A GROUP pushing for a new high school in the inner-west says it will work with existing high schools to ensure the best outcome for all students.
The SKY High group has been working with the Education Department on a confidential report exploring the capacity of the Seddon-Kingsville-Yarraville area to sustain a new high school.
Discussions at its annual meeting in Yarraville on Monday night focused on the need to build a unified front with existing primary and high schools.
President Janine Lloyd said Maribyrnong’s growing population should be able to sustain a new local high school.
“We have 2000 students at local primary schools already and 78per cent of them are flowing through to public high schools.”
The group is seeking to meet Education Minister Martin Dixon to plead its case.
Williamstown MP Wade Noonan said he suspected the latest Department of Education report wouldn’t find the “magic” 1100 students in the catchment area required to trigger a new school.
“Which means there’s going to be a figure in a band somewhere between 750 and 1100, which is still a very strong need. But the government is going to be very reluctant to open a brand new school in the SKY catchment because they would be mindful of drawing essentially away from schools in the area.”
Mr Noonan said the focus must be improving secondary school opportunities across the area and getting all local parents and schools to see merit in the plan.
A parent of a Footscray City College student said some parents were worried a new school would take students from the college.
But SKY High insists there is more than enough demand to create a new school without drawing students and resources away from Footscray City or Bayside colleges.
The group is inviting parents to fill out a survey on the SKY High website and Facebook page by September 14.
-Benjamin Millar
