-growing suburbs, Glenvale Christian School is looking to meet the demand by starting work on several new classrooms.

Work will start within weeks on the new two-storey learning block, which will accommodate an extra 26 upper-primary students.

It will bring the total school capacity to 199 students and 20 full-time equivalent staff.

Principal Brett Munro said the school had enjoyed steady growth up until a few years ago.

“The school is celebrating its 25th anniversary this year, but it had a long period of time where it was quite small and slow steady growth,” he said in November last year.

“In the past few years, that growth has accelerated, especially because of the local growth in the area, with all these new homes, a lot of growth on the western side of Toowoomba.”

The school hasn’t stopped planning either, taking advantage of its massive nine-hectare site by proposing a full-sized athletics track and associated infrastructure to the council this month.