The RNDM Sisters (Relgieuses de Notre Dam des Missions) established Sacred Heart College Sorrento in 1967 to expand the capabilities of Sacred Heart Girls’ School in Highgate, an inner-city suburb in Perth. Over the next 20 years, significant changes occurred which helped form the current face of the College. The first came in 1977 when the College became co-educational. This was followed with the appointment of the first lay Principal in 1985. Despite the change of leadership, the Sisters remained directly responsible for the day-to-day management of the College. This arrangement remained until 1989 when the Sisters withdrew and Sacred Heart College became part of the Diocesan System of Schools managed by the Catholic Education Commission of Western Australia. At the end of 1998, the doors of the boarding complex closed for the last time. It was the end of one era and the beginning of another.
The Sacred Heart College of today has changed significantly since its inception. There has been an extensive building and rebuilding program as the College increased in size, to the point where it currently educates to over 1,450 students.
The College has expanded its facilities to support the Four Pillars: Spiritual, Academic, Cultural and Sporting. The RNDM Performing Arts Centre, named in honour of our founders, seats 560 persons in a professional theatre.
In September 2016, the College opened The Koort Centre, a state-of-the-art gymnasium which, apart from Health and Physical Education classes and activities, can also accommodate the Sacred Heart community for whole school masses and assemblies. The gymnasium was named after the Noongar word for ‘heart’ in acknowledgement of the original custodians of the land.
A full story of our College has been documented in our history book, HeartSpace – The Story of Sacred Heart College from 1967-2019. Copies are available for $40 HERE.