The Mellieha primary school is set to operate from a temporary school in Selmun during the 2025 scholastic year starting in September, the Ministry for Education stated on Tuesday as it added that the temporary school will make use of prefabricated classrooms, with preparations currently being made for the classrooms to be assembled on site.
The ministry said this in a statement it published in response to a social media post by Mellieha Mayor Gabriel Micallef, who said that the Mellieha Local Council was informed last week that works in Selmun Park were set to begin. Micallef said that after being informed as such, he requested that the works be paused until an official statement and detailed work plan were communicated, but continued that “it appears that works by the contractors will progress starting next week”.
Micallef had also said that the Local Council had explored alternative locations which could be considered instead of Selmun Park, and continued that it was requested that Selmun be avoided “due to the high number of residents who use this space and its importance to the locality”.
In its statement, the Education Ministry said that the location was chosen after having explored other possibilities, and added that it is the only viable location where the Mellieha primary school could begin operating.
The ministry stated that the project involves the demolition of the existing school in order to build a new school which will accommodate the locality’s growing population. It said that the new school will be able to accommodate approximately 600 children, and that it will be built on the site of the current school as well as an adjacent plot of land.
The new school, the ministry said, will be spread over three floors above street level and will include the construction of an underground parking lot for over 100 cars, a childcare centre, a kindergarten, a primary school, conference rooms, library, hall, and gym, as well as other facilities. It added that the project will also include the construction of a substation that will eventually be used by Enemalta.
The ministry continued that given the area around the school is archaeologically sensitive, all demolition and excavation works will be under the supervision of the Superintendence of Cultural Heritage.
It said that the first phase of the project will involve the excavation of the side adjacent to the existing school building, and that the second phase will include the demolition of the old school and the construction of the new school. Excavation of the site adjacent to the existing school building is expected to commence shortly in accordance with the Planning Authority’s permit reference PA/2255/18, the ministry said. It added that the application for the demolition of the old school and the construction of the new school was submitted to the Planning Authority in January 2025, with the tracking number 292050.
The ministry stated that various meetings have been held between the Mellieha Local Council and representatives of the Foundation for Tomorrow’s Schools. It added that the Local Council also had a meeting with Education Minister Clifton Grima in January, with the meeting also being attended by FTS Chief Executive Neville Young. The ministry commented that the projects were explained in detail during the meeting, both regarding the construction of the new primary school as well as the assembly of the prefabricated classrooms in Selmun.
The ministry concluded that the Local Council was also informed of a meeting and presentation which will be held for the parents of the schoolchildren on Friday 4th April, with the meeting taking place in the existing school building.