Victory's new school design will help ease Huntly flooding woes: principal

Principal Anne Marie Rodgers says now is the moment for Victory Christian College to get students onto an extra site, on the opposite side of town to her Strathdale campus.

"The board's always had a vision for continual growth... but demand is increasing for places and we simply don't have them," she said.

Victory wants to build the 1000-place campus on vacant land along the Midland Highway.

Ms Rodgers said moving to the growth corridor of the Epsom-Huntly area was a "no brainer".

"Last year we had 25 per cent of our students coming from Epsom, Huntly, Jackass Flat, Eaglehawk across to Strathdale," she said.

"So we started looking and we were fortunate enough to find this land and purchase it."

Victory has 150 students on its waiting list for 2024, with 290 inquiries and applications recieved for 2025.

Ms Rodgers said the school was already fielding enquiries for the Epsom campus, which was still awaiting final approvals from the state government's transport and planning department.

Some Epsom and Huntly residents had voiced concerns voiced concerns large developments could bring more flooding in the area.

But Ms Rodgers said infrastructure at the school could reduce flooding impact.

"All the infrastructure that we will put in will slow the water to relieve some of that [flooding]," she said.

"That's what we did in Kairn Road as well, our neighbours were flooded all the time. We built detention basins that slowed the water and they haven't flooded since.

"That's what the plan will be, to actually assist the flooding in our immediate area, not make it worse."

Ms Rodgers said the school's buildings would be located at the Midland Highway end of Sargeants Road, and the flooding was mainly on Station Street.

"Our ovals will be down that end and we'll be using those to retain water," she said.

The new campus would rise in stages, starting at 200 places in 2026 from prep to grade 1 and grades 5, 6 and 7, eventually growing to 1000 places from prep to year 12 by 2038.

The project is expected to cost $50 million, Ms Rodgers said

Victory Christian College moved its current site at Kairn Road, Strathdale in 2009, starting a major redevelopment in 2015.

Ms Rodgers said there would be no staffing concerns once the new campus was built.

"We have grown on this campus since 2009 from 120 students to 850 students, and we have staffed that every year," she said.

"The first stage we'll have 200 students in the first year.

"We will use some of our current staff to, we we'll transfer some of our current staff across there, to which our culture is also transferred."

A new campus would bring more traffic travelling along the Midland Highway and surrounding roads.

Victory has contributed $2.3 million to roadworks at its Strathdale campus, and Ms Rodgers said there would "definitely be some costs to the school" for roadworks at its Epsom campus.