Calls grow for state to finish outstanding works at Kensington Primary School

Fresh calls are being made for the Victorian Government to complete long-outstanding building works at Kensington Primary School, with the school council arguing that a major upgrade project signed off years ago remains only partially finished.

School council president David Frazer has written to Education Minister Ben Carroll urging the state to fund the remaining works in Block A, the school’s original 145-year-old building, after a 2019 master plan identified the need for major modernisation.

The school received $7.365 million in state funding to upgrade the historic building, with works formally completed in 2022. But according to the school council, only around 60 per cent of the original scope was delivered after COVID-era cost escalations forced a substantial reduction in works.

In his letter to the minister, Mr Frazer said it was unreasonable for the project to be treated as complete when a significant portion of the original upgrade remained undone.

“The remaining 40 per cent of Block A has not been upgraded, despite being identified as requiring urgent modernisation more than six years ago,” he wrote.

Among the biggest concerns is disability access. More than 100 students and a number of staff still need to climb three flights of stairs to access four upstairs classrooms, with the current lift arrangement not reaching all parts of the building.

Mr Frazer said the issue came into sharp focus last year when a student with a broken leg could not access the required learning spaces.

Speaking to North West City News, he said the situation had become increasingly frustrating for the school community, particularly because the Victorian School Building Authority and the department continued to describe the project as finished.

We sort of feel like we’re being gaslit a little bit,” he said. “You contact the VSBA or the department and they say, ‘What are you talking about? That project’s completed.’”

“But we’ve only got 60 per cent of the original project or the original master plan complete.”

He said the contrast within the school building itself made the problem obvious.

“If you turn left, the school looks brand new. It’s all shiny and new carpets and painted,” he said. “But you turn right and the thing looks like it did 25 years ago.”

According to the school council, the unfinished parts of Block A still require upgrades to heating, insulation and carpets, repairs to deteriorating window frames, and acoustic treatment to classrooms. While the remaining classrooms are still usable, Mr Frazer said they were clearly below the standard the community had expected when the funding was first announced.

The frustration, he said, was not simply about the condition of the school, but the way the outstanding work was now being treated as if it were a new funding request.

“We just want to start to advocate a little bit louder than we have in the past to say, don’t as a government treat this as a new request, because it’s not a new request,” he said. “This was work that should have been completed and it never was.”

That concern is sharpened by growth in the surrounding area. Kensington and nearby Macaulay are absorbing hundreds of new apartments, with the local school community warning that population growth will place more pressure on already ageing facilities.

Mr Frazer said the issue was not about wanting extras or optional upgrades, but about ensuring the school could meet future demand with modern, accessible infrastructure.

“We are a growing school,” he said. “If our enrolments boom, then our doors are open and we’ve got to make do.”

Greens MP and Kensington Primary parent Ellen Sandell has also been pressing the issue, arguing that families should not still be waiting years after the original funding announcement for basic repairs and accessibility improvements to be completed.

In his email to the minister, Mr Frazer said the school community remained grateful for the government’s investment to date, but believed “the time has come to deliver these works in full”.

The school has invited Mr Carroll to visit Kensington Primary for a tour of the unfinished areas. Mr Frazer said the minister had previously indicated through parliament that he would be willing to meet with the school community, but that no meeting had yet eventuated.

A Victorian Government spokesperson didn't respond to questions regarding whether it would commit to finishing remaining works at the school, instead pointing to its track record of delivering school upgrades across the state.

"Our priority is – and has always been – that every child, no matter where they live, has access to a world-class public education," the spokesperson said.

"Building and upgrading schools is an investment in our kids' future and we have the largest school building program in the country - our $18.5 billion investment has seen 123 new government schools funded and delivered more than 2,300 school upgrades."

“Victorians remember what happened last time Jess Wilson's Liberals were in charge of education – ripping $1 billion out of schools and axing Free Fruit Friday – leaving families and students worse off.”

The government added that the school received $339,000 for playground upgrades and construction of a new kitchen area 2024–25 State Budget. This project is currently in the construction phase.

City of Melbourne councillor and Labor candidate for the seat of Melbourne at the upcoming state election Davydd Griffiths said, "As a former teacher, I believe our local students, families and educators deserve access to the highest quality facilities."

"Kensington Primary is a vital part of our local community."

"I have reached out to the school council president to hear about their vision for the future directly." •