NORTHCOTE HIGH SCHOOL
19-29 ST GEORGES ROAD, NORTHCOTE, DAREBIN CITY
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Statement of Significance
What is significant?
Northcote High School at 19-29 St Georges Road, Northcote was built in 1928-29 and was one of only three boys' high schools at the time it opened. Later, the school became a co-educational facility and its facilities were enlarged. It is one of three secondary schools established in Darebin in the Inter-war period. The following elements contribute to the significance of the place:
- The 1928-29 building, which is a symmetrically composed, two-storey building in the inter-war Free Classical style. It has a bay at centre that projects forward, which has a brick pediment with a rendered top. An insignia with a cartouche with the letters 'N H S' is below the pediment. At ground level in this central bay is an archway that leads to a recess that has timber frame double-doors, with a fanlight, that is the main entrance. At each end of the school building are projecting bays. The school has a hipped roof clad in slate tile and the windows of the school are timber frame with multi-paned upper and lower sashes, with multi-paned pivot sashes at top, of a style commonly found on Education Department buildings of this period.
- Original, or early landscape elements within the front setback of the 1929 school, and the curved drive leading from St Georges Road. The significant trees include Canary Island Palms (Phoenix canariensis) symmetrically spaced across the facade (one appears to have been removed), Italian Cypress (Cupressus sempervirens) and a Norfolk Island Hisbiscus (Lagunia patersonii).
The additions to the 1929 building and other buildings and trees on the site are not significant.
How is it significant?
Northcote High School at 19-29 St Georges Road, Northcote is of local historic, architectural, aesthetic and social significance to Darebin City.
Why is it significant?
Historically, Northcote High School is significantasan illustration of the development of State secondary educationduring the inter-war era andas one ofthe first boys high schools to be established in Victoria. It is also significant as an example of the new or expanded educational facilities built during the inter-war periodthat provide tangible evidence of the significant growth experienced in Darebin during the 1920s. It is also significant as an example of the buildings designed under the direction of E. Evan Smith, Chief Architect of the Public Works Department. (AHC criteria A.4, D.2, H.1)
Architecturally, the 1928-29 building is a fine example of a secondary school designed in the Free Classical style in Darebin.The mature landscaping contributes to the aesthetic qualities of the setting of the school and appears to have been designed to emphasis the symmetry of the architecture. (AHC criteria D.2, E.1)
Socially, Northcote High School is of significance as an educational facility that is known, used and valued by the community for over 70 years. (AHC criterion G.1)
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NORTHCOTE HIGH SCHOOL - Physical Description 1
The 1929 building at Northcote High School is a symmetrically composed, two-storey Inter-war brick high school. It has a bay at centre that projects forward, which has a brick pediment with a rendered top. An insignia with a cartouche with the letters 'N H S' is below the pediment. At ground level in this central bay is an archway that leads to a recess that has timber frame double-doors, with a fanlight, that is the main entrance. At each end of the school building are projecting bays. The school has a hipped roof clad in slate tile and the windows of the school are timber frame with multi-paned upper and lower sashes, with multi-paned pivot sashes at top, of a style commonly found on Education Department buildings of this period.
The building is in excellent condition and has a relatively high degree of external integrity particularly when viewed from St Georges Road. Extensive additions and new buildings have been constructed to the rear of the 1929 building. These are mostly hidden behind the building and do not significantly affect its main elevations. An exception is the single storey addition at the northern end of the 1929 building, which projects slightly forward of the building. The visual impact of this extension is reduced somewhat by landscaping.
Other buildings on the site were not inspected. Potentially significant buildings include:
- Prefabricated classrooms constructed in 1954 by The Survey of Post-War Built Heritage in Victoria - it is not known whether these are still extant.
- The two storey 1940 brick hall/classrooms with a hip/dutch gable roof immediately behind the 1929 building.Original, or early landscape elements survive including trees and other vegetation, and the curved drive leading from St Georges Road. These include mature Canary Island Palms (Phoenix canariensis) that are symmetrically spaced across the facade (one appears to have been removed). Other vegetation includes a Norfolk Island Hibiscus (Lagunia patersonii) to the north of the main entrance, a Cypress (Cupressus sp.) to the south of the main entrance, and a pair of Bhutan Cypress (Cupressus torulosa) on either side of the south driveway entrance. The position of the surviving mature trees suggests that there was a considered and deliberate formal planting layout designed to enhance the symmetry of the building, however, the legibility of any original scheme thishas been diluted by the removal/loss of original trees and less sympathetic planting of native trees in the post-war era.
Heritage Study and Grading
Darebin - Darebin Heritage Study
Author: Context P/L
Year: 2011
Grading: Local
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