One of Perth’s fastest-growing councils has voted to lobby for a new tertiary educational facility to be built in the region to allow the community better educational opportunities closer to home.
The City of Swan, in Perth’s east, has almost 170,000 residents – a number expected to grow by nearly 78 per cent and hit close to 300,000 by 2051.
Councillor Bryce Parry put the motion to council, which was supported by the majority of others. Credit: iStock
The City identified Ellenbrook in particular as a suitable location for a future tertiary facility at its latest council meeting, due to its anticipated population growth, availability of public transport, number of secondary ‘feeder’ schools and amenities.
Councillor Bryce Parry put the motion forward and suggested council write a letter to state and federal ministers, asking them to “consider a tertiary (either university or TAFE) institution/s be provided in the Whiteman Master Plan as a key part of their consideration.”
“The City of Swan should advocate for a tertiary institution to allow their residents the opportunity to advance their education in their local area,” he said.
The motion was passed 11 to one.
Parry said despite being a large City, there was not much land available to build on, so it was important to plan ahead.
He also said while there had been a push to stop development in the Whiteman Park area, the proposed film studio was now set to be built there and the way the land was used should be looked at from a totality point of view.
“There has been a lot of community support so far for this idea, and it is really a common-sense approach to future-proofing the area,” he said.
“If you look at the census data there are a lot of families and young children moving to the region, who in five to 10 years’ time will be looking into tertiary education. It would be great to give them an option close to home.”
Parry also has three children, and said he was lobbying hard for them as well as the community at large.
A Department of Education spokesman said there were no plans to build a new university campus at this stage.
But a spokeswoman for Training Minister Simone McGurk said the priority for new metropolitan TAFE campuses were “in growth corridors like Ellenbrook, with particular focus on building them close to METRONET train stations.”
“We are investing $243 million in new and upgraded statewide TAFE infrastructure, including in the metropolitan area,” she said.
“The TAFE sector engages with stakeholders in strategic, long-term planning including enhancing existing campuses and exploring the potential for new campus locations.”
Curtin University opened its Midland campus in 2019 but it only serves as a base for medical students in their final years of study as well as other health sciences students.
Now in one of Perth’s growth corridors, development pitches for the area are growing in number.
Ellenbrook has had several misses when it comes to development and infrastructure. In 2009, a railway line promised for the area was axed by the Barnett government – named his biggest broken promise since forming government.
The Morley-Ellenbrook METRONET line is due to open in 2024.
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