Located at the heart of the historic Newmarket stables precinct in Randwick, Newmarket House is a rare surviving remnant of Sydney’s 19th-century horse racing heritage. Constructed in stages between the 1860s and 1880s, the building was originally surrounded by stables, training grounds, and rings associated with the former Randwick Racecourse. Over its lifetime, it served as a hotel, private residence, and home to various families closely tied to the racing industry, remaining in use until the early 2000s.
As part of a major redevelopment of the site into a high-density residential and public domain precinct, Newmarket House has been adaptively reused as a childcare centre. The project retained and conserved the principal dwelling, with later additions selectively removed. A contemporary L-shaped rear extension creates a central courtyard between the heritage house and the new preschool facilities. The new structure, featuring a curved roof form atop a colonnaded podium and a basement level for safe on-site drop-off and pick-up, accommodates over 80 children and forms a key community asset within the broader precinct.
Weir Phillips Heritage provided expert advice throughout the pre- and post-DA phases, including detailed conservation input, construction supervision, and ongoing guidance to ensure the heritage values of Newmarket House were respected and enhanced as part of this sensitive and successful adaptation.
Level 19, 100 William Street Sydney NSW 2011 Australia
