The John Flynn Community Group, with the support of the National Trust, is seeking your views of the heritage values of the Taglietti-designed Flynn Primary School precinct.

The survey is at www.flynn.org.au/survey.

The survey was launched today by Eric Martin, President of the ACT National Trust, and Shirley Pipitone, Vice-President of the John Flynn Community Group.

The community hass stepped in to run the survey following a feeble attempt at consultation by the ACT Government’s Community Services Directorate.

According to Ms Pipitone, “Architectural and social heritage are important to many people in our community and we have filled the government void by designing the online survey and inviting people across the ACT to take a few minutes to fill it in.”

With architecture by Enrico Taglietti, its landmark open plan design, innovative use of shapes and materials, and strong associations with Dr Taglietti, Reverend John Flynn and the Royal Flying Doctor Service, the Flynn school has already been widely acknowledged across the ACT and Australia.

“This survey represents an opportunity for any ACT residents, not just those in the local community, to express a view about the values and significance of the Flynn school precinct.”

“Our community has expertise in similar surveys and stepped in to run this because of the government’s pathetically weak attempt to consult about heritage values prior to pushing ahead with developments at the Flynn site,” Ms Pipitone said.

ACT residents have been given very little opportunity to engage with this issue unless they happened to stumble across the government website or a small notice in the newspaper. Even Flynn residents were initially given just one week to comment via a newsletter bundled up with the junk mail on Australia Day peak holiday season.

Following the protest of residents and the representations by MLAs Vicki Dunne and Mary Porter, the consultation period was extended to three weeks and then six weeks, the bare minimum under the Government’s Community Engagement Manual.

“What we are doing is really the sort of consultation that the government should have undertaken before it developed the childcare centre let alone before it erected the fence and started refurbishment and demolition plans for further developments,” Ms Pipitone said.

We are inviting people to complete the survey at www.flynn.org.au/survey as soon as possible and contribute your views to our heritage.