Arlparra School

The Utopia Homelands are located 250km north-east of Alice Springs and cover a 3,500 square kilometre area. Utopia was formed in 1978 by the amalgamation of the former Utopia pastoral lease with a tract of unalienated Crown land to the north. The culture is very strong and collectively, the people of Utopia have expressly avoided the establishment of a central community, instead living in sixteen homeland communities across the area. The main languages of Utopia are Eastern Anmatyerre and Alyawarra.

Arlparra School is comprised of five sites: Apungalindum Homeland Centre (HLC), Clinic HLC, Irrultja HLC, Soapy Bore HLC and Arlparra High School. The early childhood Family Learning Centre for 0 - 5 year olds is based at the high school. The homeland schools are run by a teacher and two assistant teachers from Monday to Thursday each week, with Friday a preparation and planning day. The high school operates five days a week and the Family Learning Centre runs three days a week, with mobile outreach programs in the outlying homelands. Teachers, senior staff and support staff provide most of the transport to and from each school, using a fleet of eight school vehicles and driving upwards of 500km a day on mostly unsealed roads.

At Arlparra School, our mission is to give students the knowledge, skills and opportunities they need so they can participate, work and live successfully in Utopia, in Australia and in the world. All but three of our students are Indigenous and the majority speak Eastern Anmatyerre and Alywarra, with English an additional language. Many of our students are mobile between homelands or between Utopia and other remote communities in Central Australia.