Premier

New Mernda School: More Classrooms, More Choices

04 February 2015

The Andrews Labor Government is keeping its word, building a new school in Mernda from the ground up and providing certainty for parents in the fast growing outer-north suburb.

Premier Daniel Andrews joined Deputy Premier and Minister for Education, James Merlino, at the nearby Hazel Glen College which is growing rapidly, to announce work will start on the new Mernda Central P-12 school.

The new Mernda P-12 School, to be located in Breadalbane Ave, will help ease the pressure on local parents and neighbouring suburbs after the former Liberal Government halved funding for new schools and upgrades, leaving the local school system over-crowded and under-resourced.

The new primary school will be fast tracked under the New Schools Public Private Partnership Project which will invest $223 million to build 13 new schools across the state.

The Premier also announced the expansion of the PPP tender process, requiring bidders to price and design the secondary school components of Mernda Central P-12 and Bannockburn P-12. The Government will deliver these schools in its first term.

Two experienced private sector consortia have been shortlisted to provide detailed proposals for the design, construction and 25 year maintenance of the 13 PPP schools: Learning Communities Victoria (comprising Amber, Watpac and Spotless) and Plenary Schools (comprising Plenary Group, Hansen Yuncken and DTZ).

Request for proposal tender documents will be released to the two short-listed bidders in February, with the successful bidder expected to start construction in late 2015. The 13 schools will open across the 2017 and 2018 school years.

Quotes attributable to Premier Daniel Andrews

“We’re not wasting a single minute, because kids deserve a quality local education and parents deserve certainty.”

“The Liberals neglected schools in our fastest growing areas – there were more kids in every class and fewer choices for every parent.”

Quotes attributable to Minister for Education, James Merlino

“This is one of the fastest growing areas in the whole country. They deserve schools and services that can keep up with the growth.”

“The PPP model means better facilities and ongoing upgrades, so principals and teachers can focus on what matters most: giving our kids the best start.”

Reviewed 10 February 2021

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