An ‘at a glance history” of Sacred Heart School…
When Father Thomas O’Connell came to Tatura in 1896 there was not a Catholic school in the town. He saw the need for Catholic Education in the Parish and with this in mind, approached the Mercy Order in Bendigo asking that Sisters come to Tatura.
On the 2nd of November 1900 four sisters arrived to occupy the convent which had been built for them. Sister Mary Francis, Sister M. Alphonsus, Sister M. Stanislaus and Sister M. Ignatius.
On the 4th of November, just two days later, a 2-room Primary School and High School opened and the school was attended by local students. This original school was built behind the convent but was later demolished when the new school was built across the road in 1966.
Old convent built prior to Mercy Sister’s arrival in 1900. St Mary’s Hall to the right (double storey building). Original school behind convent.
Back view (from Casey street) of original Sacred Heart School.
In 1901 St. Mary’s College (Hall) opened. The Sisters of Mercy started accepting boarders to address the issue of travelling to and from school. This meant that children and adolescents who lived beyond a few miles could access a Catholic education well into their teenage years in Tatura.
As transportation improved, the need for a boarding school in Tatura decreased and boarding at St. Mary’s ended.
In 1941 a new convent was opened. The older convent was demolished to make way for the newer double storey convent. This building still exists today and provides office space for some of the Catholic Education Sandhurst Limited staff.
Mercy Convent circa 1950.
In 1966 the new school was built opposite the convent in Hogan street. The school included seven classrooms and a canteen and was built in the form of a U. It was finished with an open verandah enclosing a concrete quadrangle (this still remains today!).
Original front of the current Sacred Heart School building. This has since had an addition to the front in 2002.
After over 90 years of Mercy nuns leading the college, in 1984 the first lay principal was appointed – Mr. Michael McGrath.
In the year 2000 the Tatura Parish celebrated a centenary of Catholic Schooling in Tatura . The Time Capsule (bollard in the front garden of the school) was sealed. It was around this time that the last Mercy sisters left the school.
In 2002 an Administration and Staff facilities building was officially opened. Further additions to the school occurred in 2011, 2015 and 2023. Some of the older classrooms were refurbished at the beginning of 2025.
