A public meeting held late last year by the Old Bombala Infants School committee resulted in a new name and subsequent new executive.

The well-attended meeting at Club Bombala, held on 29 November, demonstrated there was plenty of community support for the committee’s proposal to preserve the old building to keep it as a key part of Bombala’s heritage.

The proposal also plans to transform the building into a viable, vibrant space for various activities for all ages to benefit future generations.

More than 50 people attended and there were many apologies from interested locals who were unable to attend due to prior commitments as it was close to Christmas.

Several speakers addressed the meeting and a video made by Murray Vanderveer, an experienced documentary maker, was shown. This video charted the successful restoration of the Old Bega Hospital.

It was decided a name change was appropriate for the committee, which is now called The Friends of the Old Bombala School. The group is following the lead of the successful Friends of Old Bega Hospital.

That group was formed after the old Bega Hospital building was gutted by fire in 2004; the challenging path the group took to restore a burnt out roofless structure resulted in the building’s grand opening last year. The group ultimately was named winner of the National Trust Heritage award in 2025.

A spokesperson for The Friends of the Old Bombala School said the public interest at November’s meeting was heartening with stories being told of happy days both at the school, and qualifications gained when it was run as a TAFE facility.

“Many creative art courses were provided as well as wool classing and other trades. Suggestions were made for the use of the building and its large block of land which included developing a cold climate garden in the grounds.

“This was a popular idea,” the spokesperson said.

“The beautiful old building could be used as a wool and wood museum. Both of these local industries have many stories to tell from over the years in the challenging beginnings of Bombala’s development.”

The final result from the public meeting was the suggestion that people from near and far would be encouraged to become a “friend” of the old Bombala school.

“This would encourage an interest without physical support,” the spokesperson continued.

“People wanted to have more of a commitment helping in the future development of the building and surrounds.”

The first meeting of The Friends of the Old Bombala School was held on 13 December, two weeks after the public meeting.

At this meeting a new executive was chosen consisting of president - Lynda Warild, treasurer - Gillian Gough, Penny Judge will continue as secretary - she is a retired school teacher with fond memories of the old Bombala school while Sue Bate has taken on the role of communications officer.

“To date we have had building and pest inspections carried out on the site,” the spokesperson said.

“We have the interest and support from a renowned Sydney architect to help in the project with plans for the future. We also have an award winning landscape designer who wishes to become involved in the garden design.”

The group has been very encouraged by the local interest and support for its plans for the old Bombala school to be returned to the Bombala community.

The spokesperson said ongoing meetings with both councillors and staff from the Snowy Monaro Regional Council have been “very helpful in establishing a sustainable plan for the future”.