Western Heights College

Western Heights College
Location
37-61 Vines road Hamlyn Heights , Victoria , 3215 Australia 38°07′26″S144°19′41″E / 38.1239864355506°S 144.32809661934485°E / -38.1239864355506; 144.32809661934485
Information
Type	Secondary, co-ed [1]
Established	1985
Status	Open
Principal	Fiona Taylor
Years offered	7–12
Enrolment	1000-1050 (2024)
Campuses	Western Heights, Vines Road
Campus type	Suburban
Houses	Minerva (yellow), Quamby (red), Vines (green), Barton (blue)
Colours	Blue and orange
Website	www.whc.vic.edu.au

Western Heights College is a government-funded co-educational secondary and specialist sports school in Hamlyn Heights, Geelong, Victoria, Australia.

The school campus adjoins the Vines Road Community Centre. ^[2]

History

The college was created in 1985 from the merger of three existing secondary schools: Geelong West Technical School, Bell Park High School, and Bell Park Secondary College. ^{[3] [4]}

For some time, Western Heights College had three campuses: the Junior Years Campus (formerly Minerva campus and Barton Campus) for years 7, 8 and 9, and 10. the Senior Years Campus (formerly Quamby Campus) for years, 11 and 12, located in the suburbs of Herne Hill and Hamlyn Heights respectively.

In 2010, the City of Greater Geelong developed a Master Plan for Hamlyn Park Recreation Reserve which incorporating Western Heights College. The new facilities included sports grounds and netball courts with stage 2 including a basketball stadium. ^[5]

In 2011, the school began relocating to a single location on Vines Road, formerly the site of the Department of Human Services Barwon South Western Regional Office and, before that, the Geelong Teachers' College. The Barton campus closed at the end of the 2008, and the completion of stage one allowed Years 7 to 9 to start school at the new site at the beginning of July 2011. ^[6]

When the school was opened the college had pioneered "learning communities" of 100 to 120 students - a step away from the traditional arrangements of classrooms.

In 2020 the school started its Specialist Sporting Program - basketball being it first pillar. In 2021, AFL was introduced. Further sports programs were introduced; Netball (2022), Soccer (2023) and an Aspiring Athlete Program in 2024. ^[7]

In 2020 the school opened its high-performance centre to serve its Specialist Sports Program. ^[8]

In 2022 the Victorian Government committed to delivering a $7.5 million competition-grade gymnasium to replace the ageing offsite Quamby avenue basketball gym. ^[9]

In 2023, teacher Farid Anawati was recognised by the Department of Education for his extraordinary contribution to education with over 55 years of service at the school. ^[10]

In 2025, the High-Performance and Olympic Pathway Program was introduced. ^[11]

In 2026, the college opened its new competition-grade gymnasium to serve its Sports Specialist Programs with enrolments of over 500 students. ^[12]

Community College

The college shares some coummunal facilities with the public. These facilities include: Community/School Library, Vines Road Community Centre, Seniors Club and a shared sporting oval and netball courts. These facilities are owned and co-managed by the Department of Education Victoria and the City of Greater Geelong. ^{[13] [14] [15] [16]}

Specialist Sporting Program

By 2024, over 530 students are in the Specialist Sporting Program with intake based on a competitive selection process.

Specialist Sporting pillars and directors: ^{[7] [17]}

• AFL: Matthew Scarlett
• Basketball: Ash Arnott
• Netball: Susan Meaney
• Soccer: Joey Didulica
• High-Performance and Olympic Pathway

Sporting achievements

Achievements at state or national level.

