Queensland builder-developer MAYD has revealed the first look at its major North Kirra beachfront development, lodging amended plans that reduce the number of apartments and increase the proportion of larger residences.

The project is planned across a substantial 4,742 sqm amalgamated site spanning seven lots at <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/new-apartments/2-6-pacific-parade-bilinga-qld-4225">2-6 Pacific Parade</a> and 27-33 Golden Four Drive in Bilin​ga, directly opposite Nor​th Kirra Beach.

<a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/developers/mayd-group">MAYD</a> secured the site for $32.5 million in 2025, in what was one of the Gold Coast's largest property transactions of the year.

The development will be delivered across two stages, with the first stage carrying an estimated gross realisation value of around $360 million.

The latest amendments seek to reduce the overall apartment count and shift the project further toward the owner-occupier market, with larger residences designed for buyers wanting considerably more space than traditionally offered in a beachfront apartment.

The residential mix will include townhomes, oversized two-bedroom apartments, substantial three-bedroom residences and four-bedroom homes.

MAYD has appointed Cera Stribley to lead the architecture and interiors, with the Melbourne-based design practice drawing on the beachfront setting through a series of ocean-facing terraces and heavily landscaped balconies.

Strong horizontal forms and curved balconies will define the exterior, with subtropical landscaping integrated throughout the building to soften the built form and increase the connection between the residences and the beachfront.

The project will also include an extensive collection of resident wellness and lifestyle facilities, continuing the broader shift across the Gold Coast's luxury apartment market toward larger homes supported by resort-style amenity.

<img alt="MAYD" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="d1bcbb05-e659-4b47-8bd4-1e595315e2ad" src="https://s3.ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public/inline-images/Screenshot%202026-08-27%20at%202.05.03%E2%80%AFPM.png?VersionId=jj0XEud1X1DuLt7_KyElhjMdZGOXmLHP" />

MAYD Founder Todd Mould said North Kirra was increasingly appealing to buyers attracted to the more established, lower-density character of the southern Gold Coast.

"North Kirra presents one of the most compelling luxury residential opportunities currently emerging in Australia, combining absolute beachfront with the character and authenticity that buyers are increasingly seeking, and the same sense of tight-knit community that defined Burleigh and Currumbin perhaps 10 or 15 years ago," Mould said.

"With Gold Coast Airport on its doorstep, it also offers a level of accessibility that broadens its appeal across almost every market demographic."

The project comes as the southern Gold Coast continues to attract an increasing share of high-end apartment development and buyer activity.

Kirra in particular has emerged as one of the region's more tightly held beachfront markets, with its relatively low-density character, established surf and hospitality scene and proximity to Gold Coast Airport differentiating it from the higher-density markets further north.

Mould said those characteristics had informed the approach MAYD and Cera Stribley had taken to the project.

"We've worked closely with Cera Stribley to create a vision that is deeply connected to its surroundings," he said.

"Inspired by the coastline itself, the architecture has been shaped around space, privacy and resort-style living, creating a collection of homes that reflects the next generation of luxury on the southern Gold Coast."

MOTIV Managing Director Carly Cottam, who has been appointed to market the project, said buyer attention had continued to move south along the Gold Coast.

"Purchasers who may once have defaulted to Broadbeach, Main Beach or Surfers Paradise are increasingly recognising the value of a genuine beachfront location that offers lower density, strong amenity and a more established sense of community," Cottam said.

"Kirra has a powerful combination of growing demand and genuine scarcity. Beachfront supply is inherently constrained, the area remains relatively low density, and buyers are increasingly placing a premium on locations that feel established, uncrowded and authentic rather than heavily developed."

Cottam said the proximity to Gold Coast Airport was also proving increasingly important for interstate and second-home buyers.

"Being minutes from Gold Coast Airport makes it particularly compelling for interstate buyers, frequent travellers and second-home purchasers who can access an authentic coastal lifestyle almost immediately after stepping off a flight."

The acquisition takes MAYD's active development portfolio to more than $500 million, with the North Kirra project representing one of its largest undertakings to date.

MAYD is targeting an early 2027 launch.

Joel Robinson

First look at MAYD's North Kirra mixed-use precinct

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Castle Hill, the longtime hub of the Hills District, has been one of the major beneficiaries of Sydney's Metro expansion, with improved connectivity helping drive continued population growth, development and buyer demand across the Hills District.

But despite that growth, the suburb has seen relatively few major new apartment projects brought to market over the past 18 months.

Hills District developer Reve Group is looking to fill that gap with <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/new-apartments/nova-r-ve-castle-hill-2-garthowen-crescent-castle-hill-nsw-2154">Nova Rêve</a>, a major new mixed-use precinct on the corner of Garthowen Crescent and Old Castle Hill Road, a short walk from Castle Hill Metro Station and Castle Towers.

[smartcode_project:default project_id=152737 project_image_fid=377679]

The project will comprise three residential towers alongside a hotel, restaurants, cafes and a skybar, more than 1,600 sqm of ground-floor retail and almost an acre of landscaped gardens.

It represents the largest project undertaken by Reve Group, the development arm of the Kassis family, which has been building across the Hills District for more than 30 years through Kassis Homes.

[smartcode_project:default project_id=152737 project_image_fid=377675]

Nova Rêve also represents a significant step up from the family's first apartment development, Grand Rêve, which was delivered nearby on Garthowen Crescent.

Grand Rêve introduced larger, house-like apartment layouts and premium inclusions including Wolf and Sub-Zero appliances to the Castle Hill market.

Nova Rêve takes that approach to a precinct scale, combining the residential component with hospitality, retail and substantial public and resident landscaping.

[smartcode_project:default project_id=152737 project_image_fid=377685]

Reve Group Managing Director Sam Kassis said the project reflected the family's three decades of building in the Hills, which has evolved from trophy homes on quarter-acre blocks to larger-scale apartment development.

"Grand Rêve was our first apartment project here and it showed us what this pocket of Castle Hill could be. Nova Rêve is the refinement of that idea: not just apartments, but a place the whole suburb can use," Kassis said.

A key part of that approach is the hotel, which has been designed to operate as an amenity for the wider Castle Hill community rather than solely hotel guests.

It will include restaurants, cafes, skybars and all-day dining, alongside conference and event facilities catering to business functions, community groups and private events.

