GILLEN PRIMARY SCHOOL
55 MILNER RD
ALICE SPRINGS NT 0870
PHOTOS: J Marlow
55 MILNER RD
ALICE SPRINGS NT 0870
PHOTOS: J Marlow
Gillen Primary School was founded in 1970 and designed by the Department of Housing and Construction, reflecting standardised yet climate-responsive approaches to school design in Central Australia during this period.
The school’s buildings are arranged to manage heat, sun and movement across the site, creating sheltered spaces that support learning in Alice Springs’ arid environment.
The emphasis is on practicality, durability and clarity rather than architectural display.
The school is named after Francis James Gillen, who served for 25 years from 1875 as the Post and Telegraph Master at the Alice Springs Telegraph Station. This naming connects the school to the early administrative and communication history of the town, anchoring a modern educational building within a much longer local narrative.
As both an educational facility and a place-name, Gillen Primary School contributes to the understanding of how modern public buildings were embedded within the social and historical development of Alice Springs.
Heritage Status: Not Listed.
The school’s buildings are arranged to manage heat, sun and movement across the site, creating sheltered spaces that support learning in Alice Springs’ arid environment.
The emphasis is on practicality, durability and clarity rather than architectural display.
The school is named after Francis James Gillen, who served for 25 years from 1875 as the Post and Telegraph Master at the Alice Springs Telegraph Station. This naming connects the school to the early administrative and communication history of the town, anchoring a modern educational building within a much longer local narrative.
As both an educational facility and a place-name, Gillen Primary School contributes to the understanding of how modern public buildings were embedded within the social and historical development of Alice Springs.
Heritage Status: Not Listed.