Truganina Community Centre

A safe, welcoming and sustainable hub

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Creating the roots for a connected community to grow

Located on the western outskirts of Melbourne, the new suburb of Truganina is experiencing rapid growth. In 2014, Wyndham City Council began masterplanning amenities to support residential development when the Wyndham North Precinct Structure identified a community facility would be instrumental to the success of a town centre. The first of its kind for the state of Victoria, Truganina Community Centre is not only an integrated health, education and community events space, it is also a social hub promoting cultural literacy.

The centre accommodates services spanning maternal and child health, early childhood education and youth services. The flexible layout supports community-led programs, events and activities and provides welcoming social spaces for residents to create connections, building cohesion and enriching the cultural identity of the township.

Over eight months of community-led co-design facilitated by Murdoch Children’s Research Institute, Canvas Projects (now Jasmax) worked with the Wyndham City Council to develop the overarching concept of a library lounge in response to the aspirations and needs raised by the community. As a result, access to programs and a curated collection of literature to promote cultural understanding is distributed throughout a sequence of open library lounge areas designed to accommodate a diversity of building users. The fully accessible facility includes technology and study spaces, multi-purpose community and meeting rooms, a community kitchen, staff offices, kindergarten rooms, maternal and child health consulting suites, and opens onto landscaped outdoor areas. The building reflects the material language of the surrounding housing estate and is also designed to be carbon neutral in operation, achieving 75 points a 6 Green Star As Built rating, to be verified by the Green Building Council of Australia.

The Truganina Community Centre is the neighbourhood’s loungeroom. It’s a safe, warm and enticing place where local people of all ages and backgrounds gather, connect and engage in community. It partners with local people to reflect, nurture and help sustain who the local community is and the services, activities and spaces it needs.

— Community Vision Statement, 2021

A sense of identity emerging through diversity

A need for a strong sense of identity connecting to Country and reflecting the Bunurong People as Traditional Owners of the land emerged from extensive consultation with the community. First Nations artist Lisa Waup was commissioned to create the design adorning the circulation spine running between the adjoining brick-clad pavilions. The artwork represents a coming together of different groups, ideas and experiences as shared throughout the project. The central spine also provides direct access to a large town square, community verandas, junior garden, courtyard garden and community produce garden.

Truganina Community Centre was jointly funded by the Victorian Government (Growing Suburbs Fund, Living Libraries Infrastructure Program and the Building Blocks Infrastructure Program), Wyndham City Council, and developers of Elements Truganina estate and Truganina Central, ID_Land.

“Enabled through successful partnership, the new Truganina Community Centre will go a long way to help create vital facilities for families and the community in the area… We’re investing in these growing suburbs, to ensure they remain great places to call home, where communities can thrive,” — Sonya Kilkenny, Minister for Suburbs.

Building on a track-record of success

Truganina Community Centre follows two earlier developments for Wyndham City Council: Mainview Boulevard Family Learning Centre, completed in 2020, and Dianella Community Centre, completed in 2021.

Mainview Boulevard Family Learning Centre operates a similar integrated service and innovative partnerships model with council and private providers able to access the spaces and was similarly developed with funding from the Victoria State Government.

Neighbouring Dianella Community Centre was the first piece of community infrastructure developed by Wyndham Council for the suburb of Tarneit West. Dianella also offers maternal and child health services, a kindergarten and anticipates the accommodation of a range of allied health services. Funding from the Victoria State Government was received via the Children’s Facilities Capital Program and the Growing Suburbs Fund.

Jasmax acknowledges the Bunorong People as Traditional Custodians of the Country upon which Truganina and Dianella Community Centres are located. Jasmax acknowledges the Boon Wurrung People as Traditional Custodians of the Country upon which Mainview Boulevard Family Learning Centre is located.