National

Basketball

• U15 Boys National Champions 2025 ^[18]

Soccer

• Year 7 Girls National Champions Soccer / Australian Schools' Cup 2026 ^[19]
• Runners-up - U15 boys Bill Turner Cup (Australian national tournament of 465 teams) 2026 ^{[20] [21]}

State

Athletics

U18 SSV State Athletics Championships 2024 ^[22]

• Second - Joshua Unthank, 1500m
• Third - Joshua Unthank, 800m

U18 SSV State Athletics Championships 2023

• First - Joshua Unthank, 800m
• Second - Jackson Unthank, 1500m
• Third - Joshua Unthank, 1500m

All Schools Track and Field Championships 2022

• Second - Joshua Unthank, 1500m.
• Second - Joshua Unthank, 800m.
• Third - Jackson Unthank, 800m

Australian Rules Football

• Senior Boys School Sport Victoria 2024
• Runners-up - Year 10 Boys Intermediate, Herald-Sun Shield 2024
• Runners-up - Girls Intermediate, School Sport Victoria 2024
• Senior Boys Victorian State Champions 2002 ^[23]
• Year 7 Boys Victorian State Champions 1994 ^[23]

Basketball

• U17 Boys Victorian Champions Cup 2023 ^[24]
• Senior Boys Victorian Champions Cup 2001 ^[23]

Cricket

• Senior Boys Victorian State Champions 2014 ^[23]
• Intermediate Boys Victorian State Champions 2012 ^[23]
• Senior Boys Victorian State Champions 2011 ^[23]
• Year 7 Girls Victorian State Champions 2011 ^[23]
• Senior Girls Victorian State Champions 1998 ^[23]
• Year 7 Boys Victorian State Champions 1994 ^[23]

Netball

• Intermediate Boys Victorian State Champions 2026 ^[23]
• Senior Boys Victorian State Champions 2025 ^[23]

Soccer

• Year 7 Girls Victorian State Champions 2026 ^[23]
• Year 8 Boys Victorian State Champions 2026 ^[23]
• Year 9/10 Girls Victorian State Champions 2026 ^[23]
• U15 Boys Victorian State Champions 2026 ^[25]
• Runners-up - Senior Girls Victorian State Championship 2026 ^[23]
• Runners-up - Senior Boys Victorian State Championship 2026 ^[23]
• U15 Boys Victorian State Champions 2024

Notable alumni

Includes Alumni from merged foundation schools, Bell Park High School, Bell Park Secondary College, and Geelong West Tech. ^[26]

• Adam Deller - Professor of Astrophysics
• Alex Harris - Paralympic swimmer
• Andrew Bews - AFL player (Geelong West Tech School)
• Bev Francis - World champion power-lifter and Hall of Fame inductee (Bell Park High School)
• Brendan McCartney - AFL football coach (Bell Park High School)
• Dan Ryan - Netball player and coach
• Dylan Howard - Entertainment journalist and media executive
• Finnbar Maley - AFL player
• James Worpel - AFL player
• Jeff Sykes - 1978 World Rowing Championships bronze medallist (Geelong West Tech School)
• Kate Allen - Olympic gold medallist (Bell Park High School) ^[27]
• Lea Waters AM - Psychologist and author
• Nathan Herbert - Basketball player
• Simone McKinnis - Netball player (Bell Park High School)
• Dr Stuart Minchin - CEO and Director at Bureau of Meteorology (Bell Park High School) ^[28]
• Wade Chapman - AFL player (Bell Park Secondary College)