At ground level, more than 1,600 sqm of shops and cafes will open onto the surrounding streets and landscaped areas.

Almost an acre of gardens designed by Land and Form Studios will run through the precinct, incorporating pathways, seating, barbecue areas and children's play spaces.

[smartcode_project:default project_id=152737 project_image_fid=377680]

Reve Group's Romio Georges said creating an active ground plane had been central to the planning of Nova Rêve.

"There are gardens with pathways, barbecues, seating and play areas, shops and cafes opening onto the street, and a hotel with restaurants and a skybar that anyone in Castle Hill can walk into," Georges said.

The project's elevated position on one of Sydney's highest ridgelines will also provide apartments with outlooks toward the Sydney skyline, surrounding parkland and the Blue Mountains.

More than 80 per cent of the apartments will occupy corner positions, with Turner responsible for both the architecture and interiors.

&nbsp;

[smartcode_project_cta:default project_id=152737]

<h3 data-end="3697" data-section-id="q3n5ak" data-start="3672">&nbsp;</h3>
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Nova Rêve arrives as Reve Group bets on Castle Hill's next growth phase

A collection of just 25 large-format apartments and penthouses overlooking Goodwin Park is entering the Coolangatta market, with <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/new-apartments/marea-residences-coolangatta-27-27a-dixon-street-coolangatta-qld-4225">Maréa Residences</a> combining a low-density, residential-only approach with uninterrupted park and Pacific Ocean outlooks.

Located at 27 Dixon Street, Maréa comprises three and four-bedroom residences alongside a limited number of dual-level penthouses, with the project positioned between Goodwin Park and <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/developments/coolangatta-qld-4225">Coolangatta</a>’s coastal precinct.

Construction has commenced, with completion currently estimated for late 2027. Three-bedroom residences are priced from $1.8 million.

[smartcode_project:default project_id=150999 project_image_fid=374005]

The project has been designed around its northern outlook across the park, with the building’s architecture, landscaping and material palette intended to establish a connection with the neighbouring green space. The residences have been configured to maximise natural light and views across Goodwin Park towards the ocean.

Inside, the material palette incorporates timber, stone and brushed brass, complemented by curved detailing and ambient lighting. Kitchens and bathrooms carry the same natural material approach, while residences also include basement parking, storage and lift access.

Maréa’s penthouses are arranged over two levels and include private pools, adding another layer to the project’s focus on larger-format apartment living. Across the development, residences are configured with three or four bedrooms rather than the broader mix of smaller apartment types commonly found in larger projects.

[smartcode_project:default project_id=150999 project_image_fid=374010]

Resident amenity is concentrated at rooftop level, where landscaped entertaining terraces and pools take advantage of elevated views across Coolangatta and the Pacific Ocean.

The project has so far been particularly well received by local owner-occupiers and downsizers, according to Urban Activation Property Sales and Marketing Director Matt George, with the residential-only format, construction quality and northern park outlook among the features resonating with purchasers.

“The uninterrupted northern aspect overlooking Goodwin Park has been a key point of difference, with buyers attracted to the sense of serenity and open space the park provides, while still enjoying easy access to the ocean and being within walking distance of the lifestyle and amenities Coolangatta has to offer,” George said.

[smartcode_project:default project_id=150999 project_image_fid=374002]

“The combination of high-quality construction, a residential-only building, park outlook and proximity to the beach has resonated strongly with the local downsizer market.”

The Dixon Street address is within walking distance of Coolangatta Beach and the broader southern Gold Coast coastline, including the surf breaks at Snapper Rocks and Kirra. Coolangatta’s cafés, restaurants and retail are nearby, while Gold Coast Airport is also within close proximity.

[smartcode_project_cta:default project_id=150999]

Maréa Residences brings parkside apartments to Coolangatta

Melbourne developer PDG has secured Victorian Government approval for its $1.5 billion Southbank development <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/new-apartments/the-one-1-queens-bridge-street-southbank-vic-3006">The One</a>, clearing the way for the long-dormant riverfront site opposite Crown to finally be developed.

The Minister for Planning has approved the project at 1-29 Queens Bridge Street, with the Department of Transport and Planning issuing the planning permit following its assessment.

The approval will allow PDG to develop the prominent 5,059 sqm site with a major mixed-use tower comprising premium apartments, including branded residences, a luxury hotel and boutique office space.

PDG acquired the site in late 2024, with its position directly opposite Crown's main entrance and near Melbourne's Arts Precinct making it one of Southbank's most significant remaining development opportunities.

<img alt="PDG" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="3933013e-6332-4386-b9be-089df05caf17" src="https://s3.ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public/inline-images/Screenshot%202026-08-27%20at%209.29.22%E2%80%AFAM.png?VersionId=sITIgBqDL0N3VNSMwWEmF5UA.uvcsRyu" />

Designed by COX in collaboration with ODO and PDG, the tower's architecture draws on the movement of the Yarra River, with six vertical pleats running the height of the sculpted facade.

The project will also see the heritage-listed Queens Bridge Hotel restored and incorporated into the development&nbsp;with new hospitality and public uses, including a rooftop venue.

A significant component of The One will be its residential amenity.

More than 5,000 sqm of resident facilities will be delivered across a single level, making it one of the largest consolidated residential amenity offerings proposed in an Australian apartment development.

The planning approval also incorporates a major upgrade of Queensbridge Square, which PDG will deliver in partnership with the City of Melbourne.

<img alt="PDG" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="73167fcd-1031-4b6f-a408-a064cfe45ed1" src="https://s3.ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public/inline-images/Screenshot%202026-08-27%20at%209.29.17%E2%80%AFAM.png?VersionId=Pf1AEWxw6SNmBqR0zQW5lyEze.MtxgFp" />

The existing square will be revitalised as a new civic and pedestrian space along the Yarra River, strengthening the connection between the project, Southbank and the riverfront.

PDG Founder and Managing Director Vince Giuliano said the approval represented a major milestone for a site which has remained largely underutilised for more than 15 years.

“This is the most significant Planning Permit approval Melbourne has seen in recent years,” Giuliano said.

“For more than 15 years, this site has remained underutilised. This approval enables us to deliver a project that will contribute meaningfully to the revitalisation of Southbank, restore and reactivate an important heritage building, and create a new civic and hospitality destination for Melbourne.”

