A proposal for a new $55 million education campus for the Kangan Institute, designed by Architectus, has been unveiled for the Melbourne suburb of Cobblebank, near Melton, in the city’s outer-west.
Located near to Cobblebank’s shopping village, railway station, nearby schools and the future Melton Hospital precinct, the proposed vocational education campus will support approximately 600 on-site students – and more through flexible and blended delivery – studying new and emerging trade specialisations, including prefabricated construction, photovoltaic installation and battery technologies, alongside cybersecurity and technologies such as 3D printing and programming.
Kangan Institute CEO Laura Macpherson said the intention for the campus was to “[provide] contemporary facilities that support hands-on learning and real pathways into work,” She added, “Our Melton campus has been shaped around people and will be a place where locals learn, connect and build pathways without having to travel far.”
Architectus principal and education sector leader Ruth Wilson said, “We’ve partnered with Kangan Institute to shape what a contemporary TAFE means for Melton: a cornerstone for one of Australia’s fastest-growing communities and a campus that attracts, welcomes and empowers people to pursue future-focused careers.”
According to a communique from Architectus, the campus’s purpose-built learning and training spaces will be accompanied by flexible general teaching spaces that offer opportunities for theory learning and foundations studies.
“The architecture of the [proposed] Melton campus is striking and transparent, with the intention of ensuring learning is proudly on display,” the communique notes. “At its heart is a large, multipurpose workshop for training in plumbing, carpentry and other trades. It’s complemented by specialist workshops, where electrotechnology, welding, gasfitting and testing skills are taught.”
Wilson added, “Workshops and student spaces are visible from inside and out, celebrating practical, hands-on learning and making it easy for people to find their way and to feel they belong.”
The design of the campus is anchored by a dedicated student hub, bringing together informal learning, student services and a library, which is complemented by a multi-faith room, family room, reflection room and all-gender bathrooms that together embody Architectus’ aim to make the campus welcoming to all.
According to Architectus, First Nations perspectives have been embedded in the design, with the architect and Kangan Institute working closely with the Wurundjeri Woi Wurrung Cultural Heritage Aboriginal Corporation. The project also includes an Indigenous Engagement Centre, “designed to support culturally safe learning and create a place of connection for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander students and community members,” Architectus’ communique notes.
Targeting a lower carbon footprint and a 5-Star Green Star rating from the Green Building Council of Australia, the campus design incorporates a mass timber roof structure; low-carbon aluminium and concrete; water-saving urban design strategies such as rainwater reuse; landscaping to restore the local ecology, including local and endemic species; and passive – as opposed to mechanical – ventilation to the large workshop.
Like the Kangan Institute’s $60 million Health and Community Centre of Excellence in Broadmeadows, also designed by Architectus, and which opened in 2025, the proposed Melton campus has been delivered with funding from the Victorian government.
The campus is set to open in 2028.
Source: Architecture - architectureau
