Western suburbs numbers review

ENROLMENT numbers in western suburbs schools have been thrust into the spotlight amid a rising student population and the impending closure of Loreto Nedlands.

The Loreto Ministries Board surprised parents and the broader community with its announcement last October that the school would close by the end of 2023.

The board said a report confirmed the demographic changes in the catchment area were affecting the school’s financial viability in an increasingly competitive education landscape.

A spokesperson for Education Minister Tony Buti told Business News that all children were guaranteed a place at the public school in their local intake area.

“Families from Loreto Nedlands who are looking to enrol their children in a public school will be assisted through the North Metropolitan Education Regional Office,” the spokesperson said.

Catholic Education Western Australia also said it would help all Loreto students searching for a new Catholic school.

“Other Catholic schools in the area are aware of the news and we will be working with these schools to provide support to families who wish to enrol their children at these Catholic schools,” CEWA executive director Debra Sayce said in October.

The closure of a western suburbs school runs counter to Department of Education efforts to expand facilities to accommodate the student population in the area.

The $70.6 million Bob Hawke College in Subiaco opened in 2020 and will be undergoing an expansion to double capacity to 2,000 students.

“The opening of Bob Hawke College has taken enrolment pressure off Churchlands Senior High School, which is now experiencing a planned decrease in enrolment,” Mr Buti’s spokesperson said.

Churchlands Senior High School was considered Western Australia’s largest school, with 2,842 students in 2020 before Bob Hawke College opened.

The department recorded 2,564 students at the school in the most recent semester.

A $15 million double-storey modular building for Shenton College, which has about 2,700 students (and growing) was announced in November.

However, a plan to build a $60 million secondary school on the former City Beach High School site has been in limbo since a state government announcement in 2016.

Mr Buti remained tight-lipped about a City Beach High School update, but his spokesperson told Business News a long-term plan for western suburbs schools was ongoing.

“The Department of Education has put in place a number of measures to address enrolment growth in western suburbs schools and is also developing a strategy to ensure the necessary long-term plans are in place for education in these popular areas,” the spokesperson said.

“The department reviews the student enrolment projections for each school on an annual basis.

“Schools experiencing growth in student enrolments are closely monitored to ensure that strategies can be implemented to manage the projected increases from within the local intake area.”

In November, then education minister Sue Ellery said the western suburbs was an increasingly popular area for families.

“The Department of Education will also begin development of a strategy to address enrolment growth in the western suburbs, which will provide government with recommendations on solutions that will deliver for local students,” she said.

A multi-million-dollar investment into school infrastructure is something both CEWA and the state government are pursuing.

A CEWA report found there were about 74,400 students enrolled in 158 Catholic schools in WA in 2022.

“More parents than ever before are choosing to send their children to Catholic schools, with enrolments up by more than 10 per cent over the past ten years,” Ms Sayce said in the report.

The CEWA report said it would need to invest about $200 million to complete its new school construction program over the next five years.

“In 2022, more than 74,000 Catholic school students were entitled to, but did not take up a place in, a government school,” the report said.

“If these students were to take up government school places to which they are entitled under legislation, the state and Commonwealth governments would bear significant additional costs to accommodate this.”

CEWA and Loreto Ministries have been contacted for updated comment.