The latest approval follows an earlier planning permit issued by the City of Melbourne covering demolition works across part of the site at 9-29 Queens Bridge Street. Those demolition and early works are already underway.

PDG has also started generating early interest in the residential component from owner-occupiers ahead of a planned public launch in early 2027.

PDG secures approval for $1.5bn Southbank apartment development, The One

Local developer Harridan is seeking to turn its Woolloongabba apartment project into the first stage of a broader transformation of Burke Street, using a new 16-storey mixed-use building to establish a greener pedestrian connection toward the rapidly evolving Boggo Road transport and knowledge precinct.

The South East Queensland developer has filed plans for 154 apartments on the <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/new-apartments/4-burke-street-woolloongabba-qld-4102">southern side of Burke Street</a>, where its proposal has been designed alongside a wider vision by LatStudios for the street.

That vision positions the southern side of Burke Street for buildings of 15 storeys and above, while envisaging lower-rise development of up to five storeys on the northern side to transition into Woolloongabba's existing character housing. It also proposes wider pedestrian verges, deep planting, new street trees and upgrades to the pedestrian approach to Boggo Road Station.

The Harridan development itself has been designed by Brisbane-based Arqus Design and will comprise 154 apartments across 16 storeys. The mix is weighted heavily toward two-bedroom apartments, with 121 proposed alongside 10 one-bedroom and 23 three-bedroom residences. There will typically be around 14 units per floor.

A lower-ground car park and three podium levels will accommodate 156 resident parking spaces, along with visitor and commercial parking. There will also be 154 resident bicycle spaces and 40 visitor bicycle parks.

&nbsp;

Harridan is a family-owned developer and part of the Holmwood Highgate Group, with more than three decades of development activity across South East Queensland. Its portfolio spans residential, commercial and industrial property, with current residential projects including Riverbank on Byron in Bulimba, Esperance Residences in Carina and The Precinct at Kinross Road in Thornlands.

Wooloongabba has been popular for apartment developers, particularly since the announcement of the 2032 Summer Olympics games in Brisbane.

While there have been a lot of development applications, it has failed to materialize into real supply.&nbsp;

Sarazin has been the major player in the area. They are under construction at Murcia Residences, on the fringe of East Brisbane and Woolloongabba. They have just launched <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/new-apartments/the-stanley-residences-woolloongabba-8-trafalgar-street-woolloongabba-qld-4102">The Stanley Residences</a>, in Woolloongabba on Trafalagar Street. They also have Nuage coming soon on the nearby <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/new-apartments/nuage-woolloongabba-14-wellington-road-woolloongabba-qld-4102">Wellington Road</a>.

First look: Harridan plans Burke Street transformation beside Boggo Road transport hub

Education

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GUEST OBSERVER
The 30% of Australians who live outside a capital city are experiencing a period of rapid change. A new era of food and crop production prosperity is being driven by technological disruption and farm business consolidation. This is occurring alongside ballooning unemployment, poorer health outcomes, and social dislocation in regional communities. We need to find long-lasting solutions to this disparity.
Last financial year, agriculture was the largest contributor to Australia’s GDP growth and the fastest-growing sector in the nation. Meanwhile, in October 2017, youth unemployment in outback Queensland hit 59.2% at a time when employment rates in inner Brisbane for 15-24 year-olds were hovering at 6%. Youth unemployment sits around the 20% mark in many regional areas across Australia.
The challenges facing regional Australia will not be solved by a single new mine, a quick job-creation scheme, or a flurry of bus tickets to the city. Instead, we need sustainable solutions that give regional Australians the chance to leave welfare behind, transform their job prospects and contribute to society as skilled workers. The best first step would be to give regional Australians better access to tertiary education.
A problem for everyone
The majority of Australia’s 40 universities operate regional campuses. From Broome to Burnie to Bundaberg, 25 Australian universities have them. There are 68 regional campuses in total, located in every state and territory, with the exception of the ACT. Most of these campuses undertake research in areas like precision agriculture, organics, aquaculture, medicinal cannabis production, plant genetics and plant science. They’re building expertise relevant to our agriculture-driven economic prosperity. Yet the people living around those campuses don’t all benefit from them.
<hr>
<img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/197896/original/file-20171206-31114-whxkz2.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&amp;q=45&amp;auto=format&amp;w=754&amp;fit=clip" alt="">
<hr>
Australia’s regional campuses educate 20% of the nation’s tertiary students – more than 280,000 people. They could enrol many more, but proposed federal government policies would shut the door on many promising students. For example, proposals to make students pay for enabling places would act as a strong disincentive to take up study in the first place.
The goal of providing university access to 40% of the population has largely been met in metropolitan centres. But most regional areas are well below that participation target. Often, they are barely halfway there.
Since budget loadings, benefitting all regional campuses, were introduced in 2004, reviews have recommended extra funding for students enrolled at a regional university. This was proposed in recognition of the extra costs of delivering appropriate learning and teaching and the need to deliver career opportunities to regional people. These loadings were applied but have been successively wound back since that time.
The whittling away of regional loadings means such universities are at a substantial disadvantage. The current tertiary funding formula is too uniform. Students receive the same base level of funding for their degree in almost every case. This may suit a university with 50,000 students in a capital city. But it simply doesn’t cover the cost of many courses on much smaller campuses outside urban areas.
Regional universities also find it hard to attract international students, who provide important additional revenue to many metropolitan universities.
These factors mean it’s essential to prioritise the promise of economic sustainability and opportunity over the notion of higher education policy equality. Regional students merit more specific, targeted support across a range of degrees.
A new regional deal
A new approach to regional higher education would address many of these problems. Based on our research at Southern Cross University, I’ve suggested such an approach to the current federal government review into regional, rural and remote education. It would include:
<ul>
<li>
10,000 Commonwealth supported enabling places for regional Australians, distributed according to regional need and demand
</li>
<li>
$50 million per year for four years to help all 25 universities with regional campuses catch up
</li>
<li>
a new regional loading, in recognition of the higher costs of regional education delivery.
</li>
</ul>
As the Regional Universities Network (the RUN group) has advocated, regional university campuses need a new policy approach. Only regional universities can provide education at a reasonable cost without forcing people to face the upheaval of moving hundreds of kilometres, leaving family members behind and competing in the unaffordable housing markets of Sydney and Melbourne.
<img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/88537/count.gif?distributor=republish-lightbox-basic" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1">Local start-ups, local businesses, local health providers, and local arts performers all deserve a chance to thrive. A new funding approach will empower regional campuses to create more opportunities for the people they serve. It will help reduce inter-generational welfare dependence among a significant cohort of families, and bring additional income into communities. It will enable regional universities to educate more teachers, nurses, engineers and small business-people to work productively in their own backyards. Above all, it will translate that talent in the backyard to the front yard and then to the rest of the world.
Adam Shoemaker, Vice Chancellor, Southern Cross University
This article was originally published on <a href="http://theconversation.com" target="_blank">The Conversation</a>. Read the <a href="https://theconversation.com/a-new-approach-to-regional-higher-education-is-essential-to-our-economic-future-88537" target="_blank">original article</a>.
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j.ballantyne1990-6AQqhLzZaK

A new approach to regional higher education is essential to our economic future: Adam Shoemaker

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The Victorian Government has given the green light for the first stage of the new Footscray Learning Precinct (FLP), which will include the redevelopment of Gilmore College for Girls and Footscray City Primary School following a commitment of $10.6 million in May's State Budget.

Hayball has been engaged to complete the master planning and advance designs for all sites in the precinct, including a new junior secondary campus. They are also the architects for the vertical learning schools currently under construction in Richmond and South Melbourne.

In what is being hailed as a first for Victoria by the Government, the FLP aims to better connect early childhood, primary, secondary and tertiary education together in three local ‘hubs’.

The vision for the precinct is one where state-of-the-art facilities, such as a STEM learning centre, sports buildings and a performing arts venue, can be shared between schools, Victoria University and the wider community.

<figure><a class="colorbox colorbox-insert-image" href="https://res.cloudinary.com/dz9xllyip/image/fetch/q_auto:good/https://s3-ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public/pictures/article-images/flp_lead.png" rel="gallery-all" title="A glimpse at the Footscray Learning Precinct. Image: State Government of Victoria"><img alt="" class="image-article-full-width-580px" height="360" src="/sites/urban.melbourne/files/styles/article_full_width_580px/public/pictures/article-images/flp_lead.png?itok=th_R2q6E" title="A glimpse at the Footscray Learning Precinct. Image: State Government of Victoria" width="580"></a>

<figcaption>A glimpse at part of the plan for the Footscray Learning Precinct. Image: State Government of Victoria</figcaption></figure>Construction of the first stage is due to begin in 2018, and completed in time for the 2020 school year. This stage includes:

<ul>
<li>Upgrading facilities and expanding capacity at Footscray City Primary School. Additions include a three-court indoor sports and recreation building.</li>
	<li>Refurbishing and modernising Gilmore College for Girls.</li>
</ul>
Key proposals for future stages include:

<ul>
<li>Reconfiguring Gilmore College for Girls as a co-educational school. It would become one of two junior (Years 7-9) secondary campuses in the precinct, with the other being a new vertical school to be built in Seddon at Pilgrim Street</li>
	<li>Transforming Footscray City College into a senior secondary campus (Years 10-12), with a nearby STEM Centre delivered in partnership with Victoria University.</li>
	<li>Building a performing arts centre at either the primary school or Gilmore College for Girls</li>
	<li>Establishing an integrated early learning centre at the primary school in partnership with Maribrynong City Council.</li>
</ul>
<figure><a class="colorbox colorbox-insert-image" href="https://res.cloudinary.com/dz9xllyip/image/fetch/q_auto:good/https://s3-ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public/pictures/article-images/south_melbourne_primary_01_1341x1000.jpg" rel="gallery-all" title="South Melbourne Primary School and Richmond High School. Images: Hayball"><img alt="" class="image-article-full-width-580px" height="190" src="/sites/urban.melbourne/files/styles/article_full_width_580px/public/pictures/article-images/south_melbourne_primary_01_1341x1000.jpg?itok=xnPTRj4f" title="South Melbourne Primary School and Richmond High School. Images: Hayball" width="580"></a>

<figcaption>South Melbourne Primary School and Richmond High School. Images: Hayball</figcaption></figure>Urban.com.au discussed Hayball's appointment to master plan the FLP and how they will draw on their experience in the sector with Hayball Director Richard Leonard. This follows from a <a href="/news/a-discussion-on-vertical-modes-of-learning-with-hayballs-richard-leonard">previous discussion</a> from two years ago on the advent of vertical modes of learning.

Urban.com.au: Hayball has considerable experience in the education sector and has built up an impressive body of work. How has/will this experience inform(ed) the design of the FLP?

Richard Leonard: The Footscray Learning Precinct is truly ground-breaking – it’s never been done before in Australia.

The project integrates education opportunities and facilities from cradle to grave, taking into consideration requirements from the community and future citizens. In a region that’s growing at a tremendous rate like the inner west, education is clearly an agent for transformational change in an urban context.

We have yet to put down pen to paper in terms of design– but what I can tell you is that it will bring together all of the experience, research and creative minds at the practice into a single project challenge.

UM: Hayball has also been at the forefront designing the first vertical schools here in Victoria, with more on the way. What model(s) can we expect for FLP?

RL: The entire model for the FLP is completely new. The interesting aspect is that there’s a broad spectrum of education facilities integrating together, from an early childhood centre, primary schools, secondary schools and a university. There’s are spread across three distinct precincts of learning within the suburb. This new model of linking places of learning with the community is the next frontier for education in Australia.

There’s actually a vertical junior secondary school envisaged for the precinct, which will be home to students in years seven to ten. The site is relatively small, but the value of integrating with the entire learning community means that we’re able to make the most of the smaller pockets of land in the inner city, because schools can share facilities with other schools nearby or with community facilities such as libraries, sports grounds etc.

UM: Is FLP an opportunity to test new ideas around teaching and learning?

RL: Yes it will be, but in a very different way, in the sense that it’s for all students at all stages in life. The concept of integrated cradle to grave education is a game changer, as is the way this entire precinct will link to the community and other service providers.

