‘Ultra-modern’ rebuilds for Rockingham and Safety Bay Senior High Schools in Premier’s pre-Budget cash splash

In a major investment for his Rockingham electorate, Premier Mark McGowan has allocated $100 million to the total overhaul and upgrade of Rockingham Senior High School and Safety Bay Senior High School. Rockingham SHS will receive $60m and Safety Bay SHS the remaining $40m, and in exclusive comments to the Sound Telegraph, Mr McGowan confirmed “everything will be upgraded”. “Both schools will be hugely improved . . . to contemporise them and to make them some of the most modernised schools in Australia,” the Premier said. Both high schools were built in the 1970s and — apart from a few sporadic upgrades in the last few years — neither has had any major developments or upgrades since then. Mr McGowan said the senior high schools would be completely rebuilt, with new classrooms, science laboratories and other modern learning environments to support teacher and student needs. The existing upgrades will be integrated into the builds and the $60m for Rockingham SHS will also help better integrate the school’s education support centre. Mr McGowan and Education Minister Tony Buti attended Rockingham SHS on Friday to make the announcement as part of the upcoming State Budget. The $100m is set to majorly improve both schools, redeveloping the sites with specialist facilities and upgraded classrooms to make them “ultra-modern” and “attractive to staff and students”. “They will be a modern educational design to ensure it’s a better learning environment for students and a better teaching environment for staff,” Mr McGowan said. The Premier said the Education Department would “start planning now” with both schools to kick the projects off as soon as possible but said the build dates were uncertain. “It will take a few years to build as they are active schools,” he said. Mr McGowan said it was likely the significant upgrades would be staggered and taken one building at a time, given the schools would still be operational during construction. “Both Rockingham Senior High School and Safety Bay Senior High School were built nearly 50 years ago,” he said. “Times have changed and the layout and design of these schools no longer support delivery of contemporary education.” Mr Buti said it was “imperative” to equip students with the best possible educational environments and tools. “Our world is changing rapidly. It’s imperative that we provide a modern learning environment for Western Australian students to succeed and then go on to be competitive beyond their schooling years,” he said. “Our goal is to ensure Western Australian students have a choice to pursue their passions at school with the appropriate facilities and learning environment to support their dreams and future pathways.”