Parramatta. $1 million for restoration

The University of Western Sydney has received close to $1 million, from the Department of Environment, Water, Heritage and the Arts, to carry out the next phase of restoration works of the historic Female Orphan School on the Parramatta campus. Once completed, UWS will use the ground floor and first floor of the West Wing for exhibitions, public meetings, functions, seminars and other events. The Female Orphan School is one of nation's most significant public buildings, standing as the first purpose-built orphanage in the colony of NSW. It is the oldest three-storey brick building in Australia. – the foundation stone was laid in 1813 – predating Hyde Park Barracks, in Sydney, and the Female Factory, in Parramatta.