Schools became a community focus, a symbol of progress, and a source of pride, with enduring connections formed with past pupils, parents, and teachers.

The occupations of the pupils' parents in the enrolment register show the rural nature of the area - timber-cutter, dairyman, farmer, grazier, drover, horse-dealer and tanner.

Past students recalled that men were employed on the excavation of the Newmarket State School oval and filling the gully, under the Unemployment Relief Scheme.

[1] The construction of substantial brick school buildings in prosperous or growing suburban areas and regional centres during the 1930s provided tangible proof of the government's commitment to remedy the unemployment situation.

Classrooms were commonly divided by folding timber partitions and the undercroft, where one existed, was used as covered play space, storage, ablutions and other functions.

[42][1] Despite their similarities, each Depression-era brick school building was individually designed by a DPW architect, which resulted in a wide range of styles and ornamental features being utilised within the overall set.

These styles, which were derived from contemporary tastes and preferences, included: Arts and Crafts, typified by half-timbered gable-ends; Spanish Mission, with round-arched openings and decorative parapets; and Neo-classical, with pilasters, columns and large triangular pediments.

The front elevation is neatly relieved by projecting gables panelled in fibro-cement, and wide overhanding eaves and sunshades added to the appearance, while also the long roof is broken by a large octagonal fleche.

Landscaping in front of the new building including a row of fig trees along the Banks Street fence line (two of which survive), and the laying out of pathways.

School tennis courts were opened in 1941 by the Minister for Public Instruction, Harry Bruce,[60] and in 1944-1945 a playshed was erected at a cost of £484, as Block A had no undercroft for this purpose.

The Department of Public Instruction was largely unprepared for the enormous demand for state education for the "baby boom" that began in the late 1940s and continued well into the 1960s.

[66] Although other brick Depression-era buildings were built in stages and completed as many as 10 years later, this did not occur at Newmarket State School, despite its accommodation needs in the post-World War II period.

[69][70] Responding to materials shortages and the pressures of the baby boom, the Department of Public Works imported a British prefabricated building system from manufacturers Boulton & Paul Ltd of Norwich.

[74][75][76][1] The Boulton & Paul building at Newmarket State School was located to the north of the Block A, aligned parallel to it and overlooking the playing field.

This type adopted many of the Boulton & Paul design features, such as a covered play space under the classrooms and the extensive areas of glazing, but became permanent structures.

Major changes were made to the understorey at this time, including the construction of brick toilet blocks at each end and a small store room, and the relocation of seating.

[88][89][1] Changes to Block A include the removal of the roof fleche between 1961 and 1969,[90][91] and the addition of a brick stairwell to the western end in 1974, replacing external timber stairs.

[92] In the 1990s, wrought iron gates, believed to have come from the Queensland Trustee's Building in Queen Street, were recovered from the grounds, cleaned and erected in the main entrance portico.

In the area in front of Block A's entrance portico garden beds have been created, early paths have been paved or laid with bitumen, and several memorials have been established.

[10][100] The 75th anniversary celebrations in 1979 involved publication of a school history, a recreated 1904 classroom and a festive event opened by the Governor of Queensland, Sir James Ramsay.

The school grounds contain a number of significant mature trees, and landscaping features include earthworks, assembly and play areas, sporting facilities, and paths.

[1] Ornamented with an Arts and Crafts-style decorative treatment, the building is constructed from red face brick walls at ground level, which extend up to window sill height on the first floor.

Above the first floor windows, the main entrance gable is ornamented with horizontal and vertical pieces of timber to create a half-timbered effect, with a triangular section of terra cotta tiles at the peak.

Ground floor windows on the southern elevation are sheltered by timber-framed hoods with hipped, corrugated metal-clad roofs and supported by solid timber brackets.

[1] The interior of the eastern DPW section is not of heritage significance, due to substantial alterations to the building fabric, including the re-lining of all walls and ceilings and the creation of new doorways and large openings.

[1] The Boulton & Paul Building, a type that was imported from Britain in the early 1950s, demonstrates the introduction and adoption of prefabricated systems by the Queensland Government during a period of rapid school expansion to cope with a large increase in student numbers.

These include: teaching buildings constructed to standard designs by the Queensland Government; and generous, landscaped sites, with mature trees, assembly and play areas, and sporting facilities.

The building plan comprises a typical linear layout of classrooms, offices and store rooms, accessed by single long corridor.

Through its substantial size, high quality materials, face brick exterior, elegant formal composition and decorative treatment, the Depression-era brick school building at Newmarket State School has aesthetic significance due to its expressive attributes, which evoke the sense of progress and permanence that the Queensland Government sought to embody in new public buildings in that era.

They typically retain significant and enduring connections with former pupils, parents, and teachers; provide a venue for social interaction and volunteer work; and are a source of pride, symbolising local progress and aspirations.