Old Castlemaine Gaol once used as art space by David Bromley set to become independent school
A former prison and art studio in Central Victoria will be transformed into a independent secondary school amid growing demand for alternative education in the region.
The Old Castlemaine Gaol was sold to Gisborne-based Global Village Learning yesterday.
The heritage-listed building was closed to the public for years after being trialled as a creative centre by artist David Bromley.
"I think most traditional schools are like jails, so we're just joining the party," Global Village Learning director Peter Hutton joked.
Children at Global Village Learning in New Gisborne, in the Macedon Ranges.
(
Supplied: Global Village Learning
)
He described Global Learning Village as an independent school that tailored its approach to children individually.
Children do not wear uniforms and are not categorised into year levels.
Mr Hutton told the ABC he was not deterred by the history of the building, which operated as a jail until 1990.
"We want to embrace the best of the past — we don't want to tear it down," he said.
"I do love what the Bromleys have done with it, in terms of reclaiming something that had such a dark past and turning it into something that's so joyous and hope-filled."
Castlemaine has a thriving arts and music scene.
(
ABC Central Victoria: Josie Taylor
)
'Humane' approach
Mr Hutton said there was a desperate need for different education models throughout the country.
"We only need to look at the number of kids who are currently homeschooled," he said.
"
They've fallen outside the system post-COVID.
"
"We want to educate young people in a more humane way that doesn't involve sitting down for the majority of the day."
Peter Hutton says scores of children are likely to attend the school in the next year and a half.
(
Supplied: Peter Hutton
)
Fees for the Global Learning Village school in operation now are about $7,800 per year.
The jail has been for sale since last year, when it was listed with a $10-million asking price.
That figure was reduced to between $2.6 and $2.8m, including sculptures and art work.
The final price paid has not been disclosed.
Mr Hutton estimated about 70 young people could attend the school over the next 18 months.
"As an interim step, until we get our official registration for that campus, we will be operating a bus service … and rail service from the New Gisborne campus," he said.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Mercury
4 hours ago
- Mercury
Barron Trump may have made millions from family's lucrative crypto firm: report
Don't miss out on the headlines from World. Followed categories will be added to My News. Barron Trump, the youngest son of the 47th President, may have raked in millions of dollars from the sale of crypto tokens linked to the family's lucrative venture into digital tokens, according to a report. The 19-year-old New York University student could have picked up a cool $40 million (AU$61 million) — $25 million (AU$38 million) after taxes — from the sale of digital assets by World Liberty Financial, the Trump family firm launched nine months ago after Barron persuaded his dad about the benefits of crypto, Forbes reported. 'Barron knows so much about this,' commander-in-chief said during an interview in September after the launch. 'Barron's a young guy, but he knows it — he talks about his wallet. He's got four wallets or something, and I'm saying, 'What is a wallet?'' Barron Trump may have raked in millions. Picture: ANGELA WEISS / AFP. World Liberty has been a financial bonanza for the family. In March, World Liberty announced that it had sold $550 million (AU$850 million) worth of tokens. An Office of Government Ethics filing released by President Trump last week declared he had made $57 million (AU$88 million) from token sales. It also said that the real estate mogul held a 75 per cent stake in his umbrella company, DT Marks Defi LLC, with unnamed 'third parties' holding the other 25 per cent. Barron Trump is listed as a 'co-founder' of World Liberty Financial alongside the president, as well as Eric and Donald Trump Jr, the president's two eldest sons. Forbes, which provided no direct evidence for its claims of Barron Trump's massive digital windfall, suggested that he owned a 7.5 per cent stake in the Delaware-based umbrella firm. The stake would mirror what the NYU freshman holds in the Trump Organization's Washington, DC hotel, Forbes said. The 19-year-old New York University student could have picked up a cool US$40 million. Picture: Jim WATSON / AFP. Barron Trump's name does not appear in the company's solitary SEC filing from October 30 last year. Also listed as business partners in the venture are Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff and his son, Zachary. An analysis by Bloomberg, the financial news outlet, estimates the president's net worth has doubled since the start of his 2024 campaign, standing at just over US$5.4 billion This article originally appeared on the New York Post and has been republished with permission Originally published as Barron Trump may have made millions from family's lucrative crypto firm: report
