Emmanuel College to become a single campus from 2025

Principal Peter Morgan said all students would then be based at the Botanic Road site which would "build a sense of community".

After providing Catholic education for more than 100 years, the Canterbury Road site would be closed.

St Joseph's Parish, which has owned the Canterbury Road site since 1914, and leases it to Emmanuel, will conduct a comprehensive community consultation "to understand the best and most appropriate use of the site once the college vacates".

A new $15 million year nine learning centre would be constructed at Botanic Road to accommodate the extra students and house the college's 9@RICE program, which begins next year.

"The goal is to complete the relocation and consolidation of all school operations on to one campus by the end of 2024, subject to the finalisation of budgets, design concepts and planning approvals," Mr Morgan said. He hoped all students would be at Botanic Road for the 2025 school year.

Mr Morgan said it was one of the most significant changes in the school's history and be the largest project the college had undertaken since its formation in 1991, which was the result of St Ann's College and CBC amalgamating.

"Collectively, these changes will enable Emmanuel College to become the leading dynamic educational provider within the region it aspires to be," he said.

He said consolidating facilities would enable the college to "deliver an exciting, first-class learning experience that will best meet the future needs of all students".

He is confident it will be delivered with minimal disruption and said there would be no job losses.

Mr Morgan said operationally it would improve the school's overall offering through increased efficiencies and economies of scale.

He said the Botanic Road facilities were in "substantially better order" and "significant sums of money" would need to be spent to bring Canterbury Road up to the same standard.

He said the decision had been made in consultation with the parish and had its support. "Both recognise the exceptional educational and financial benefits this will deliver and are working together to achieve an exciting outcome that is in the very best interests of students, and the wider Catholic community," he said.

IN OTHER NEWS:

He said the move would improve safety, which was "paramount", with the one site eliminating the need for staff and students to travel between campuses.

He said the new building would be named the Edmund Rice Centre in a nod to the school's history and a deliberate and direct link back to the Canterbury Road site. "We've already begun discussions with the parish, who owns the site about taking some of the really key artefacts and relocating them and incorporating them into the year nine centre or into (the Botanic Road) campus."

He said while acknowledging there would be some loss felt in the community that Canterbury Road would no longer be part of the college, conversations with "alumni and really key stakeholders indicate people can see and understand the real benefits of being on the one site and they tend to outweigh any of those things".

"In 2025 it will be almost 35 years since Emmanuel College was formed from those separate schools," he said.

Our journalists work hard to provide local, up-to-date news to the community. This is how you can access our trusted content: