A SPORTING field the size of the Melbourne Cricket Ground will be opened at a Wangaratta school by the end of the year.
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The $250,000 project, involving a football field, turf cricket pitch and 400-metre running track, will cover four hectares at Cathedral College.
Works on the oval will begin in September alongside a $300,000 car park upgrade, which is all part of the school’s master plan to cater for students from prep to year 12.
Last week also marked the start of construction on a new $1.3 million middle school for students in years 6, 7 and 8.
Principal Adrian Farrer said the middle school would ease the transition for students into secondary education.
“We have the opportunity to blur the lines between primary and secondary schooling and we will make sure the students are well equipped to start their senior school journey,” he said.
The middle school will have eight classrooms and staff offices and is expected to be finished by the start of next year.
Mr Farrer said the Anglican Schools Commission had injected $6 million into the school over the past three years and the remaining students at the Ovens Street campus would next year be able to transfer to the new Murdoch Road site.
Mr Farrer hoped the new sporting ground would give students a sense of pride.
“They will have a place to call their own and it’s really important for any child to have that sense of belonging,” he said.
Mr Farrer said the oval would boost Wangaratta and hoped it would become a sporting hub for the community.
The new developments come after the unveiling of a $2.4 million science centre earlier this year.
A new $1.9 million multipurpose gym will be built next year and a junior schooling complex and VCE centre are planned for 2016.
“We want to be able to provide the best facilities for our students,” Mr Farrer said.
“We will have the opportunity to educate students in best way.”