Prep Castle Opening Celebrations

On Thursday, 31 August, 2017, Hillcrest opened our doors to the final stage of the Prep-2 precinct, with the highly-anticipated grand opening of the “Castle.” The special occasion was celebrated with our Year 12 students walking hand-in-hand with the Prep students, ushering them in to their brand new learning space, as teachers, and local media stood by to watch the festivities.

The unique and innovative educational facility sees the past, present and future collide. With its sandstone castle walls, turret and ramparts, and overlooking its own lake, the Castle borrows its architecture from the past, to invoke imagination and creativity, both now and into the future. Inside the learning spaces, opportunities abound, with vibrant and flexible spaces, modern play equipment and an abundance of state-of-the-art digital technology.

The vision for the Prep-2 precinct was birthed in 2015 by Executive Head of College, Jeff Davis, who wanted to create the narrative of excitement and engagement in learning, from the beginning of the schooling journey. “We saw the need to create a purpose-built learning environment that would engage our young students, and bring fun and curiosity back into the classroom,” Mr Davis said. “We dreamed of a place where children would be excited to come to school and learn, and so our Castle came to life.”

The Prep-2 precinct consists of twelve learning spaces, and its location, landscape and chosen materials will encourage students to feel confident, engage in open-ended learning experiences, and connect with nature.

The link between the imagery of the past, coupled with the best 21C learning environment possible, fosters an inquisitive and adaptive mind in each student, with no limit to their creativity and learning. Students eagerly come to school each day, enthused to be guided in a sensory learning paradigm that will establish their love of learning for the rest of their lives.

Our Hillcrest Prep students are now flourishing in their new building, which will provide exciting and innovative learning experiences for many years to come.