William Angliss Institute of TAFE

Sir William Angliss (1865-1957), a butcher who became a dominant force in the local meat and frozen meat export trade, had a particular interest in the training of apprentices in the meat trade. Angliss acquired a wide range of business interests, pastoral properties and was chairman of various companies, as well as supporting various charities. From 1912 to 1952 Angliss was a Member of the Legislative Council for the electorate of Southern Province.

Percy Everett, Chief Architect of the Public Works Department from 1934-1953, was responsible for the design of the new Food Trades School. Under Everett, the Public Works Department was influential in the design and evolution of the Moderne style buildings in Victoria.

The school was constructed in reinforced concrete and face brick with hipped roofs. The composition of the building was on a formal Palladian symmetrical plan with a two storey central block and single storey flanking pavilions. The main facade was designed as a proscenium of full height horizontal brick fins dividing up the recessed window plane. The contrasting horizontal and vertical bands of face brick were designed to emphasise the formality of the building. The most distinctive feature was the use of the mitred picture frame motif in decorative brickwork, combined with deeply set windows that defined the rectilinear masses presented to the street. The picture frame effect was created by running the two outer bands of brickwork around the perimeter of each of the strictly rectangular facades. A dedication panel in brightly coloured glazed tiles was positioned above the front doors. Other decorative tile work, including the schools coat of arms has since been removed.

The building included offices, laboratories, demonstration room and decoration room. The eastern wing contained the cooking department with a kitchen and the corner pavilion accommodated the dining room. The longer western wing contained the pastry cooking department and bakery. A separate building (now demolished) housed the butchery department.

During the Second World War the school was used for training service personnel. After 1945, ex-servicemen were trained under the Commonwealth Reconstruction Training Scheme. By the 1950s the school was well established.

In 1971 the William Angliss Food Trades School became the William Angliss College of Catering and Food Studies. During this period major extensions occurred with the addition of the Cunneen Wing (Building E). This addition was an L shaped north wing extension that abutted the south side of the original 1940 kitchen, removing the larders and storerooms of the kitchen and the eastern stairs of the original building. The addition created a new first floor corridor to the south linking the original stairwell on the west and the new stairwell on the east. The original south facing windows to the laboratories were removed. The Lecture Theatre was added to the west wall of the Cunneen Wing and replaced the old butchery room which was part of the original building.

In 1978 the school changed its name to William Angliss College and took over a building formerly part of the West Melbourne Junior Technical School and later used as the Melbourne Hairdressing College (known as Building B). In the 1980s the four-storey west wing (Building D) was constructed which involved the demolition of two thirds of the southern west wing of the original building which had accommodated the bread and pastry making facilities.

Later buildings at the college include the Hub (Building C), built in 1983-84 behind Building B, and so called as it provided a common centre for the three colleges that were on the site at that time: the Food Trades School, the College of Hairdressing and the Melbourne College of Decoration; and Building A, known as Sir William Angliss Centre, built in 1991.

Today the college is known as William Angliss Institute of TAFE. The remaining original fabric of the 1940 Food Trades School is contained within the front section of Building D North.

How is it significant?
William Angliss Institute of TAFE (Building D North) is of historical and architectural significance to the State of Victoria.

Why is it significant?
William Angliss Institute of TAFE is of historical significance as Australia?s first purpose built technical school dedicated to the food and hospitality industry. It has historical significance for its long associations with technical education in Victoria and for its continuous use in the area of food and hospitality.

William Angliss Institute of TAFE is of historical significance for its association with Sir William Angliss, a dominant figure in Australia?s meat industry, chairman of many Australian companies and long standing MLC. It also has significance for its associations with Percy Everett, Chief Architect of the Public Works Department 1934 - 1953.

William Angliss Institute of TAFE has architectural significance as a distinctive design from the Public Works Department combining elements of brick moderne styling, the Jazz style together with classical form and planning.

Group

Education

Category

Technical College