Plants and plaques to mark Margaret Hendry School


Released 09/05/2019

Today I was joined by students, parents, teachers and community leaders to unveil a plaque and plant trees at Margaret Hendry School in Taylor to mark the official opening of Canberra’s 88th and newest public school.

Moments like these are very special, not just for the students and teachers, but for the local community as well. Communities naturally revolve around their local schools, whether it be because of their children, or the activities that take place in the hall or on the oval, so a new school is a big milestone and should be celebrated.

The students that attend Margaret Hendry School now will, when they’re older, be able to return with their own kids or grandkids and be able to say ‘I was one of the first students to learn here and here’s the plaque I helped unveil’.

It was great to be able to again recognise Margaret Hendry—a woman who made a tremendous impact on Canberra as a landscape architect, role model and advocate for women’s equality—with this official ceremony. Generations of students will grow up learning about her work in this city.

The ACT Government invested over $34 million in this modern school facility, which opened its doors in February and has the capacity to cater for 176 preschool and 600 primary school students. The school has also been planned to allow for an additional 150 primary school students through future expansion if required.

As at the start of Term 2, there were 276 students enrolled in this state-of-the-art public school. In the coming years I look forward to hearing about the success stories that will come out of this place of learning.

Margaret Hendry School is also the first community facility provided in Taylor. It includes two playing fields, a school hall available for community hire, as well as an oval and meeting rooms for a range of activities and gatherings.

Margaret Hendry School principal Kate Woods said the school was already a great place of learning for students.

“We’ve established a culture of learning at Margaret Hendry School that is highly personalised and targeted to children’s individual learning and developmental needs,” Ms Woods said. “It is clear that our children love to learn - we put that down to children having voice and choice in what they are learning and being able to follow lines of inquiry on personal passions and interests alongside peers and learning coaches”

The ACT Government is continuing to invest in quality public education across the ACT, including by expanding capacity in Gungahlin. In addition to Margaret Hendry School, capacity across the Gungahlin region will be increased by a further 1,200 places by 2022.

- Statement ends -

Yvette Berry, MLA | Media Releases

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