West Australian
a day ago
- West Australian
Geraldton-based FIFO airline Shine Aviation caught up ATSB fuel exhaustion investigation
Workers at Mid West copper and gold mines are being flown on a plane that is currently the subject of a probe by the national transport safety investigator. The Australian Transport Safety Bureau is looking into why one of Shine Aviation's propeller-powered aircraft — registration code VH-PGO — almost had a disastrous landing at Meekatharra Airport on June 5. 'During the approach, the pilot received multiple fuel flow warnings on the number two engine followed by associated engine surging and aircraft yaw,' The ATSB stated. Yaw is the left-to-right movement of a plane's nose. 'The pilot conducted initial actions and secured the engine. The post-flight inspection revealed the engine had lost power due to fuel starvation,' according to the ATSB. 'Engineers replaced an O-ring on the right inboard fuel cap as a precaution.' Flight data shows the 10-seater plane was back in the air about five hours after the incident, but it is unclear if any passengers were on board. The plane has since made multiple trips from Shine's Geraldton base to the Golden Grove and Mt Magnet landing strips. The Golden Grove copper mine is run by 29Metals and Ramelius Resources operates the Mt Magnet gold mine. Ramelius declined to comment, while 29Metals and Shine did not respond to requests for comment. Shine, which is owned by Geraldton local John Gooch, will likely have to wait until the final quarter of this year to find out the results of the ATSB's investigation. Shine's close call is the first mechanical mishap in 2025 involving a small airline running charter flights to mines in WA's outback. This follows a spate of safety incidents last year on planes operated by Perth-based Skippers Aviation. On August 12, an aircraft was flying from IGO's Forrestania nickel operation in the western Goldfields when its brakes failed after touching down at Perth Airport. The runaway plane collided with a hangar resulting in 'minor damage'. Just three days later, a Skippers flight from Perth to Northern Star Resources' Bronzewing gold mine had to turn back not long after take-off and make an emergency landing as smoke engulfed the aircraft's interior. The ATSB found the 'serious' incident was caused by a mechanical failure compounded by a series of flight crew mistakes. Then on October 2, another Skippers plane travelling from Perth to Bronzewing was forced to descend rapidly after suddenly losing cabin pressure. Flight data showed the Dash 8 twin engine turboprop aircraft had to reduce its altitude at a rate of more than 5200 feet per minute, way beyond the typical maximum rate of 2500ft per minute when flying the same plane on the same route. Adding to the string of safety breaches, a Skippers crew member was convicted for vaping during a flight on the Perth to Forrestania route during the year. Skippers trimmed its fleet down from 27 in 2022 to 20 by the latter half of 2024, but a spokesman denied its cost-cutting crusade was jeopardising safety. The airline is owned by the Quinlivan family and led by Stan Quinlivan. Mr Quinlivan's investment portfolio includes the Ocean Beach Hotel and a troop of race horses.
Sydney Morning Herald
a day ago
- Sydney Morning Herald
ASX Runners of the Week: Amplia, archTIS and Vanadium Resources
If you were looking for correlation between the seemingly continuous breakouts of military hostilities between nuclear-armed nations and the market - good luck. The ASX continued at near all-time highs this week, pulling back a fraction by Friday, as conflict between Iran and Israel continued to rise. The oil price surged a further 10 per cent this week as Israel turned its focus from Iran's nuclear facilities to targeting its oil and gas infrastructure. Uranium stocks were the week's main winners. Surprisingly, they were not fuelled directly by global drivers, but rather by investment heavyweight Sprott's physical uranium trust purchase of $200 million worth of uranium oxide, which was announced on Monday. The result for uranium stocks on the index was deafening. Uranium miners Boss Energy, Paladin Energy and Deep Yellow were among the most heavily shorted on the ASX, making up three of the top 10 shorted companies. A sharp increase in uranium caused a two-fold effect of en masse buying and short seller panic to close out positions, with the big three uranium stocks all surging up 20 per cent on the day. In a rare shake-up, no Australian-based resource companies feature on this week's Bulls N' Bears' ASX Runners list. Instead, the chocolates went to a groundbreaking Aussie biotech story, which could be on to the makings of one of the biggest breakthroughs in oncology treatment in years. Up 339% (5.7c – 25c) This week's Bulls N' Bears ASX Runner of the Week is biotech trailblazer Amplia Therapeutics, which sent the market into an absolute tailspin thanks to a jaw-dropping set of results from a clinical trial for incredibly nasty pancreatic cancer.
