Julie Owens (Parramatta, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Parliamentary Secretary for Small Business) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

It is my pleasure to welcome to Parliament House today the students from year 6 of The King's School. There they are up in the gallery; wave, Deputy Speaker Scott! And what a fine school it is—a school of great tradition that meets the most contemporary needs for boys, particularly in leadership. They have an extraordinary reputation for their leadership work.

It has an extraordinary history. It was founded in 1831 on the command of King William IV, opened in February 1832 in a cottage in George Street with just three students, grew to 100 in that first year and within a few years moved to a new location on the banks of the Parramatta River, where it stayed for some 100 years before moving to its extraordinary grounds now in North Parramatta.

The circle is closing in many ways, because the space we now know as the old King's School—beautiful heritage buildings on the banks of the Parramatta River—is about to be a school again. So that contribution that William Grant Broughton made when he founded school in 1832 continues to flow through to today, not only in the skill and capability of the students that graduate from this fine school but also in the provision to Parramatta of some of our wonderful heritage assets which are about to come to life again. I hope the year 6 students of the King's School enjoy their visit. It is a pleasure to have you. Thanks for coming.