INTRODUCTION

A high school for Kariong and the surrounding communities has been on the agenda of these communities for over 11 years. During this period of time the community of Kariong has increased as the lower cost of housing and the improved commuting facilities has seen Kariong become a magnet for young families.

Kariong is a commuter community and is therefore one of only a number of similar suburbs in Australia with such large commuter numbers. As a pointer to the presence of young families in the local community is that all pre-schools in Kariong have waiting lists and the Kariong Public School has one of the highest enrolments for the state (500 more than originally planned for in 1993 with the construction of permanent facilities). In March 1999 the Minister John Aquilina announced the commencement of Stage 3 building program of Kariong Public School, the upgrade of facilities at Henry Kendall High School and that a feasibility study would be undertaken with a view to a high school being built in Kariong. In the Kariong Connection Newsletter in March 2003, Marie Andrews gave the following commitment:

The Carr Government is continuing to look for a site to build a new high school in the Kariong area. A clear commitment has been make to build a high school at Kariong once a suitable site is identified. The Kariong and Mountains communities believe that the construction of a high school needs to be a government priority to improve the quality of life for the children of the Kariong and surrounding areas including: Somersby, Kulnura, Peats Ridge, Central Mangrove Spencer and Mount White.

In August 2003, an offer of Land at Bambara Road (off Woy Woy Road) was the catalyst for a Community meeting being called on the 18 August. A strong demonstration of community support was in evidence by the attendance of over 300 people and the high number of volunteers for the Executive Committee to investigate the range of available land in the Kariong and surround areas for the building of a high school.
SCOPE

The Executive Committee has determined that the first priority is to review all possible sites for the Kariong and Mountains High School prior to commencing discussions with the NSW Department of Education and Training (DET).

SITE CRITERIA

NSW DET provided the following abridged selection criteria for high school sites:

4 to 6 hectares (10 to 15 acres);
ideally square or width no less than half the length;
good road and frontage for buses approx 200 metres;
all services available (electricity, water, sewer);
close as possible to community;
clear of any flooding, contamination and environmental issues;
fire risk to be determined;
land zone approval by Council for school;
gradient of land 1 in 12 (1 in 20 is optimum) cleared if possible; and
good wheelchair access is required.