The inter-connected model allows schools to work together in terms of developing a consistent curriculum, sharing facilities, systems and resources, and ensuring pedagogies are streamlined so students can move from primary to secondary to tertiary education seamlessly. Overall, it’s improving the holistic approach to teaching and learning, providing students with better opportunities, staff with better resources, and creating better transitions for students.

From a design perspective, as this model has never been done before, we’ll certainly be gaining insights as to how we can support the inter-connected model through urban planning, interior design and architecture.

UM: How do you approach designing an education precinct rather than say a campus? What are some of the challenges and opportunities?

RL: Like any major project, the challenge is how we bring a number of stakeholders (schools), community groups and the council together in the visioning and decision-making process.

The other challenge – and opportunity I suppose – is that because there’s no design models to base this project on, we’ll be setting a new benchmark in terms of integrated learning precincts.

UM: How does the Footscray context inform the design of these schools both at a macro and micro level?

RL: The interesting thing is that the FLP is divided into three precincts – while they are all geographically close, they all have different cultural context and the communities are very different. So we have to take this into consideration.

The Department of Education quotes some astounding figures in terms of growth in Footscray – by 2040, there will be an 80% increase in the overall population, and not just children. As such, there’s a real need to address the future needs of the entire society, not just students.

One of the other things to touch on is that Footscray has always been home to a number of important education institutions. Victoria University and many of the schools have been there for decades so we’ll be taking that into our design consideration. The difference with this project is that while we’re creating a handful of new learning facilities, our primary goal is to assist with the integration and alignment of very significant institutions, community and service providers in the precinct.

In this way, education is at the centre of this model, and it’s being used as a method for transformational change in the urban environment, which is particularly important for the inner west of Melbourne. That’s the really exciting bit!
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Laurence Dragomir

Hayball's Richard Leonard discusses the new Footscray Learning Precinct

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In recent times it has been a race of sorts between the University of Melbourne's Parkville campus and the Clayton domicile of Monash University to see which institution can deliver the most impressive new build facilities across their respective campuses.

Urban.com.au last month highlighted Monash University's <a href="/news/monash-clayton-facilitates-another-grand-design-gesture">grand design gesture</a>, the new Biomedical Learning and Teaching Building, which will begin construction shortly. Not to be left behind, University of Melbourne have also moved to create a new design showpiece, titled the Western Edge Biosciences (WEBS) building.

Kane Constructions have begun early works on WEBS which includes the demolition of the current Faculty of Veterinary and Agricultural Sciences Building, and subsequent site works. Construction proper is expected to begin later this year, post-Kane Constructions' targeted October 2017 completion of the early works.

<figure><a class="colorbox colorbox-insert-image" href="https://res.cloudinary.com/dz9xllyip/image/fetch/q_auto:good/https://s3-ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public/pictures/article-images/image208_0.jpg" rel="gallery-all" title="Western Edge Biosciences. Image: University of Melbourne"><img alt="" class="image-article-full-width-580px" height="336" src="/sites/urban.melbourne/files/styles/article_full_width_580px/public/pictures/article-images/image208_0.jpg?itok=Yp4p2p2u" title="Western Edge Biosciences. Image: University of Melbourne" width="580"></a>

<figcaption>Western Edge Biosciences. Image: University of Melbourne</figcaption></figure>According to the builder, other firms involved in the delivery of WEBS at the tertiary provider's Parkville campus include Aurecon, Hassell, Donald Cant Watts Corke, Irwinconsult, Norman Disney &amp; Young and McKenzie Group Consulting.

Along with design lead Hassell, Semaphore provided a wayfinding strategy for the project which will be the first stage in a larger master plan to be rolled out over the years to come.

Within the distinctly green facade, the intention is to create an environment designed to foster world-class outcomes for biosciences teaching, research, and training.

According to <a href="https://ourcampus.unimelb.edu.au/western-edge-biosciences-program">University of Melbourne</a>, "It will improve research performance and learning experience in the biosciences, and help train the next generation of bioscientists, vets, and doctors. The program will also meet requirements for the global accreditation of the Doctor of Veterinary Medicine program in 2020, safeguarding the only accredited veterinary course in Victoria."

<figure><a class="colorbox colorbox-insert-image" href="https://res.cloudinary.com/dz9xllyip/image/fetch/q_auto:good/https://s3-ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public/pictures/article-images/image214_2.jpg" rel="gallery-all" title="Adding to Melbourne design fabric. Images: UoM, Ben Kreunen &amp; John Wardle Architects"><img alt="" class="image-article-full-width-580px" height="234" src="/sites/urban.melbourne/files/styles/article_full_width_580px/public/pictures/article-images/image214_2.jpg?itok=BQU2okqp" title="Adding to Melbourne design fabric. Images: UoM, Ben Kreunen &amp; John Wardle Architects" width="580"></a>

<figcaption>Adding to Melbourne design fabric. Images: UoM, Ben Kreunen &amp; John Wardle Architects</figcaption></figure>WEBS joins a strong list of buildings that University of Melbourne have either developed directly or have had a hand in developing over recent years. Builds such as the Business and Economics building, Peter Doherty Institute, Bio 21 and the Melbourne School of Design are prime examples.

Most recently completed was the Arts West Redevelopment building designed by ARM Architecture and Architectus; it too was built by Kane Constructions to a value of $66 million.

WEBS will join two further projects University of Melbourne currently has in development. Builder Cockram is working on the latest addition to the Bio21 medical research precinct whilst the future home of the Melbourne Conservatorium of Music on Southbank is cleared and awaiting construction commencement.
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silvermb