References

1. "Western Heights College Vine Road Community Centre". Western Heights College. 2019. Retrieved 18 August 2016. VRCC set the prices, engage the volunteers and/or staff the programs
2. "WESTERN HEIGHTS COLLEGE". School Choice. 28 October 2013. Retrieved 2 April 2020. ...with a community focus on the Vines Road Campus, supports learning in the 21st century.
3. Gregory's 1982-83 Melbourne Street Directory
4. "Our Story | Western Heights College | WHC | Hamlyn Heights, Geelong". Western Heights College. Retrieved 30 August 2024.
5. "HAMLYN PARK RECREATION RESERVE MASTER PLAN Part 1 September 2010". 2010. Archived from the original on 26 March 2012. Retrieved 23 January 2020. The City of Greater Geelong (COGG) appointed Capacity Consulting to develop a Master Plan for Hamlyn Park Recreation Reserve...The Hamlyn Park Recreation Reserve Master Plan has taken into consideration the changes that are occurring in the area through the development of the Vines Road Redevelopment Project - incorporating Western Heights College that is currently being constructed. The new facilities that have been incorporated in the Vines Road Education Redevelopment Project include a new sports ground and two netball courts. Stage 2 of the project will also include a basketball stadium.{{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires |journal= (help)
6. "Regeneration Projects - Regional Initiatives and Programs". Department of Education and Early Childhood Development: Barwon South Western Region. www.education.vic.gov.au. Retrieved 13 August 2009.
7. "Western Heights College | About Us". enrol.whc.vic.edu.au. Retrieved 30 August 2024.
8. "Geelong Advertiser". geelongadvertiser. Retrieved 30 August 2024.
9. Rivalland, Nathan (5 November 2022). "Western Heights to get major gym upgrade". Geelong Times. Retrieved 30 August 2024.
10. Precel, Nicole (21 May 2023). "Chalk and cheers: After 55 years at the same school, Farid's passion for teaching still burns". The Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 24 September 2026.
11. "Western Heights College | About Us". enrol.whc.vic.edu.au. Retrieved 21 September 2026.
12. Sinclair, Tahlia (27 July 2026). "Western Heights students step into new era of high-performance sport". Geelong Times. Retrieved 12 September 2026.
13. "Western Heights College". Learning Environments Australasia ABN 26 108 413 074. 2016. Retrieved 24 August 2019. This makes Western Heights College unique....LEARNING COMMUNITIES OF 100-120 STUDENTS..There are no classrooms with 25 students and one teacher....These communities can operate independently and each learning community has their own...Shared Community facilities are in the school and are open to the public. They include: Community Library, Vines Road Community Centre, Seniors Club, Sporting facilities and a central Civic Plaza.
14. "Vine Road Stage 2". Western Heights College. 2019. Retrieved 18 August 2017.
15. Fowles, S. (21 June 2016). "Geelong council: Flash flood costs city council more than a million dollars". Geelong Advertiser. The Vines Road Community Centre is in the same complex as Western Heights Secondary College Library, which also sustained a large amount of damage.
16. "Geelong Regional Liibraries - Western Heights College Library". Geelong Regional Libraries. 2019. Retrieved 18 August 2018.
17. "Western Heights College | About Us". enrol.whc.vic.edu.au. Retrieved 11 September 2026.
18. "Who caught our eye at Schools Nationals revealed | Basketball.com.au". www.basketball.com.au. Retrieved 3 November 2026.
19. "Naavi". newsletters.naavi.com. Retrieved 3 November 2026.
20. "Final 32 Draw for Bill Turner Cup | Bill Turner Cup & Bill Turner Trophy". 25 June 2009. Retrieved 9 September 2026.
21. lloyd (3 September 2026). "2026 National Finals | Bill Turner Cup & Bill Turner Trophy" . Retrieved 11 September 2026.
22. "Victorian Track and Field Championships | Results | World Athletics". worldathletics.org. Retrieved 12 September 2026.
23. "State Championship Historic Results". School Sport Victoria. Retrieved 21 September 2026.
24. Oorschot, Vinnie van (29 September 2023). "Western Heights secures biggest win in program history". Geelong Times. Retrieved 31 August 2024.
25. "AREA 15B – VICTORIA | Bill Turner Cup & Bill Turner Trophy". 20 May 2009. Retrieved 11 September 2026.
26. "About 2 | Western Heights College | WHC | Hamlyn Heights, Geelong". Western Heights College. Retrieved 30 August 2024.
27. "Champ an inspiration for school". Geelong Advertiser. 27 August 2004. p. 5.
28. Pack, Alex (7 October 2025). "Dr Stuart Minchin appointed CEO of the Australian Bureau of Meteorology". Meteorological Technology International. Retrieved 26 September 2026.

External links

• College website