Funding announced for long-awaited second Docklands Primary campus

Docklands Primary School appears to be a significant step closer to securing a permanent second campus, with new state budget funding announced for the purchase of land for an expansion of the fast-growing school.

The funding was revealed on May 1 by City of Melbourne councillor and Labor candidate for Melbourne Davydd Griffiths, who said the Allan Government’s latest $1.6 billion education package included money to buy land for a second Docklands Primary School campus, as well as further funding for Arden Secondary College.

“A second campus for Docklands Primary School!” Cr Griffiths wrote in a Facebook post.

“It was fantastic to join Sheena Watt MP this morning to thank her for her leadership in securing funding for the land for a second campus for Docklands Primary School.”

“I’ve visited the school a number of times and the teaching there is so fantastic that it’s no surprise that every family wants to send their kids there.”

The announcement, made alongside Northern Metropolitan MP Sheena Watt, is likely to be welcomed by the Docklands school community, which has been pushing for certainty for years after the school rapidly outgrew its original site.

“Docklands is one of Melbourne’s fastest-growing communities - and this Budget makes sure it keeps pace. A brand-new school, cheaper transport and real cost-of-living relief - this is about backing Docklands families now, while building for the future. Only Labor is delivering for Docklands - and we’re getting on with it," Ms Watt told Docklands News.

Docklands Primary only opened in 2021, but by early 2024 demand had already forced the government to establish a temporary second campus for Grade 5 and 6 students at The District Docklands retail precinct. That arrangement was always seen as a stopgap rather than a long-term solution.

While exact funding figures and the final location have not yet been confirmed, Docklands News understands the second campus is strongly expected to be delivered on the site directly opposite the current school, at the south-eastern corner of Little Docklands Drive and Footscray Rd.

The transparently highlighted block (bottom left) where it is largely expected the new campus will be delivered opposite the current Docklands Primary School. 

That land has long been viewed by parents and local advocates as the logical answer. Development Victoria has earmarked the site for civic use as part of the broader development plans tied to Ashe Morgan’s District Living project, and both the Victorian School Building Authority and City of Melbourne have previously been exploring options for its future use.

The prospect of that site finally being acquired for a permanent school expansion would be a significant breakthrough for local families, many of whom have spent the past two years pressing the government to act before the temporary arrangement at The District becomes entrenched.

It would also provide the school community with greater certainty around when students might eventually move out of the leased campus and into more permanent educational infrastructure.

In a statement to Docklands News, Cr Griffiths said, “Labor is building and upgrading more schools than anywhere else in the country, to support local communities like here in the Docklands.”

The broader state education package, announced ahead of the 2026-27 budget, includes $1.6 billion to build, expand and modernise schools across Victoria, with 19 new schools scheduled to open in 2026 and thousands of new student places to be created. The government has also framed the investment as part of its response to growth in rapidly developing communities and the need to support teachers and school staffing.

For Docklands, however, the news is only part of the picture.

While a second primary campus has long been one of the suburb’s most urgent needs, growing pressure also remains on the secondary side. University High School, which serves Docklands and much of the inner north-west, is already operating beyond capacity and has spilled into a leased CBD office building for its Year 9 cohort.

The government has announced a new secondary school for Arden by 2030, and further funding for that project has also now been flagged. But many local families continue to question whether that school will arrive quickly enough, or be close enough, to ease the mounting pressures on inner-city students.

For now, though, the Docklands Primary announcement is a clear win for a school community that has been calling for action since almost the moment the school opened.

The next step will be for the government to confirm exactly how much money has been allocated, whether the long-discussed site opposite the school is indeed the one being acquired, and what timeline families can expect for delivery. •