North Melbourne Primary School’s new campus name announced

North Melbourne Primary School’s brand-new campus, which will see students stream through the gates next year, has been named the Molesworth Street campus.

The state government made the announcement on August 26 after the new name was put to the community vote.

Located on Molesworth St, the new school will cater for significant enrolment growth and offer a “superb education to all local students”.

Under the plans, the school will feature a landscaped playground, an outdoor stage, tiered seating and flexi-space for events and performances as well as a competition-grade gym for basketball and netball.

A new kindergarten for three- and four-year-old children will be built on level five of the campus, including two rooms, and opening onto outdoor learning and play spaces.

It’s a big win for the community which has campaigned for three years for the school to be a second campus of the existing North Melbourne Primary School, rather than a standalone school.

North Melbourne Primary School’s Errol St campus principal Sarah Nightingale said the news of the new campus name was exciting after the school community was involved in the consultation process, adding “we may have two campuses, but we are always one school”.

“It’s exciting to see the new Molesworth Street campus, which will run as a Prep to Year Two junior campus, nearing closer to completion,” she said.

“Our Errol St campus will move to a Year Three to Year Six campus model to support continuity for our current students.”

Ms Nightingale said she was working closely with their leadership team and staff to support students throughout the transition period as best they could.

“Student learning will occur across both campuses and our goal is for each student to feel they belong on either campus,” she said.

“We have had limited space at NMPS (North Melbourne Primary School) for a number of years due to increasing enrolments, so we welcome the new campus, the additional space and learning opportunities this brings for our students.”

“It’s exciting to see the ELC (early learning and care) on level five take shape also and I look forward to building on those relationships with the provider and families in the future.”

The new campus name was revealed among 13 new schools set to open for term one, 2023.

Minister for Education Natalie Hutchins said it was “exciting to be one step closer to these new schools opening their gates to thousands of new students in our fastest-growing areas, as part of our promise to open 100 new schools across Victoria by 2026.”

“It’s so important for families and young people to feel connected to their local schools, and we’re thrilled the community has had their say on these names that really reflect the area’s culture, history and environment,” Minister Hutchins said.

The state government has provided more than $43 million in funding towards the project.

Greens state MP for Melbourne Ellen Sandell said earlier this year there was some concern that the government was pushing to make the two school campuses quite separate.

“I’m pleased that after strong advocacy by me and the local community, the government has seen sense and confirmed the Molesworth St campus will be properly integrated with the existing campus, so we’ll have one united North Melbourne Primary School community,” she said.

“This means we’ll have one campus for Prep and Years One and Two, and one campus for Years Three to Six, so all kids get to use both sets of facilities throughout their school journey.”

The construction of the new school was raised at the City of Melbourne’s June 14 meeting, which was held in North Melbourne.

A resident asked a question if there had been consideration given to the escalation of traffic and pedestrians and landscaping on the street level, which Lord Mayor Sally Capp advised the council would take on notice. •

Caption: An artist’s impression of North Melbourne Primary School’s brand-new campus.