We are moving to south central Canberra later this year and would love to have some info on schools in advance, instead of making a snap decision because of arriving in the middle of the school year.
Redhill Primary and St Bede's Catholic Primary both have impressive websites, (but the website would be impressive, wouldn't it?!!!) Has anyone used these schools, or do you know someone who has a child in either of them?
Would really appreciate advice.
Looking forward to chatting more!
We are moving to south central Canberra later this year and would love to have some info on schools in advance, instead of making a snap decision because of arriving in the middle of the school year.
Redhill Primary and St Bede's Catholic Primary both have impressive websites, (but the website would be impressive, wouldn't it?!!!) Has anyone used these schools, or do you know someone who has a child in either of them?
Would really appreciate advice.
Looking forward to chatting more!
Will pm you (later on, have to head off to work in a mo!).
Have you got a house? Housing in that area can be quite expensive if you havent already got one. Government schools do have catchment areas and if you are not in a catchment area then they are not obliged to take you. Schools in that area are in quite high demand as they also get the inflow from Queanbeyan. Coming in the middle of the year can also be a disadvantage because they may have full classes at particular year levels and may not be able to fit you in. If you live in the catchment area though they are obliged to take you. The independent system has its own rules and you dont need to live in a particular place as long as you are prepared to transport the kids
Nothing beats actually going and eyeballing the schools - you will get a feel for what is going on and you can see if your kid can "fit" in. First thing generally is to get a house that you wont mind spending 24/7 in.
We live in the Weston Creek area in a lovely suburb called Chapman. We have been in Oz for 3 months now and my boys attend Chapman primary school, my daughter is 14 years goes to Canberra Girls School which is situated in Deakin. I visited Canberra last year on a reccie and luckily a friend of mine was a primary school teacher in Canberra, the schools she recommended were Chapman, old Ainslie (north Canberra) Farrer and Garran (Woden area) which is the nearest to South Canberra! We are very impressed with Chapman primary but you will need a residential address in either Chapman, Stirling or Rivett to obtain a place, I imagine likewise for the other primary schools as they all have good reputations and will be oversubscribed. Canberra Girls Grammar has a primary school in Deakin (south Canberra) but I feel some of the state primary schools are just as good! Good luck! Jo Smith
We live in the Weston Creek area in a lovely suburb called Chapman. We have been in Oz for 3 months now and my boys attend Chapman primary school, my daughter is 14 years goes to Canberra Girls School which is situated in Deakin. I visited Canberra last year on a reccie and luckily a friend of mine was a primary school teacher in Canberra, the schools she recommended were Chapman, old Ainslie (north Canberra) Farrer and Garran (Woden area) which is the nearest to South Canberra! We are very impressed with Chapman primary but you will need a residential address in either Chapman, Stirling or Rivett to obtain a place, I imagine likewise for the other primary schools as they all have good reputations and will be oversubscribed. Canberra Girls Grammar has a primary school in Deakin (south Canberra) but I feel some of the state primary schools are just as good! Good luck! Jo Smith
Hi Jo,
Where did you move from and how are you finding Canberra? We live in West Midlands, England and have just been offered jobs in Canberra. Have two children, girl aged 12 and boy aged 5.
Best regards, Penny
Where did you move from and how are you finding Canberra? We live in West Midlands, England and have just been offered jobs in Canberra. Have two children, girl aged 12 and boy aged 5.
Best regards, Penny
Hi Penny
Despite the preconceptions that you may have heard about Canberra both from other Australians and British who probably have never visited or lived in Canberra, we think its a wonderful city with all the attractions and facilities of a capital city but without all the hassle of over populated, traffic gridlock or pollution! Its only 3 hours from Sydney and 2 hours from the mountains (ideal if you ski and the coast is just under 2 hours away!) Admittedly the winters are cool, however you don't go more than a couple of days without seeing the sun shine! Our boys are aged 10 and 7 years and are loving the great outdoors and as they are both very sporty they are thoroughly enjoying facilities and clubs Canberra has to offer. The biggest pitfall is the school fees attached to the 457 visa if you are on the MOGL (occupations in demand) you are ok and have 100% rebate on schools. Both our boys attend a very good state primary school but the fees are horrendous $9,000 per year per child. Our daughter attend Canberra Girls Grammar School and is classed as an international student the fees are $20,000 a year however if you have citizenship or permanent residency its still $15,000 a year. If we'd sent her to a government (state in uk) school we would have had to pay $12,000 a year! Even though the sponsor is supposely responsible for the fees, it affects us directly as my husband is a partner in the business!
We really think Canberra is Australia's best kept secret! If you need anymore info please don't hesitate to contact me i.e. recommendation on primary schools or areas/suburbs to live!
Despite the preconceptions that you may have heard about Canberra both from other Australians and British who probably have never visited or lived in Canberra, we think its a wonderful city with all the attractions and facilities of a capital city but without all the hassle of over populated, traffic gridlock or pollution! Its only 3 hours from Sydney and 2 hours from the mountains (ideal if you ski and the coast is just under 2 hours away!) Admittedly the winters are cool, however you don't go more than a couple of days without seeing the sun shine! Our boys are aged 10 and 7 years and are loving the great outdoors and as they are both very sporty they are thoroughly enjoying facilities and clubs Canberra has to offer. The biggest pitfall is the school fees attached to the 457 visa if you are on the MOGL (occupations in demand) you are ok and have 100% rebate on schools. Both our boys attend a very good state primary school but the fees are horrendous $9,000 per year per child. Our daughter attend Canberra Girls Grammar School and is classed as an international student the fees are $20,000 a year however if you have citizenship or permanent residency its still $15,000 a year. If we'd sent her to a government (state in uk) school we would have had to pay $12,000 a year! Even though the sponsor is supposely responsible for the fees, it affects us directly as my husband is a partner in the business!
We really think Canberra is Australia's best kept secret! If you need anymore info please don't hesitate to contact me i.e. recommendation on primary schools or areas/suburbs to live!
Good luck and best wishes
Jo Smith
Hi Jo,
Thank you very much for the balanced info you have provided on Canberra. We are being sponsored to come over so we will need to check out whether we would need to pay school fees. We have never visited Canberra although have heard very mixed reviews. Sounds like a very nice place to us though!!! Ideally we would have liked to visit first to check out areas to live and more importantly schools for our children, however current work commitments and finaces are just not going to allow this. Therefore any info you have about the different areas in Canberra (in particular ones we may wish to avoid) and good schools (both primary and senior) would be extremely welcome!! Like most, we are both very excited and nervous about the move, however, if we can get our children settled ASAP, we know the rest will (should) follow. At present, we are looking at poss move date of Jan or Feb 09.
You might find following site useful though 
