A game plan for our future

Now in the thick of Winter Sport season, many of us have found ourselves bundled in green and gold supporter-wear on the sidelines of sport fields with frost still crisp underfoot.

Sport is something that brings us together. It unites us in our desire to see our young people become the best version of themselves. Sport also is a community builder and connector, and an important part of a holistic education. Whilst the students benefit from physicality, leadership and team building skill; parents, carers, families and old Grammarians revel in the time to chat, laugh and build relationships.

This, and many of the aspirational projects outlined in our Masterplan, require careful planning and management of funds to achieve. We are in a strong financial position as a school, but significant investments such as these require special consideration.

Approximately 26% of the Bulleen property, or roughly 16 acres, has been leased to the State for up to 10 years as part of the North East Link Project. The mandatory temporary acquisition of part of our site was an unexpected, yet ultimately advantageous scenario for our school. A fair and reasonable agreement was sought to cover the land lease, as well as the cost of the facilities lost that required replacement.

We have been able to allocate a portion of these funds to help support the replacement of the Bulleen Pavillion, a much-loved but tired facility that no longer fits the contemporary needs of our students, families and wider community. The new pavilion has been purposely designed to be multi-use. School Council and the Senior Leadership Team deliberately wanted the new facility to be not only used for a broader school and community sports program, but also be an educational space, a meeting and gathering space and have function capabilities. The total cost of the new facility is expected to be approximately $20 million, meaning it will require community support to bring it to life. I encourage you to read more about this exciting project here.

Decisions like this are part of the future-proofing piece that is much of the focus of School Council. We aim to retain the wonderful charisma of our school today, whilst providing contemporary learning and co-curricular spaces and safeguarding against the variables of tomorrow.

In our day-to-day life, we all make decisions that ensure our future, not only for ourselves, but for our families, our children, our grandchildren and beyond. Whether big or small, they signal our desire to see our legacy continue, and to invest in what is important to us for the future.