Dear Sandringham Primary School Community
I’d like to share an update on interim school arrangements and plans for rebuilding our Sandy Primary.
We are working closely with the Victorian School Building Authority (VSBA) and the Department to develop short, medium and long-term plans for the future of our school, with the aim of minimising disruption for students, families and staff.
Short term: our current accommodation
We’re grateful to the Sandringham East Primary and Sandringham College communities for so generously sharing their school sites with us on a temporary basis. While everyone involved has been very supportive, this is not considered a suitable solution for the medium-term, given the impacts on all three schools and the separation of our students across two sites.
Medium term: our accommodation for the 2020 and 2021 school years
In consultation with the VSBA, we have been carefully considering the best medium-term solution for students, staff and families of all three schools. We will be informing all three school communities about this in the coming days.
I know that most families were hoping we would be able to operate from the original Sandringham Primary School grounds during the rebuild. I would like to assure you that we have given this option serious consideration over the past few weeks.
It has become clear that having students onsite during major construction would present safety risks and disrupt the learning environment for our students and staff. It would severely limit the outdoor play space available, as our temporary facilities would take up the playing field and most of the courts. And it would delay the rebuild timeframe, as construction access would be restricted by our temporary facilities and the need for additional safety precautions.
After careful consideration of this and other options, we are now planning to establish a temporary school for Sandringham Primary at the junior campus of Sandringham Secondary College (Bluff Road). The aim is for students to attend the temporary school from the beginning of Term 2, 2020, and throughout the 2020 and 2021 school years. We will be working through this with the Sandringham Secondary College community in the weeks ahead.
We believe that Bluff Road is the best location for the temporary school, because it allows:
- all Sandringham Primary School students to be located together on one site
- good access for drop-off and pick-up
- closer to Sandringham Primary school
- layout of modular classrooms will support a sense of community
- several safe play spaces for all students
Sandringham PS will have its own dedicated space on the northern grassed area of the campus and we will have access to facilities to enable specialist programs to continue. Though the finer details of the school operations are still being worked through, the VSBA will work closely with both schools to make the temporary school at Bluff Road a great space for students, staff and the community.
I understand that not being able to return to our school is disappointing, and that moving again will be difficult for some. However, after careful consideration, I believe the Bluff Road option is the best medium-term outcome for students, staff and families until our school is rebuilt.
Planning for the rebuild: share your thoughts
We are now planning for the rebuild of Sandringham Primary on the original school site. We can’t yet be definite about the timeframe for this. The usual timeframe to build a school is 2-3 years, but the VSBA is working hard to expedite the process, with demolition and site preparation already underway.
We’ll be seeking the school community’s input into the rebuild, with an engagement process to begin next week. There will be several ways to participate and you can find out more about them in the attached flyer:
Thank you all for your continued support and understanding as we work through these plans for the future of our school.
Yours sincerely,
Louise Neave
Principal
