Bungendore High School students are learning in demountables at a nearby public school. Photo: Bungendore High School Facebook.
Bungendore schoolkids will be split across two campuses under a new proposal.
The NSW Department of Education had pushed to build the new Bungendore High School at the Majara and Gibraltar streets precinct, but it backed down in September 2024.
It will now be built on a four-hectare site on Birchfield Drive.
According to recently lodged plans, the Majara Street site will be upgraded to house students until the new school is built.
It means some kids will be learning at the Majara Street site, and others at the existing Bungendore Public School (where students had already been studying in demountables).
“It is anticipated that the proposed Bungendore High School Temporary North Campus will commence operations at the start of the 2026 academic year for approximately 110 students and 15 teachers, however exact student and staff numbers will be subject to final enrolments and the operational needs of the school,” according to the proposal.
The proposed upgrades for the Bungendore High School Temporary North Campus (the North Campus) include new demountables, landscaping, outdoor facilities (including a basketball court and shade coverage) and staff parking.
The Majara Street site has a combined area of about 9910 sqm.
It currently features a single-storey brick building, which will be transformed into sick bays, a library, a canteen, toilets and various classrooms (including a visual art workshop and performance spaces).
Demountables will be built, along with a walkway and a stand-alone shade structure.
These will be used for specialised subjects – such as food technology, a science room and a “wood/metal room” – and more storage.
“By utilising the existing building and limiting the demountable structures to single storey, the visual impacts on the streetscape and the adjoining Mick Sherd Oval will be minimal,” the plans state.
The North Campus is located 300 metres northeast of Bungendore’s commercial centre, while the existing Bungendore Primary School is located to the south.
Under the proposal, the campus at the public school will be known as Bungendore High School (South Campus).
While teachers may be asked to move between the campuses as needed, students will stay on one of the campuses throughout the school day.
Staff will be able to park at the back of the existing brick building, which will be accessible from the building’s south.
The plans also propose five ‘kiss and drop’ zones along Majara Street and 20 bicycle spaces.
Once the site is no longer needed as a temporary school, it will be returned to its owners (which are Queanbeyan-Palerang Regional Council and Crown Land).
“The proposal utilises a currently vacant [and] underutilised public administration building and temporary demountable buildings requiring minimal construction works and disruption to the community,” the documents state.
Previously prepared plans for the Bungendore High School project were withdrawn after the NSW Government changed its location to Birchfield Drive.
The new Bungendore High School is scheduled to open for Term 1 in 2027.
You can have your say on plans for the Bungendore High School Temporary North Campus until 21 July.
