Methodist Ladies College and Christ Church Grammar School Aquatic Precinct — Western Australia

“This is a place for our girls to learn, play, challenge themselves and enjoy the community spirit that defines MLC.  Our Sport, Physical Education and Wellbeing programmes will all benefit from this world-class facility.”

Principal Dr Marie Perry

Completed at the end of 2019, this new state of the art aquatic precinct is the result of a collaboration between Methodist Ladies College and Christchurch Grammar School. 

The MLC community’s request was to enhance its aquatics program with a new pool that would create an inspirational learning environment.  In a unique joint venture with its neighbour Christchurch Grammar School, MLC’s new pool is co-located within an aquatic precinct with Christchurch Grammar School, enabling shared oversight and infrastructure, cost effective operations, and an enhanced Phys Ed program for both schools. 

The shared approach presented opportunities for Oceanis to introduce smart design to provide significant cost and aesthetic benefits for MLC.

Oceanis designed a 40 by 25 metre heated pool to create this highly successful shared precinct.  The new pool functions as a lap training pool as well as a FINA standard water polo pool.

Oceanis also designed an innovative hybrid geothermal solution for the new pool using latent energy from the existing CCGS geothermal water system to produce what is now the most efficient aquatics installation in Australia.

Oceanis led a collaborative process where the needs of both schools were negotiated.  The final project is a careful balance of educational needs, capital costs, technical design excellence, energy and maintenance efficiency, as well as negotiated shared infrastructure. 

The new MLC pool, now combined with the Christchurch Grammar School pool to create a world class aquatics precinct, continues to receive accolades for its operational efficiency and aesthetic appeal, and is shaping the way both schools approach aquatic sports for the benefit of their respective school communities.