The original bluestone school building was built in 1855 and operated as a school until 2017. The redevelopment builds on the strategic masterplan developed by Winwood McKenzie. The first stage focuses on making the buildings safe to occupy and opens them up for use: the existing buildings become a gallery alongside multi-purpose spaces for meetings, studios, offices, hospitality and events.
Key to the project is establishing the precinct for creative industries, alongside the heritage and environmental rehabilitation of the site. The Taungurung Land and Waters Council, as Traditional Owners, are central to this process. Our approach is about minimal intervention for maximum community benefit, with the buildings’ commercial viability coming back to adaptability and multiple uses.
Old Kyneton Primary School Redevelopment
A mixed-use creative and community precinct redevelopment, with Development Victoria, Creative Victoria and Working Heritage.
The site features an 1850s bluestone building that is one of the earliest government schools in the state, alongside a 1980s addition and a wide expanse of asphalt. The school had stood vacant for years, and the building was succumbing to leaking roofs, rising damp, termite damage, no subfloor ventilation, and a thermal envelope long past its use.
