| The former Upper Castlereagh Public School complex demonstrates the emergence of the provision of public education in the rural area immediately west of Sydney in the latter decades of the nineteenth century, following the Public Schools Act of 1866. It also demonstrates the emergence of a rural farming community at Upper Castlereagh over the late nineteenth century and the development of village centres with schools to cater to this community’s needs. The former classroom block and teacher’s residence are excellent examples of standard rural school building design developed by George Allen Mansfield, the architect of the Council of Education. The buildings illustrate the Council’s model for rural schools. It is one of four built in the Cranebrook/Castlereagh region between 1879-1883, forming a significant group (Upper Castlereagh, Agnes Banks, Castlereagh and Cranebrook). Together with the former Wesleyan chapel complex across the road, the site is a relatively intact cultural landscape grouping associated with the social centre of a colonial rural community. As such, it has high historical and aesthetic significance and educational potential. |
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