University of Melbourne adds another design showpiece to their Parkville campus

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<img src="https://counter.theconversation.edu.au/content/74614/count.gif?distributor=republish-lightbox-advanced" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1">
GUEST OBSERVER
Selective high schools in Australia are both popular and controversial. Many more children seek enrolment in them than gain entry. 
Public commentary since the late 1990s has accused these schools of being both hijacked by private coaching colleges, and racially unbalanced — enrolling disproportionate numbers of “Asian” students.
To properly understand the nature of selective schools today, you have to go back to when they first opened. 
<h2>Why do we have selective schools?</h2>
Selective schools have never operated in isolation from broader historical forces — including Australia’s connected histories of racial exclusion and immigration.
The selective school system in New South Wales, for example, which has the largest concentration and longest history of selective schooling, is a relic of when secondary schooling was the destination of only a minority of young people, mostly from the middle or upper classes.
Secondary schooling was not universal in Australia before the 1960s, and it was only in the 1980s that everyone had the opportunity to complete Year 12.
The NSW selective high schools system was founded between the 1880s and the 1910s. 
The schools were to offer students a meritocratic “ladder of opportunity”. That is, they would be open to everyone, regardless of wealth or social class, so long as academic entry requirements were met. This, and the absence of religious criteria, set them apart from private schools. 
<h2>Selecting whiteness</h2>
However, the foundations of selective schooling in Australia were always deeply raced and classed. 
Despite being accessed by many working class students, their credentials were geared towards middle class occupational groups. And their essential whiteness was ensured by several factors:
<ol>
<li>
Their establishment period coincided with the establishment of the White Australia Policy, which restricted non-Europeans from migrating to Australia.
</li>
<li>
Aboriginal children could be legally excluded from the feeder primary schools and often were.
</li>
<li>
White Protestant middle class cultures of the time dominated both the entry tests and the curriculum inside the schools.
</li>
</ol>
Non-British migrants arrived in Australia in larger numbers from late 1940s. As early as the 1930s, many children of European Jewish refugees attended selective high schools. 
But from the 1960s to the 1980s, the children of non-English speaking migrant families were more often categorised as educationally disadvantaged, and rarely seen as “displacing” the academic opportunities of Anglo-Australians.
<h2>Falling out of favour</h2>
During the 1960s and 1970s, selective schools fell out of favour with policymakers and many parents. They were mostly replaced by comprehensive high schools, which enrolled all students within a given area, no matter their test scores. 
Selective high schools were disparaged as old fashioned and elitist. It was also argued that selection at the age of 11 or 12 was too young to set children on a certain path. 
<h2>The revival</h2>
The revival of selective schooling from the late 1980s accompanied a new commitment by the NSW state government to the education of the “talented” child. 
Academically gifted children, it was argued, were neglected in the one-size-fits-all classroom. 
During the same period many white, middle-class families moved to private secondary schooling, responding to policies of “school choice”. 
Both these developments coincided with increased middle class migration from east and South East Asia. 
<h2>Coded racism in media commentary</h2>
By the late 1990s, Australian print media began focusing on the dominance of Asian students in selective school entrance examinations, and on the impact of “too many Asians” on schooling cultures. 
The resurgence of white nationalist politics at the time was relevant to these debates. Such politics sought to normalise the whiteness of institutions like schools. 
Our analysis of media coverage in the early 2000s uncovers the coded racism that underpinned public anxieties about selective schools. 
Media commentary focused on the “fairness” of the selection process itself, indicating that Asian students were using coaching services to gain an unfair advantage. 
Our research into the use of academic coaching by Chinese-Australian families demonstrates that far from “gaming” the system, parents were attempting to mitigate the disadvantages produced by a competitive, marketised, and culturally biased school system.
<h2>The need for historical awareness</h2>
Since the late 1990s, public commentary about selective schooling has often failed to address historical complexity in at least two ways. 
Firstly, it tends to use the category of “Asian” in sweeping cultural terms rather than in reference to historically differentiated people. 
Asians are cast as a singular group who are then made an easy target of blame for the unfairness of the system. 
Secondly, the history of selective schooling is often misunderstood, containing uncritical assumptions about the “good” of a meritocratic system. There tends to be a silence around the histories of racialised exclusions in education and in selective education in particular. 
“Asians” in selective schools are positioned as interlopers or breakers of heritage, and other non-white groups including Indigenous Australians tend to be rendered invisible altogether. 
We need public debate that challenges - not normalises - the conditions of white privilege in a multicultural settler-colony, not least within our education system.
Helen Proctor is associate professor, University of Sydney and author for The Conversation. She can be contacted <a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/helen-proctor-2646" target="_blank">here</a>.
Arathi Sriprakash is lecturer in Sociology of Education, University of Cambridge and author for The Conversaiton. She can be contacted <a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/arathi-sriprakash-225113" target="_blank">here</a>.
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jchancellor-FAypfDUnLy

Selective schools’ long and tangled history with race and class

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The first sod at South Australia's King George Avenue site in North Brighton has been turned to create the state's largest disability precinct.
A partnership between Minda, a non-government disability support organisation, and the AEIOU Foundation for children with autism.
The $2.3 million AEIOU centre, is funded by a $891,000 grant received through the National Stronger Regions Fund (NSRF) and donation of land by Minda under a long-term lease.
When built, the 720m2 purpose-built centre will feature four classrooms, therapy rooms, a motor skills room, parents’ retreat, and 160m2 roofed outdoor play facilities.
Stage 2 of the development will include 11 single-story group dwellings, four single-storey residential flat buildings, and two three-storey residential flat buildings as replacement accommodation for people Minda support.
A lifestyle precinct will be built with four buildings offering medical suites, day programs, child care and recreational facilities.
<img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dz9xllyip/image/fetch/c_scale,w_580,q_auto:good/https://s3-ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/po.images/2017/03/14/Adel_AEIOU_Cam2.jpg" alt="">
Alan Smith, chief executive officer said the precinct will respond to calls by South Australian families for greater access to vital early intervention, in order to create positive lifelong outcomes.
“With 1 in 100 children diagnosed with autism, the clock is ticking on the short-term development window where we know a true permanent difference can be made," he said.
“Since opening our first AEIOU centre in Adelaide in 2014, we have provided affordable and effective autism early intervention to more than 40 South Australian families.
"Our new centrally located Brighton centre will ensure even more children will have access to life-changing early intervention programs each year and receive the ongoing support they need.
“AEIOU sincerely thanks the National Stronger Regions Fund (NSRF) for its significant financial contribution to this project, and to disability support partner Minda for their generous donation of the parcel of land on which we will be located.”
Cathy Miller, chief executive officer, Minda, welcomed the start of construction of the AEIOU Centre and Stage 2 of its broader $160m+ Master Plan development.
“Minda’s Master Plan aims to create a vibrant community hub that offers leading edge accommodation and support for South Australians of all ages with disability, and we are pleased to align with AEIOU Foundation because it shares very similar values and opens up the prospect of future collaboration in areas such as research, training and development,” Ms Miller said.
“With the introduction of the National Disability Insurance Scheme it is now more critical than ever to establish partnerships with other sector-leading organisations like AEIOU to complement our own support model, and ensure that South Australians and their families receive whole-of-life support over time if they need,” she said.
AEIOU Foundation’s centre is expected to be complete in late 2017, with Stage 2 of Minda’s Master Plan expected to take about 18 months.
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First sod turned on SA’s largest disability support precinct

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In a low key process held mostly over the summer break, land owners and developers have had the chance to offload their prime Fishermans Bend holdings to a blue chip buyer, with The Victorian School Building Authority, Department of Education and Training and the Fishermans Bend Taskforce jointly on the prowl for additional sites capable of accommodating further education facilities.

