Berringa State School No. 905 (former)

Berringa School No. 905 was built in 1902 to service the growing number of children from the surrounding area. Two previous schools had been established within the township, yet closed due to the rise and fall of the population associated with the local Woady Yaloak diggings. The present school adopts a standard design including an off-set entrance and large windows. The surviving fabric includes the first section of the timber school building constructed in 1902, the second section added in 1904 to the south of the original building and the third section which was a much later addition in the twentieth century which is of little or no significance. The original section constructed in 1902 and the second section added in 1904, retain a high degree of integrity, especially in exterior fabric, fenestration, style and materials.

The site is bound by surviving plantings consisting of a traditional grove of conifers and pines. A memorial gateway located on the eastern boundary is dedicated to four community members.

How is it significant?

The former Berringa School is of historical, social and architectural significance to the Golden Plains Shire

Why is it significant?

The former Berringa School is of historical significance as a surviving example of a state school that has serviced a fluctuating attendance due to the turbulent nature of the local mining industry. The surviving school building provides a tangible link that illustrates the collective aspirations of local residence to lobby for its establishment and reinstatement.

The school has social significance as a representation of the continual campaign by local residents to provide adequate educational facilities for the children of the surrounding area. The school's social significance is also derived from association with Cr. Robert McLean, a prominent local resident, whose efforts to secure the site as a public meeting space has allowed the sites connection to the community to continue.

The school is of architectural significance as a surviving example of a typical school facility dated from the turn of the century.

Group

Community Facilities

Category

Meeting Place