Normally this Ministry Spot is dedicated to content aimed at strengthening God’s people for ministry and mission. However, I trust that you will indulge me if, in this edition, I focus on our hopes and dreams for RTC’s future and what is happening in the short term as we pursue this vision. A fuller update than what is possible in the College News section will allow me to provide a bit more information about our upcoming move and to answer some of the questions you may have about the changes happening at RTC.
As most of you are no doubt aware, we will soon move away from what has been ‘home’ for a long time. For over two decades, RTC’s fourth campus at 125 Pigdons Road, Waurn Ponds, has been a place of rich blessing for our college community. Since 1999, the Waurn Ponds campus has served as a home for theological education, spiritual formation, and Christian fellowship. The Lord has used this site as a base for training gospel workers who now serve across Australia, New Zealand, and around the world. It has been a place where friendships were formed, ministries were shaped, and lives were transformed by God’s Word.
We are deeply thankful for all that God has done through 125 Pigdons Road. It has been a cherished part of RTC’s story, and the memories connected to it will remain a source of gratitude for many years to come.
Yet we also recognise that the life of faith often involves change for the sake of the advance of the gospel. One such change was the move of all our teaching activities to 221 Queen Street in the Melbourne CBD in 2017. Earlier this year, after much prayer and consultation, the RTC Board decided that it was time for the next step: moving the bulk of the college’s operations to Melbourne, with this expansion to be funded through the sale of 125 Pigdons Road.
This decision was not made lightly, but there was a clear sense that God was guiding us into a new season of ministry, one that will strengthen our ability to train and equip a new generation of gospel workers.
We have been deeply humbled by God’s gracious provision throughout this process. We not only received an acceptable offer for the Geelong property, but we were also able to secure another floor (Level 8) in our current building at 221 Queen Street. The addition of Level 8 marks a major milestone in RTC’s development. This new space will become home to our faculty and staff offices, as well as the library and new study and community areas for students. Together with Level 3, which will continue to be used much as it is now, and a smaller leased space on Level 2, the expanded Melbourne campus will create a dynamic centre for theological education and ministry training in the heart of the Melbourne CBD.
The expansion in Queen Street will allow for greater collaboration among staff and students, closer connection with partner churches and ministries, and increased visibility for the college in the heart of Melbourne. It will also enable us to create more welcoming spaces for study, fellowship, and prayer, reflecting our desire to see RTC continue as a place where biblical truth and gospel grace are lived out and taught in the service of Christ.
Now to some questions you may have:
What are some of the timelines involved? We need to vacate 125 Pigdons Road by 12 December. Settlement on Level 8, 221 Queen Street, will occur a few days later. We will do our best to ensure that the first stage of the work required to get the expanded Melbourne campus ready for students (see below) is largely complete by the start of the first semester in February, with Graduation Day (3 March) pencilled in as the official opening day for the new library.
Who did you sell 125 Pigdons Road to? Our Geelong campus was bought by our neighbour, Marcus Oldham Agricultural College. This will enable them to significantly expand their campus.
How is the move going? We are hard at work packing up everything. In the process, we are assisted by a ‘muscle crew’ of young men and several volunteers. There will also be a few working bees in the lead-up to 12 December. A huge thank you to Daniel Combridge (Transition Project Manager), May Blackhall (Geelong Campus Receptionist), and Carolyn Wakefield (Librarian) for their hard work in managing different parts of this process.
What work do you need to do at 221 Queen Street? The remodelling of Levels 3 and 8 of 221 Queen Street will happen in stages. In the short term, we are hoping to redevelop the kitchen on Level 3 and to turn the Reading Room into a meeting room and staff space. Half of Level 8 will also be turned into a library and study spaces for students. Over time, we will also move most staff offices onto Level 8. However, this is a longer-term project since we inherited a tenant on that part of the floor and will have to wait for them to see out their lease. In the meantime, we will be using some leased office space on Level 2 to house staff. We are very thankful for the work of Freya Catchpoole, an experienced interior designer who is helping us to imagine and design these spaces. Please pray for her and the entire team involved with this part of the work.
What is happening to the library? We have more than 30,000 books at the Geelong library, and, in due course, individual decisions will have to be made about what to do with each title. In the short term, we are selecting 12,000 books that will go to Melbourne as a core collection to be housed in our new library space. The rest of our books will stay in Geelong for the moment. Over the course of 2026, we are planning to right-size our library holdings by removing titles that are worn out, superseded, or duplicated from the collection. Books that remain in the collection will remain available to student on a per-request basis.
Is this the end of RTC in Geelong? Not quite! Some of our staff will continue to be primarily Geelong based, so we will continue to operate a smaller office there (initially at 3 Raptor Place, South Geelong). During the first year after moving out of 125 Pigdons Road, this facility will contain a significant part of our library, as it is where the work will be done to sort through and right-size our collection.
We are encouraged by how the Lord has guided each step so far, and we are confident that these developments will greatly enhance our capacity to serve students, churches, and the wider Christian community.
As we prepare for this move, we are very aware of the mountain of work ahead. There will be challenges to navigate and many practical details to coordinate. Yet we face this transition with a deep sense of gratitude and trust. The same faithful God who has provided so abundantly in the past will continue to lead us in the future. Please join us in giving thanks for what God has done through 125 Pigdons Road and in praying for wisdom, strength, and perseverance as we take the next steps.
As one chapter closes and another begins, we are reminded that every phase of RTC’s life is part of God’s larger story. From humble beginnings in the Sunday school room of the Geelong Reformed Presbyterian Church (1955) to a full-service campus in central Melbourne, from past blessings to future opportunities, our prayer is that Christ will be honoured in all things and that RTC will continue to play its part in equipping His people for faithful and fruitful gospel ministry.