An <a href="http://www.schoolbuildings.vic.gov.au/Pages/Fishermans-Bend-EOI.aspx">Expressions of Interest</a> campaign is currently drawing to a close, requesting private landowners and developers to sell or lease land located within one of Fishermans Bend's four major precincts: Montague, Lorimer, Sandridge and Wirraway.

Parameters for the Expressions of Interest campaign include a site ideally no less than 4,000 square metres and with multiple street frontages.

The eventual site or sites will likely mirror South Melbourne Primary School's <a href="/news/hayballs-south-melbourne-vertical-school-wins-on-an-international-scale">internationally award-winning design</a>, with that project's construction beginning in earnest after the festive break.

<figure><a class="colorbox colorbox-insert-image" href="https://res.cloudinary.com/dz9xllyip/image/fetch/q_auto:good/https://s3-ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public/pictures/article-images/image17fbv.jpg" rel="gallery-all" title="South Melbourne Primary School. Image: Hayball"><img alt="" class="image-article-full-width-580px" height="365" src="/sites/urban.melbourne/files/styles/article_full_width_580px/public/pictures/article-images/image17fbv.jpg?itok=sTFUqJh0" title="South Melbourne Primary School. Image: Hayball" width="580"></a>

<figcaption>South Melbourne Primary School. Image: Hayball</figcaption></figure>Appointed builder ADCO Constructions will deliver the new multi-level, Hayball-designed campus alongside expansive community spaces, with the intent of effectively integrating the new school with its Montague Precinct surrounds. The main school building is expected to begin rising above ground during April, after onsite excavation is complete.

The Victorian School Building Authority's push into vertical campuses across the inner city and the requested Fishermand Bend site of 4,000 square metres plus suggests that additional open space is also on the agenda, side by side with new vertical education facilities.

The benefits of Integrating community into the design of new schools is outlined by Hayball’s Sydney Studio Director David Tordoff, <a href="http://www.educatoronline.com.au/news/opinion-integrate-community-into-the-design-of-schools-229649.aspx">within this article</a>.

As was <a href="/news/vertical-schools-to-feature-at-australian-smart-skyscrapers-summit-2017">outlined last week</a>, vertical schools will also be on the agenda for the upcoming Australian Smart Skyscrapers Summit which will be held next month in Melbourne.

<figure><a class="colorbox colorbox-insert-image" href="https://res.cloudinary.com/dz9xllyip/image/fetch/q_auto:good/https://s3-ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public/pictures/article-images/image18fb.jpg" rel="gallery-all" title="The first, with more to follow within Fishermans Bend. Image: Hayball"><img alt="" class="image-article-full-width-580px" height="365" src="/sites/urban.melbourne/files/styles/article_full_width_580px/public/pictures/article-images/image18fb.jpg?itok=ZW4s3N8f" title="The first, with more to follow within Fishermans Bend. Image: Hayball" width="580"></a>

<figcaption>The first, with more to follow within Fishermans Bend. Image: Hayball</figcaption></figure>
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First one, now more schools on the agenda for Fishermans Bend

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With the recent approval of the Victorian Government of a $43 million Richmond Vertical Secondary School project in Melbourne, construction of vertical schools is proliferating across the country.

Benefits of vertical schools range from the ability of students to access a greater variety of facilities and proximity near transport networks, as well as an increased capacity for a high concentration of students.

This comes off the back of the recognition of the South Melbourne Primary School project, currently underway on Ferrars Street, awarded the Future Project of the Year Award at the 2016 World Architecture Festival in Berlin.

The vertical government primary school is set to accommodate up to 525 students upon completion. The Fishermans Bend community will also see integrated community facilities on site including a community learning centre. It is the first vertical school in Victoria but mirrors trends taking off across the country.

Among other vertical campuses on the horizon around Australia, a vertical school has already been completed in Perth’s CBD and the NSW government has committed to four new vertical schools.

While vertical schools have long been a feature internationally, they challenge traditional models of learning and education in Australia. Looking towards the future of integration between learning environments and high-rise urban construction, the <a href="http://www.skyscrapersconference.com.au/">Australian Smart Skyscrapers Summit 2017</a> will feature an in-depth exploration of the issue.

Education Specialist Peter Lippman will interrogate the issue of whether vertical schools are merely a passing trend or rather a representation of a greater paradigm shift in the Australian context.

With a career based in researching, writing about, designing and creating activity-based learning environments for the future, Mr Lippman is the founder of Places Created for Learning, an evidence-based design practice. PCL specialises in creating activity-based learning environments, consulting with schools and design firms nationally and internationally.

Mr Lippman will examine the key educational affordances and constraints for building vertical schools. Finally, the Summit will highlight key lessons learned historically and internationally from vertical high-rise schools.

Urban.com.au is a media partner of the <a href="http://www.skyscrapersconference.com.au/">Australian Smart Skyscrapers Summit 2017</a>.
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partner_content

Vertical Schools to feature at Australian Smart Skyscrapers Summit 2017

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Those who pushed for Fishermans Bend to host a primary school will be feeling somewhat chuffed with the news that the Hayball-designed project has scored a gong at the World Architecture Festival in Berlin.

South Melbourne Ferrars Street Primary School as it will be known, cleaned up in the Education – Future Projects category, beating out an international field of projects to claim the prize. 10 other entrants were vying for the title, encompassing architects from countries which included Vietnam, Taiwan, Russia, UK, Turkey, Morocco and Bangladesh.

Held late last week, the World Architecture Festival is a three-day event for architects and interior design professionals, culminating in the presentation of awards for design merit across dozens of categories.

