In July 2022, the ACT Government announced it was assigning $39.3 million to the permanent expansion and modernisation of facilities at Majura Primary School. A further 12.6 million was committed by the government in 2024 to meet higher constructions costs. The community was promised:
A new gym/hall, hard courts and green spaces
Administration facilities
All new and refurbished learning areas
Specialist learning environments
External learning and playgrounds
Opportunity for students and the community to share their ideas for the redevelopment throughout the design phase
Project completion late 2025
On July 31st, the Education Directorate presented their plans to the community, indicating that they were ready to proceed to tender. Unfortunately, these plans fell far short of what was promised:
No new gym. No new hall
One hard court for up to 1200 students
“Light touch” refurbishment of 60 year old buildings
No new external learning environments or playgrounds
Net gain of 6 classrooms for 300+ additional students, if the demountables did not remain
No Education Directorate-led engagement to obtain community ideas during design phase
Failure to adhere to ACT’s Good Consultation Guidelines
Expected to commence Q3 2025, completion 2028
In response, the P&C reached out to the community to help advocate for a better outcome and made the following requests to the Education Minister:
Pause the tender;
Engage with the community in a way which:
Meets the ACT Good Consultation Guidelines; and
Explains why they have chosen their preferred option, as well as the options they didn’t choose and why;
Give the community a plan that:
Meets the needs of 1,200 students, and
Includes enough funding to achieve that plan.
If the government cannot provide a plan that meets the baseline needs of students, they should explore alternatives to accommodating up to 300 more students on the current Majura Primary School site.
Recent developments:
In response to advocacy by the P&C and the broader community, the Education Minister and Education Directorate met with the School Board, P&C Committee, and School executives on August 21st. They acknowledged the lack of community engagement, agreed to pause the tender process, undertake broader community engagement, and initiate another master planning process. The presentation from the ED can be found here and a summary of the dicussion can be found on our updates page.
These developments are positive but there is more work to do. We have shown that community action is what moves the government. We ask you to continue to take our message to the politicians. Use the upcoming election to advocate for a better outcome for our school. Let those standing for election know that we want a school that meets the needs of our students, our teachers, and our community.
The P&C's position is that we want a concrete commitment to a plan that will meet the needs of the current and projected future enrolments at the school and includes enough funding to achieve that plan. We strongly believe that any expansion and modernisation project should move our school closer to the Education Directorate Infrastructure Specifications on all measures. Given the drawn-out timeline for this project, we also want the government to prioritize improving the conditions for students enrolled now (e.g., adequate heating and cooling in classrooms), as the first priority.