NSW Government reconsiders merging Randwick Girls and Boys High School

By SASHA FOOT

The NSW Government will re-approach the community on merging Randwick Girls and Boys High schools as part of a promise to improve public high school options in the eastern suburbs. 

A public consultation by an independent agency will explore three options, one of which looks to understand the community’s perspective on amalgamating the single-sex schools into a co-educational campus. 

Coogee Resident Charmaine Coombes told City Hub that the community “strongly supports” merging the single-sex schools. 

“It makes no sense to duplicate resources when the schools are side by side,” she said. 

Coombes stated she is moving her children from Randwick Girls and Boys to a co-ed school, as she does not believe “segregated single-sex schools reflect society”. 

In a community survey conducted by the Department of Education in 2019, 67% strongly supported making Randwick Boys co-ed. 

But Coombes explained that reservations from Randwick Girls meant that the department “didn’t proceed”. 

Another option for the future of the schools is retaining single-sex education and increasing the intake of existing co-ed schools serving the area. 

Currently, fee-paying schools dominate in the eastern suburbs. Only Rose Bay Secondary College, South Sydney High School, JJ Cahill Memorial High School and Matraville Sports High School provide families with a state co-educational option. 

Consultation to begin in 2023

Minister for Education, Sarah Mitchell, said the consultation period begins in Term 1 next year, and a report summarising the findings will follow by mid-2023. 

Coogee MP, Marjorie O’Neill, says although she “welcomes” the opportunity for the community to share their views on the future of the high schools, she believes it may “once again” stall the infrastructure upgrades.

“In 2018, community consultation was conducted, and this was used by the NSW government to delay the major upgrades,” O’Neill said. 

Resident Coombes also acknowledged that distributing the survey “held up infrastructure upgrades to both campuses”. 

However, a Department of Education spokesperson maintains that public consultation will not affect the upgrades at both schools. 

“The consultation process is separate from current upgrades at Randwick Girls and Boys High School and will have no impact on the delivery of those works,” the spokesperson said.

The NSW Government stated in a media release last week that the project had begun. 

Randwick Girls High School shared their excitement for the works – which will deliver new facilities and building upgrades – on their social media page.