Staff and students at Willyama High School will begin Term 1 of the 2024 school year on schedule, albeit at different schools’ premises depending on their cohorts. It comes after mould remediation works were revised to be more extensive and would not be complete before the school’s start date.
In response to the works that are expected to take some time, a plan is also being developed to operationalise the school during 2024 where all parties agree that it’s best for Willyama High School to operate at a singular site that provides all its learning resources in one place.
However, while the relocation of facilities takes place, Willyama High School will operate in three separate Curriculum Stage groups with the interim solution guaranteeing students can continue learning while allowing qualified and experienced hygienists to complete works at the school.
Three local schools have committed their support to the learning community of Willyama High School, and from Thursday, February 8 (for Years 7, 11, and 12) and Friday, February 9 (for Years 8, 9, and 10), all students will be supported by school staff to commence learning in one of three locations:
Stage 4 (Years 7 and 8) will be located at Broken Hill North Public School in available classrooms. Broken Hill North classes will be condensed into some of the school’s building utilising previously unused classrooms, making other buildings available for Willyama classes. Separate recess and lunchtimes will operate so as not to impact the primary school’s break times.
Stage 5 (Years 9 and 10) will be located at Morgan Street Public School on the primary site. Morgan St will relocate most of its classes to the infants site, allowing Willyama students to occupy buildings dedicated to them.
Stage 6 (Years 11 and 12) and Special Education Classes will start the year at Broken Hill High School. Staff have consolidated the timetable and rooming organisation to provide accessible learning spaces for the Special Education classes and important specialist classrooms and resources for the delivery of the HSC Curriculum.
“I am proud that public schools have sprung into action to help develop a plan for Willyama’s return to face-to-face learning in time for Day 1, Term 1 2024,” Willyama High School Principal Grant Shepherd said.
“I thank our entire school community in advance for adopting the changes to make this work. Please be assured that we are working around the clock to minimise disruption and come together as quickly as possible.”
School Infrastructure NSW leadership teams and the NSW Teachers Federation representatives in each school have been working proactively with the NSW Department of Education support staff to develop solutions and ensure no student will be disadvantaged.
“We thank Willyama HS staff and students for their understanding with these plans and are incredibly grateful to the Broken Hill North PS, Morgan Street PS and Broken Hill HS communities for their generosity in adjusting their school operations to accommodate Willyama students and teachers,” Far West NSW Director of Educational Leadership, Peter Macbeth, said.
“We are privileged in Broken Hill to have a strong public education community and staff in each of the schools have not hesitated to offer support to the school community from Willyama High School.
“An independent occupational hygienist is continuing to evaluate the condition of Willyama HS and will provide the Department with a detailed assessment detailing remediation requirements when their investigations are complete”, Mr Macbeth concluded.
A further update will be provided in the next week ahead of Day 1, Term 1, including detailed responses to questions raised over the coming days. For anyone with questions about the delivery of curriculum in 2024, email [email protected].
Term start dates for Broken Hill High School will have Years 7, 11, and 12 commence on Thursday, February 8, and Years 8, 9, and 10 begin on Friday, February 9. Across the primary schools, Years 1-6 return on Thursday, February 8 at Morgan Street Public School, Alma Public School, Broken Hill Public School, Railway Town Public School, and Burke Ward Public School. Kindergarten resumes on Monday, February 12 at each of the aforementioned schools. Preschool begins on Thursday, February 8 at Broken Hill Public School and on Monday, February 12 at Alma Public School.
