# Victorian School Building Authority

The Victorian School Building Authority (VSBA) is a division of the Victorian Department of Education which is responsible for the construction of new government schools and infrastructure improvements of existing schools. It was established by the Andrews Government as part of the 2016 Victorian Budget.
Between 2017 and 2024, the Authority opened 96 new primary and secondary schools in the state and plans to open an additional 25 by 2026.
A number of the VSBA's new schools are so-called "vertical schools" on inner-city sites, a new concept in Victoria.

## History

During the 2014 Victorian state election, the Opposition Leader Daniel Andrews promised $1.3 billion for new schools and school upgrades. The School Building Authority was established as part of the 2016 state budget with $1.1 billion allocated for school infrastructure. This included $42 million to build and reopen Richmond High School, a school that was controversially closed 22 years earlier by the government of Jeff Kennett. The huge projects for school construction came as a result and recommendation of an analysis published by the Grattan Institute. They found that due to the state's rapid population growth, Victorian schools would need to absorb an extra 190,000 students between 2016 and 2026, requiring 7,200 new teachers and 140 to 220 new schools to be built. In 2017, Education Minister James Merlino said the state needed to absorb an additional 90,000 students over the next five years.
The removal of trees for the construction of Beaumaris Secondary College caused controversy in 2016.
In the lead-up to the 2018 state election, Andrews announced the Authority would build 100 new schools over the next eight years in order to meet Melbourne's population growth, with 45 schools to be built over the next term of government. The schools would mainly be built in the city's growing outer suburbs at an additional cost of $850 million.
In July 2022, the state government released tenders for eleven new schools. In October 2022 during the 2022 state election, Andrews announced funding for a further 25 new state schools that would be built in Victoria by 2026, with 90 schools upgraded or expanded, at a cost of $1.6 billion. This was to meet the government's commitment to build 100 new schools by 2026.

## Architecture

The scale of the school infrastructure program led the VSBA in 2017 to seek architects for its new schools, and for new permanent, modular classrooms for existing schools. A number of these classrooms were to replace existing buildings that contained asbestos. The Authority was tasked with replacing 100 of these buildings with prefabricated classrooms.
At certain inner-city locations, space was constrained, and the authority embarked on building "vertical school" campuses, a first for Melbourne. Richmond High School became the state's first vertical high school while South Melbourne Primary School was heralded as the state's first vertical primary school. Designed by Hayball, the 525 student South Melbourne Primary opened in 2018, serving the nearby rapidly growing inner-city areas of Southbank and Fisherman's Bend. The six-story campus sits on a half-acre site on Ferrars Street, adjacent to a new park built on land purchased by the state government and the City of Port Phillip in 2017. The primary school would have no formal classrooms and instead would feature a combination of indoor and outdoor spaces and a central staircase for circulation, with the architect saying it represented a new approach to density for Melbourne. The project was named Future Project of the Year at the 2016 World Architecture Festival in Berlin.
Other inner-city schools like Prahran High School, which opened in 2019, were built as vertical schools. The 650-student school is four storeys tall and is designed by Gray Puksand. COX Architecture and McGregor Coxall designed the three-story campus for Docklands Primary School in the CBD-adjacent Docklands precinct.

## Childcare centres

In 2022, the Andrews Government announced that the VSBA would build 50 childcare centres across Victoria. Part of a major $9 billion expansion of state provision of childcare, the first four centres were planned to open by 2025 and are being colocated with existing primary or secondary schools.