<figure><a class="colorbox colorbox-insert-image" href="https://res.cloudinary.com/dz9xllyip/image/fetch/q_auto:good/https://s3-ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public/pictures/article-images/image38_6.jpg" rel="gallery-all" title="Hayball's winning entry alongside fellow WAF finalists"><img alt="" class="image-article-full-width-580px" height="345" src="/sites/urban.melbourne/files/styles/article_full_width_580px/public/pictures/article-images/image38_6.jpg?itok=_Kdg_ENm" title="Hayball's winning entry alongside fellow WAF finalists" width="580"></a>
<figcaption>Hayball's winning entry alongside fellow WAF finalists</figcaption></figure>On news of Hayball's win, firm Director Richard Leonard issued the following statement:

<blockquote>
It’s an incredible honour to be recognised on a global scale for our work on South Melbourne Ferrars Street Primary School in Victoria, Australia in the Education – Future Projects category at the WAF Awards. As the first vertical school in the state, the project is both experimental, innovative and enthralling.
What we’re most proud of is the combination of a learning hub with a community centre for the local residents to enjoy, which embraces the connection between learning and recreation, students and neighbours.The school will be the educational home to 525 students and will include an early learning centre, multi-purpose community rooms and indoor and outdoor multi-purpose sports courts across a sleek, light-filled building spanning five storeys.
Inside, the school invites students to learn in an open atrium that connect the ground floor to the ceiling, offering endless possibilities to all who enter.
In a precinct that is one of Australia’s largest urban renewal areas and expected to swell to 80,000 residents over the next 40 years, future proofing educational facilities is a critical factor in ensuring a suburb can evolve and behave according to the needs of its residents. With this primary school which offers more than the traditional spaces for learning, we’re building a new model for education that caters to more than just students, but the broader community.
<cite>Richard Leonard, Director, Hayball</cite>
</blockquote>

<figure><a class="colorbox colorbox-insert-image" href="https://res.cloudinary.com/dz9xllyip/image/fetch/q_auto:good/https://s3-ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public/pictures/article-images/img_8436.jpg" rel="gallery-all" title="Early works have been completed"><img alt="" class="image-article-full-width-580px" height="346" src="/sites/urban.melbourne/files/styles/article_full_width_580px/public/pictures/article-images/img_8436.jpg?itok=dwNaXLY0" title="Early works have been completed" width="580"></a>

<figcaption>Early works have been completed</figcaption></figure>Kane Constructions have completed early works onsite, with a contractor for the main works to be announced shortly.

The project's <a href="http://www.schoolbuildings.vic.gov.au/Pages/Schools/South-MelbourneFerrars-St.aspx">website</a> indicates that the new facility is expected to be operational by January 2018, with student enrolments open from the latter part of 2017. Spanning five storeys, South Melbourne Primary School will be Victoria’s first vertical school with $44 million allocated to the project over the 2016-2017 State budget.

In collaboration with City of Port Phillip, Hayball have also created a new streetscape/public realm for the Ferrars Street Education and Community Precinct. Over a 5,000sqm site, the school and surrounds have been designed as a showcase for common integrated education and communal facilities, while also considering the needs of pedestrians, cyclists and ease of access to nearby public transport.
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Hayball's South Melbourne vertical school wins on an international scale

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The Deputy Premier and Minister for Education, James Merlino, this morning announced work to acquire a site in Docklands for a primary school will begin immediately.

On top of the new Docklands primary school, the <a href="http://www.schoolbuildings.vic.gov.au/Pages/Schools/Inner-Melbourne-New-Schools-Package.aspx">Inner-city New School Package</a> will see:

<ul>
<li>Identification of sites and the commencement of planning for a new primary school in North Melbourne.</li>
	<li>Identification of sites for both a primary and secondary school at Fishermans Bend.</li>
	<li>Secure a site to expand Albert Park College by five classrooms.</li>
	<li>Deliver the remaining funding for South Melbourne Park Primary School and Prahran High School.</li>
	<li>Open the new Richmond High School and Ferrars Sreet Primary School in 2018.</li>
</ul>
It is expected that 90,000 students are forecast to enter Victorian schools over the next five years and 5,000 new places in the inner-city will be eventually be created through the initiatives listed above.

<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="350" scrolling="no" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/sxhGwy2VGrU" width="100%"></iframe>

A Victorian Government media release states that inner-city enrolment boundaries will also be changed so kids living in Docklands will be able to go to the new Ferrars Street Primary School and University High School in Parkville.

Renders of Victoria's first vertical school to be built on Ferrars Street can be seen in our <a href="/news/victorias-first-vertical-school-to-rise-in-south-melbourne">August 2016 article</a>.
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Alastair Taylor

Deputy Premier announces expanded inner-city school building programme

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Australia is the the third most popular country for higher education among parents considering international university education for their children, a new survey by HSBC reveals.
In all, 38 percent of parents from 15 countries rated Australia as one of their top destinations from a list of 50 countries, according to HSBC’s The Value of Education - Foundations for the Future report.
Australia is also a cheaper education destination compared with several countries such as the US, with the average annual tuition fees for international university students being US$26,136 per year. 
The number of international students enrolled in universities outside their home countries is expected to rise to more than 8 million worldwide by 2025, up from 4.5 million students now, according to the Institute of International Education.
This presents Australia with a clear opportunity to cash in on the growing education market.
Graham Heunis, head of Retail Banking and Wealth Management for HSBC Australia, said, “This data underscores the contribution that education makes to the Australian economy. It is already Australia’s third largest export earner - behind only iron ore and coal – and is expected to grow further as parents from the Asia Pacific, in particular, seek an international university education for their children.” 
The number of international students in Australia is up by 11% from 2015 with almost half a million enrolling here so far this year. Better job prospects, exposure to new cultures, international experience and language skills are considered to be among the benefits of study abroad. 
“However, offshore education comes at a higher cost, with living expenses and air fares on top of tuition fees. Early planning and taking advantage of foreign exchange movements can help parents overcome these financial barriers,” said Graham. 
The HSBC research shows Australia was the preferred choice of Indonesian parents, with 14,833 Indonesian students currently enrolled to study here. A fifth of all student visas for Australia are issued to Chinese nationals (Department of Education and Training 2016). 
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