Windback Wednesday - 75 years of Linden Park Primary School

Did you know that 2025 marks the 75th anniversary of the opening of Linden Park Primary School?

Increased birth rates following the Second World War raised serious concerns about the capacity of South Australian primary schools to cope with ever-increasing student numbers, with enrolment in South Australian primary schools increasing by 3,000 students from 1949 to 1950 alone. In the late 1940s, the State Government increased funding for public education, purchasing land for new schools and commissioning the construction of 130 portable classrooms to prevent overcrowding.

One of the first new schools to be built in an effort to keep up with the growing population was Linden Park Primary School, which opened to 250 students on 7 February 1950 under Principal W.E Berry and seven teachers. The official opening of the school was delayed until all works on the school buildings had been completed, which took place on 20 October 1950 with multiple delegates in attendance including the Minister of Education Reginald John Rudall. In the nine months between the unofficial and official opening of the school, the number of students enrolled had increased from 250 to 400.

Fast forward 75 years, Linden Park Primary School now hosts almost 1,000 students and approximately 90 staff.

Photograph: Exterior of the Linden Park School building, 1956. Burnside Local History Collection.