Designs for the new $15.2 million Mt Lockyer Primary School plans unveiled

Designs for the new $15.2 million Mt Lockyer Primary School were unveiled on Thursday ahead of its expected opening in time for the 2022 school year.

Education Minister Sue Ellery visited the campus to present the plans to staff and students, describing the new school as one of the most modern in the State, if not Australia.

The school will be built on the existing oval, with a new oval developed as part of the project.

Site preparation works are already under way, with construction set to start in November.

Ms Ellery said the school would be built in stages to minimise the disruption to learning.

“It means that Mt Lockyer Primary School, in terms of its buildings, is going to be as modern as any primary school anywhere in WA,” she said.

“What is most important is what happens inside the classrooms, but what the classrooms look like and the space that you have got, matters as well. These designs were done by a local architect to make sure that we keep our jobs in the regions.

“(Albany MP) Peter Watson was the one who convinced us that Mt Lockyer needed not just an upgrade, but a brand new school,” Minister Ellery said.

The old school is 65 years old. The new campus will accommodate up to 648 students, with the possibility of expansion to 700.

Mr Watson said he was excited about the school’s future.

“I have been coming to this school since 2001, and I have been on the school board, and I have seen how hard they work here,” he said. “If ever a school deserves a new school, it is this one.”