| The
Patrician Brothers came to Liverpool in 1954. The foundation grew
out of the need to alleviate enrolment pressures on the recently opened
school at Fairfield. So great was the hunger for a Catholic
education
that students from beyond Liverpool were seeking enrolment at
Fairfield.
Opening a school at Liverpool would help the Fairfield situation.
In their
generosity, the Sisters of Charity
were to provide a classroom and playground for the boys. Brother
Joseph Tierney was chosen as the one to bring the Patrician Brothers to
All Saints Parish in the old Macquarie town of Liverpool; however,
within
the first year poor health may it necessary for Brother Joseph to step
down from the Liverpool venture. Brother Ignatius Barrett took his
place.
The first
stages of the present Primary
school were completed in September 1955. It was in this year that
a second Brother, Brother Lactean McGee was assigned to the
school.
There was no classroom available for some months. Until then,
classes
were held in a partition-type shelter which was subject to the
elements.
These hardships were borne with good spirit by the Brothers and their
first
students.
Although
teaching conditions improved there
was no residence for the brothers until December, 1958. Until
this
more permanent residence was opened by Bishop James (later
Cardinal
Sir James Freeman) the Brothers travelled from various places such as
Redfern,
Granville and Fairfield. The warmth, friendship and generosity of
the Liverpool people sustained their perseverance.
The first
community to live at Liverpool
comprised of Brother Ignatius Barrett, Brother Eugene Kelly and Brother
Callistus Keating. Brother Ignatius was to remain Superior until 1962.
The first
signs of expansion appeared in
1963. These included a larger tuckshop and an extra classroom
which
enabled better tuition for the slower learners. Generally class
sizes
were too big to give much attention of the slower learner. The
provision
of this classroom helped alleviate concern over this issue.
Encouraging these changes was the new Superior, who had begun his long
association with the school in 1959.
Brother Gerald
Egan's period as Superior
saw the greatest period of expansion to date. Firstly there were
extensions to the Monastery; two rooms were built.
The next stage
of growth was the building
of the Secondary School in response to the demands of the Wyndam
Scheme.
The first section was opened in 1966 and relieved the stress of
overcrowded
classrooms. While the building was in progress, some of the
classes
had to meet in the old All Saints' Church, made vacant by the erection
of the All Saints Memorial Church. These classes later moved to
the
rooms vacated when the secondary classes took up residence in the new
school
on Bigge Street.
When more
growth took place in 1967, the
students cold now avail themselves of Woodwork facilities, alongside
Art,
Music and Science resources. It was also possible to allocate one
of the larger rooms as a Library, a modest forerunner of the present
All
Saints Library.
The next stage
of expansion in the 1970s
included the building of Technical Drawing Rooms, extending the Science
Rooms and improving the Art amenities. Changes to the
playground
improved conditions, especially on wet days. Although there
have been few major extensions since the mid 1960s, there have been
alterations
within the existing buildings including a major redevelopment and
upgrade
of the administration and staff areas in the mid 1990s.
As the time of
the Patricians at Liverpool
was coming to an
end perhaps one of the main features of education at the school was the
sharing of facilities by the two adjacent secondary schools. This
culminated
in the joint development of the Performing Arts Centre completed in
2000.
Although
modest in its beginnings, the
Patrician foundation at Liverpool has flourished. So much is owed to
the
dedication, self-sacrifice, enthusiasm, and spirit of the Brothers,
staff,
parents, and students who have made All Saints College the success that
it is.
| May
All Saints continue to be aware of God's presence with them. |
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http://www.ascbc.nsw.edu.au
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