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Planning for New Schools in Growth Areas

Planning for new schools generally targets specific locations and corridors of population growth under the framework of Melbourne 2030 and the Growth Areas Authority. Demographic influences help shape school neighbourhood catchment areas and drive the calculation of long-term enrolments.

Growth Areas Authority

The Growth Areas Authority  was established to work with local councils, Victorian Government agencies and developers to coordinate land and infrastructure development in Melbourne’s five growth areas of Casey-Cardinia, Hume, Melton-Caroline Springs, Whittlesea and Wyndham. 

The Growth Areas Authority works with local councils to implement Growth Area Framework Plans and prepare more detailed Precinct Structure Plans.

Precinct Structure Planning

Precinct Structure Planning is a long-term, strategic planning mechanism to ensure better designed, safer and more sustainable communities in Melbourne’s growth areas.

Precinct Structure Plans are used to guide the development of new communities and major new employment areas. Precinct Structure Plans are needed to make sure new communities in Melbourne’s five growth areas have access to services, transport, jobs, shops, open space and recreation facilities.

Such planning encourages schools to locate close to community hubs, service and retail centres as well as recreation and open-space reserves. It promotes partnerships and resource-sharing with local government, and co-location with other community services.

School sites

New school sites are identified and acquired in accordance with Growth Area Framework Plans.

To facilitate long-term planning, the reservation of new school sites can occur several years in advance of a likely construction date.

In addition to whole-of-government service planning and demographic analysis, all proposals for new schools are assessed for infrastructure investment against the Victorian Schools Plan’s policy, Building Futures

Catchment criteria for establishing new schools

School planning and provision is broadly based on the following long-term enrolment thresholds:

  • new primary schools: 451+ students;
  • new secondary colleges: 1,100 students; and
  • new multi-campus secondary colleges, 1,100 students average per campus.

For existing primary schools and secondary colleges, these benchmarks are used as a target enrolment.

Every new and existing school has its long-term enrolment calculated. This assists in determining the extent of permanent and non-permanent buildings required, in revealing any entitlement shortfall, and in comparing the appropriateness of facilities with current space standards.

More information

For further information about planning new schools in growth areas, see: