A renowned school for Aboriginal students will move to bigger and better premises at Thebarton as part of a State Government relocation plan linked to the River Torrens to Darlington Project.

From the start of the 2025 school year, Warriappendi School will shift from its current location at Marleston to the refurbished former TechinSA building in Thebarton, making way for construction of the T2D motorway.

The school, established in 1980 and attended by about 80 Aboriginal students from across Greater Adelaide, supports the move. It has outgrown its current John Street campus with the rejuvenation of an underused precinct east of South Road, next to the River Torrens / Karrawirra Parri, the new location.

The school’s new site next to the river is a culturally significant place for Kaurna people, who are the traditional custodians.

The new design has carefully considered cultural requirements through close consultation with the school community, with appropriate cultural design, stakeholder engagement and Aboriginal employment outcomes a focus for the project team.

The new school will be housed in the existing building on the former TechinSA site, which will be updated to a contemporary, purpose-designed school that will accommodate 150 students. It will include spaces for general and cultural learning, STEM, art, drama and music, wellbeing, a library, kitchen and a new 900 square-metre gymnasium.

Warriappendi School Principal Craig Bailey said everyone associated with the school community is excited and proud to see the project formally launched.

“It reflects the latest step forward for a school that was founded in 1980 by two Aboriginal women - Leila Rankine (1932-1993) and Veronica Brodie (1941-2007) - and has gone on to develop a sense of connection and belonging for its Aboriginal students, families and community.”

“The new site represents a new chapter for Warriappendi School bringing new classrooms, cultural learning opportunities, a broader teaching and learning curriculum, greater space, a gymnasium and an oval.

“This, ultimately, is a story of equity, liberation, pride and developing opportunities for success.

“The relocation has empowered the Aboriginal community by giving them the right to establish, voice and control educational systems through acknowledging their priorities, aspirations and diversity in the concept design phase”, he said.