The Cambridge
Our Lady Help of Christians Redevelopment
Shaping a connected precinct around the Parish and School
At a glance
The Cambridge forms part of the broader redevelopment of the Our Lady Help of Christians parish and school site in Epping. As landowners and long-term lessors, the Parish and School sought to create a precinct that would support their ongoing presence in the community while making better use of the site.
The redevelopment brings together an operating parish, primary school and 200-seat community hall with a 29-storey tower comprising 158 independent living units above a 132-bed residential aged care facility.
RP Infrastructure provided Development Management services for the Parish and School, representing their interests throughout the planning and delivery of this complex, mixed-use precinct.
The Challenge
The project required a considered planning and delivery approach to redevelop an active Parish and School site while protecting existing operations, heritage and long-term community use.
Key challenges included integrating education, faith, community, seniors living and residential aged care uses within one precinct, preserving the heritage church as a central feature of the site, and managing the interfaces associated with an operating parish and primary school.
The project also required planning uplift beyond local controls while maintaining community support and ensuring the redevelopment aligned with the long-term objectives of the Parish and School.
Our solution
As Development Managers for the Parish and School, RP Infrastructure worked with Levande, Architectus and the broader project team to represent our clients’ interests and coordinate the project’s stakeholder, planning, design and delivery interfaces.
Concentrating the development within a slender tower helped preserve the prominence of the heritage church and enabled the remainder of the site to support a connected network of parish, school and community spaces, including cloisters, courtyards and civic infrastructure.
The integrated precinct also supports intergenerational connection and provides seniors with access to a continuum of care within an established community.
The completed development has enabled the Parish and School to retain a strong, long-term presence on the site while integrating new community and seniors living uses around them. It demonstrates how a complex landholding can be carefully redeveloped to balance client objectives, heritage, operational continuity and future community needs.
“The Cambridge is redefining what ageing in place can look like. It’s rewarding to have played a role in delivering a community precinct mixed use project that combines innovation, heritage and community to create lasting value.”
David Wiles, Director