Westbourne Grammar is a step closer to establishing a private school in Geelong with the school principal saying “it’s time” to make a decision.
The school is in the final stages of completing a feasibility study for its third campus on land its owned at Lovely Banks since 2011, with a decision due in the next 3-6 months.
“This is one of the big decisions we have got on the horizon,” Principal Adrian Camm said.
“I don’t think it’s any secret that Westbourne Grammar holds a land holding in Lovely Banks, which is part of the north western growth corridor in Geelong.
“Those corridors are planning for an extra 110,000 residents over time…there’s obviously going to be need for further schools…we’re just deciding if we want to be part of that.”
The independent school currently based in Williamstown and Truganina has been keeping a close on the Geelong market and believes it’s identified several gaps, or unique selling points.
Mr Camm says there’d be no direct competition with Geelong Grammar as it’s a boarding school, nor Geelong College due to their disparate locations.
“And we have some points of difference, we don’t do Saturday morning sport which I think would be a drawcard for some families, we do midweek sport,” he said.
“Most of the schools in Geelong are nearing capacity, or at capacity, that’s not to say they don’t have plans for growth themselves but we think we’d offer something slightly different.”
Should the school board decide to proceed with the project the school will need to secure registration for a third campus, a process Mr Camm says is being factored into their due diligence checks.
“But we’re just working closely with the developers of those areas at the moment, who’s working closely with the Geelong City Council,” he said.