## List of new VSBA schools

| School | Suburb or town | Years | Status | Opened |
| Aintree Primary School | Aintree | P–6 | Finished | 2021 |
| Aitken Hill Primary School | Craigieburn | P–6 | Finished | 2019 |
| Armstrong Creek School | Armstrong Creek | P–12 | Finished | 2018 |
| Ashley Park Primary School | Doreen | P–6 | Finished | 2019 |
| Ballarto Road Primary School (interim name) | Clyde | P–6 | Under construction | 2026 (planned) |
| Bannockburn P–12 College | Bannockburn | P–12 | Finished | 2018 |
| Banum Warrik Primary School | Kalkallo | P–6 | Finished | 2024 |
| Barayip Primary School | Tarneit | P–6 | Finished | 2025 |
| Barrawang Primary School | Wollert West | P–6 | Finished | 2023 |
| Barton Primary School | Cranbourne West | P–6 | Finished | 2017 |
| Bass Coast College – San Remo Campus | San Remo | 7–9 | Finished | 2022 |
| Beaumaris Secondary College | Beaumaris | 7–12 | Finished | 2018 |
| Bemin Secondary College | Truganina | 7–12 | Finished | 2024 |
| Beveridge Primary School – New Campus | Beveridge | P–6 | Finished | 2020 |
| Binap Primary School | Brookfield | P–6 | Finished | 2024 |
| Botanic Ridge Primary School | Botanic Ridge | P–6 | Finished | 2020 |
| Bridgewood Primary School | Officer | P–6 | Finished | 2018 |
| Brinbeal Secondary College | Tarneit | 7–12 | Finished | 2024 |
| Burnside Primary School | Burnside | P–6 | Finished | 2019 |
| Casey Central Primary School (interim name) | Cobblebank | P–6 | Under construction | 2026 (planned) |
| Casey Fields Primary School | Cranbourne East | P–6 | Finished | 2020 |
| Clyde Creek North Primary School (interim name) | Clyde | P–6 | Planning | 2026 (planned) |
| Clyde Creek North Secondary School (interim name) | Clyde | 7–12 | Under construction | 2026 (planned) |
| Clyde Creek Primary School | Clyde | P–6 | Finished | 2022 |
| Clyde Secondary College | Clyde | 7–12 | Finished | 2022 |
| Cobblebank Secondary School (interim name) | Cobblebank | 7–12 | Planning | 2026 (planned) |
| Cranbourne West Secondary College | Cranbourne West | 7–12 | Finished | 2021 |
| Davis Creek Primary School | Tarneit | P–6 | Finished | 2020 |
| Deanside Primary School | Deanside | P–6 | Finished | 2022 |
| Dharra School | Aintree | | Finished | 2024 |
| Docklands Primary School | Docklands | P–6 | Finished | 2021 |
| Dohertys Creek P–9 College | Truganina | P–9 | Finished | 2019 |
| Donnybrook Primary School | Donnybrook | P–6 | Finished | 2023 |
| Edenbrook Secondary College | Pakenham | 7–12 | Finished | 2021 |
| Edgars Creek Primary School | Wollert | P–6 | Finished | 2021 |
| Edgars Creek Secondary College | Wollert | 7–12 | Finished | 2018 |
| Elevation Secondary College | Craigieburn | 7–12 | Finished | 2020 |
| Endeavour Hills Specialist School | Endeavour Hills | | Finished | 2022 |
| Eynesbury Primary School | Eynesbury | P–6 | Finished | 2021 |
| Featherbrook P–9 College | Point Cook | P–9 | Finished | 2017 |
| Fishermens Bend Primary School (interim name) | Port Melbourne | P–6 | Under construction | 2026 (planned) |
| Footscray High School – New Junior Campus | Footscray | 7–9 | Finished | 2021 |
| Gaayip–Yagila Primary School | Mickleham | P–6 | Finished | 2021 |
| Garrang Wilam Primary School | Truganina | P–6 | Finished | 2021 |
| Gilgai Plains Primary School | Kalkallo | P–6 | Finished | 2022 |
| Grayling Primary School | Clyde North | P–6 | Finished | 2020 |
| Greater Shepperton Secondary College | Shepperton | 7–12 | Finished | 2022 |
| Greenvale Secondary College | Greenvale | 7–12 | Finished | 2022 |
| Hamlyn Views School | Hamlyn Heights | | Finished | 2018 |
| Harvest Home Primary School | Epping | P–6 | Finished | 2017 |
| Homestead Senior Secondary College | Point Cook | 10–12 | Finished | 2020 |
| Horseshoe Bend Primary School (interim name) | Charlemont | P–6 | Under construction | 2026 (planned) |
| John Henry Primary School | Pakenham | P–6 | Finished | 2017 |
| Karwan Primary School | Tarneit | P–6 | Finished | 2023 |
| Keelonith Primary School | Greenvale | P–6 | Finished | 2021 |
| Keysborough Gardens Primary School | Keysborough | P–6 | Finished | 2020 |
| Kurmile Primary School | Officer | P–6 | Finished | 2024 |
| Kurrun Primary School | Officer | P–6 | Finished | 2023 |
| Kuyim Primary School | Pakenham | P–6 | Finished | 2025 |
| Laa Yulta Primary School | Mambourin | P–6 | Finished | 2024 |
| Leneva (Frederic Street Road) Primary School (interim name) | Wondonga East | P–6 | Under construction | 2026 (planned) |
| Lockerbie Secondary School (interim name) | Kalkallo | 7–12 | Planning | 2026 (planned) |
| Lockerbie Specialist School (interim name) | Kalkallo | | Planning | 2026 (planned) |
| Lollypop Creek Primary School | Werribee | P–6 | Finished | 2023 |
| Lucas Primary School | Lucas | P–6 | Finished | 2020 |
| McKinnon Secondary College – East Campus | McKinnon | 7–12 | Finished | 2022 |
| Mernda Central P–12 College | Mernda | P–12 | Finished | 2017 |
| Mernda Park Primary School | Mernda | P–6 | Finished | 2017 |
| Mickleham Secondary College | Mickleham | 7–12 | Finished | 2023 |
| Mickleham South Primary School (interim name) | Craigieburn | P–6 | Under construction | 2026 (planned) |
| Mirniyan Primary School | Clyde North | P–6 | Finished | 2025 |
| Mirripoa Primary School | Duneed | P–6 | Finished | 2020 |
| Monash Children's Hospital School | Clayton | | Finished | 2017 |
| Morwell Central Primary School | Morwell | P–6 | Finished | 2018 |
| Nearnung Primary School | Tarneit | P–6 | Finished | 2023 |
| Newbury Primary School | Craigieburn | P–6 | Finished | 2017 |
| Nganboo Borron School | Werribee | | Finished | 2024 |
| Ngarri Primary School | Manor Lakes | P–6 | Finished | 2023 |
| North Melbourne Primary School – New Campus | North Melbourne | P–6 | Finished | 2023 |
| Orchard Park Primary School | Officer | P–6 | Finished | 2021 |
| Oberon High School | Armstong Creek | 7–12 | Finished | 2021 |
| Pakenham Primary School | Pakenham | P–6 | Finished | 2019 |
| Plumpton Primary School (interim name) | Fraser Rise | P–6 | Under construction | 2026 (planned) |
| Point Cook South P–9 (interim name) | Point Cook | P–9 | Planning | 2026 (planned) |
| Point Cook South Specialist School (interim name) | Point Cook | | Planning | 2026 (planned) |
| Port Melbourne Secondary College | Port Melbourne | 7–12 | Finished | 2022 |
| Prahran High School | Windsor | 7–12 | Finished | 2019 |
| Preston High School | Preston | 7–12 | Finished | 2019 |
| Quarters Primary School | Cranbourne West | P–6 | Finished | 2023 |
| Ramlegh Park Primary School | Clyde North | P–6 | Finished | 2021 |
| Richmond High School | Richmond | 7–12 | Finished | 2018 |
| Riverbend Primary School | Wyndham Vale | P–6 | Finished | 2021 |
| Riverwalk Primary School | Werribee | P–6 | Finished | 2020 |
| Saltwater P–9 College | Point Cook | P–9 | Finished | 2019 |
| South Melbourne Park Primary School | South Albert Park | P–6 | Finished | 2019 |
| South Melbourne Primary School | Southbank | P–6 | Finished | 2018 |
| Springside West Secondary College | Fraser Rise | 7–12 | Finished | 2018 |
| Strathtulloh Primary School | Strathtulloh | P–6 | Finished | 2022 |
| Tarneit Plains Primary School (interim name) | Truganina | P–6 | Under construction | 2026 (planned) |
| Tarneit Rise Primary School | Tarneit | P–6 | Finished | 2018 |
| Tarneit Senior College | Tarneit | 10–12 | Finished | 2018 |
| Thornhill Park Primary School | Thornhill Park | P–6 | Finished | 2023 |
| Toolern Waters Primary School (interim name) | Weir Views | P–6 | Under construction | 2026 (planned) |
| Topirum Primary School | Clyde North | P–6 | Finished | 2024 |
| Torquay Coast Primary School | Torquay | P–6 | Finished | 2018 |
| Tulliallan Primary School | Cranbourne North | P–6 | Finished | 2017 |
| Turrun Primary School | Clyde North | P–6 | Finished | 2025 |
| Walcom Ngarrwa Secondary College | Werribee | 7–12 | Finished | 2024 |
| Wallan East Primary School (interim name) | Wallan | P–6 | Under construction | 2026 (planned) |
| Wangaratta District Specialist School – New Benalla Campus | Clyde North | | Finished | 2024 |
| Warralily Park Primary School (interim name) | Armstrong Creek | P–6 | Under construction | 2026 (planned) |
| Warreen Primary School | Truganina | P–6 | Finished | 2024 |
| Wayi School | Craigieburn | | Finished | 2023 |
| Wilandra Rise Primary School | Clyde North | P–6 | Finished | 2017 |
| Willowbank Primary School | Gisborne | P–6 | Finished | 2022 |
| Wimba Primary School | Tarneit | P–6 | Finished | 2024 |
| Wirrigirri Primary School | Wollert | P–6 | Finished | 2025 |
| Wollert Primary School | Wollert | P–6 | Finished | 2022 |
| Wollert Andrews Road Primary School (interim name) | Wollert | P–6 | Under construction | 2026 (planned) |
| Wollert Secondary College | Wollert East | 7–12 | Finished | 2023 |
| Wulerrp Secondary College | Clyde North | 7–12 | Finished | 2025 |
| Yarrabing Secondary School | Aintree | 7–12 | Finished | 2024 |
| Yubup Primary School | Mickleham | P–6 | Finished | 2024 |