Small school’s closure certain

AFTER more than one-hundred-and-sixty years servicing Dunnstown and surrounds, St Brendan’s Primary School will permanently close its doors at the end of the year.

The institution has faced a decline in registrations for some years, with its closure confirmed for next following no new enrolments and the departure of four grade 6 students.

Principal, Inez French, said although news of the impending closure is upsetting, it isn’t surprising.

“Our numbers have been going down for a number of years,” she said. “So, this isn’t unexpected but still very, very sad.

“We were projected to have eight students for next year and the Victorian Qualifications and Registration Authority’s requirement is 11.

“We had no juniors, no foundation, no year 1 and no year 2, and no year 6 students. We weren’t getting kids coming up through the lower classes and that’s probably what did this.

“This is a real significant loss for the community. We’ve had some families with three or four generations going through the school.”

Ms French said previous attempts to attract enrolments were unsuccessful, and that Dunnstown’s ageing population may have been a factor in their drop in numbers.

St Brendan’s Primary School also has one full-time and two part-time teachers as well as about seven support staff, all of whom will need to look elsewhere for work following the 2023 school year.

With the school community given time to process the loss over the holidays, Ms French said the remainder of the year will be dedicated to celebrating the institution and its impact.

“We’re going to get a committee together to look at ways to celebrate the school which will involve reaching out to families and students,” she said.

“I’ve only been at the school here for eight years, so it’ll be everyone that came before us, they all had a big hand in making Dunnstown what it is.

“Dunnstown’s a very resilient community. They’ve still got their football, their netball, they’re a very strong community-minded town so they’ll keep thriving.”

Celebrations will likely take place in term four around November and December.