Collaroy7

Hi Claire Lots of kids go to state schools (or public as they call them here) or private on Northern Beaches. If looking at local private schools, St Luke's Grammar school is excellent & had highest HSC results outside selective school on Northern Beaches (my son is there in Year 12 currently). Northern Beaches Christian School also has good results. There are the uber pricey private schools all over the city which take longer to get to. Freshwater Campus also seems quite good for state High school, a lot of kids move there in Year 11 & really like it. For other state schools, bear in mind lots of them are single sex, not co-ed apart from Cromer, Mater Maria & Narrabeen Sports High. The catholic schools are mainly single sex. There are more private girls schools on Upper North Shore which are also good. So depends on state route or private - would definitely look at HSC results to draw up shortlist & bear in mind different curriculum to UK schools as well as age for year. Here kids can start a year later than UK so we re-aligned our son when he moved schools so he was in with kids of his age rather than up to a year younger. He will be 18 when he goes to Uni after school, if we'd left him in line with his UK year, he'd have been 17. Hope that helps!

My husband commuted into the CBD for about 6 years & i also go in occasionally for meetings. Express bus from Collaroy takes about 40 - 50 mins to Wynard (CBD station) & then depending on where office is, you'll probably have a short walk... Buses go past Collaroy, Narrabeen & all the NB suburbs all the time in rush hour - some are express so faster & others limited stops... As someone said on here, you wouldn't use the ferry from Manly as it is a bit of a trek to get there & parking is expensive. Scooters are becoming quite popular here though so that would be a great way to get to Manly in summer & then, get fast ferry if that was something you fancied. You won't really know where you want to live until you get a feel for the place... We decided that being in a beach side suburb was a must for us so held to that as a pre-requisite. If you get a house with a pool further inland, the reality is that you probably won't go to the beach as much as you have a means of keeping cool... My recommendation would be to think about the lifestyle you hope for... My inlaws live near Chatswood with a lovely pool in a very leafy suburb & apart from the weather, you could actually be anywhere in the world to be honest as lifestyle is quite different away from the beach! So my advice to you would be think about why you're moving here & what's most important & then, decide on areas from there. For the rent you're looking at, you'd get an older house on NB which may or may not have a pool. If you look at other suburbs on the North Shore, further inland you may get a fabulous house with a pool but have to drive a fair way to the beach (i.e. 20 - 30 mins at least ). If you have kids who are doing sport on weekends, they may just be happy diving in the pool as swimming in the surf. Decide what's most important & go from there, I'd say! Where we are is very laid back but it does feel like being on hols at weekends & if you or your kids are keen to surf, best stay close to the ocean or you'll spend your life in the car! My son can just stroll down after school for a surf which is exactly what we envisaged for our life here... However our house is really old:( so always a compromise!

$1000/week will definitely get you something on Northern Beaches & if you go one suburb back from ocean like Cromer, North Narrabeen or Elanora Heights, even cheaper. Effectively that's the same as living right on beach with 5 mins drive if that & bigger plots & houses typically. The further up the Northern Beaches you go i.e. Avalon or Bilgola, prices drop a bit because of commute is a bit longer. We've been in Collaroy now for 9 years & love it - made the move from the UK worthwhile & great outdoor lifestyle for the kids... Good luck with the move!

St Luke's is a much better school than PWHS. Moved my son from PWHS to St Luke's (should have put him in there from the start! )as have many others. St Luke's has a waiting list unless you're lucky, PWHS can usually fit you in immediately which tells you something... Don't be pulled in by the pool & oval - all other schools in area including State schools have access to pools & sports fields but not necessarily on site. Pool & oval doesn't mean you get good academic results or discipline - both reasons why most people I know left PWHS. Class sizes tend to be small in PWHS - reason i joined coming from larger classes in primary school in UK - big mistake as it limits social aspect if there are a couple of kids who don't get on or don't speak English- makes it quite exclusive rather than inclusive. Northern Beaches is very sporty so lots of gifted kids who manage to excel, regardless of school actually as there are great public sports facilities & sports clubs. Great schools in the area with good reputations are St Luke's, Loquat Valley is primary feeder school for St Luke's, Northern beaches Christian school, Manly Selective & Oxford Falls - all far better than PWHS... it really depends on your child & your own expectations. Don't be skewed by High school academic results - PWHS have a high number of Asian students from Japan & Korea on scholarships in Year 11 & year 12 which pushes up the grades.

Go for the age group. We originally matched our son on UK year group/ability, it wasn't a good idea socially. Eventually when we moved schools, we re-aligned around age & it was much better. The school will stretch the child into extension work anyway so they won't get bored. Also a consideration for us was that we didn't want him to be youngest in year, not able to drive same time as mates etc. It makes a big difference when they get into teens & some mature faster than others which can leave someone very young for year feeling isolated. They'd also be going to Uni at 17 potentially...

Hi Laura I have just responded to someone else's request for feedback on PWHS in another thread on Sydney schools. I'd recommend St Luke's instead of PWHS.

Hi Ark99 My son is now 14 & I took him out of PWHS about 6 years ago when he was in the Junior school (he was there from 6 - 8) but still hear varying reports about it now as a number of people have moved from there to St Luke's where i moved my son to. I took my son out for a number of reasons - e.g. the school at the time didn't address a bullying issue in an appropriate way (that may have changed now) but main reason is that their model is based on separate classes for boys & girls & boys classes seem to be very small & it just didn't suit my son. It varied from 8 - 15 boys in a class when my son was there. Coming from UK, I found this to be a good thing when I looked at it on initial recce as my son was coming from a state primary in the Uk with 31 in his class! That was only reason i went for PWHS over St Luke's as I loved everything else about St Luke's much more at the time. However, it was just too small for him from a social perspective - lots of overseas students at time who didin't have parents here & were in lodging so no social life outside school from those kids- that ruled out 2 or 3 boys & left about 5 or 6 boys that if you didn't gel with, made social life difficult. Just too small for him. St Luke's has bigger classes about 23 & mixed but my son was so much happier within days of moving there, has made great friends & we have never looked back. School much more nurturing & better HSC results so he will stay there for next 4 years until he goes to Uni. They have had a new head there since we left but not too much has changed if number of people moving to St Lukes is anything to go by! I know a number of people with kids in High School there in PWHS, again class sizes seem quite small so quite personality dominated. Some are very happy there, others in different years not so much. PWH tries to run like an "english style' private school with pictures of the Queen up & National anthem at school events etc., cadets corps etc. St Luke's is more like a local Grammar school feel... Entirely depends what you're looking for for your kids... fees are probably about the same. Hope that helps!

Hi there Hope you realise how big sport is here, particularly on the Northern beaches where kids spend a lot of time at the weekend at various activities, be it football, cricket, Nippers, netball or ballet! The lifestyle here on the NB is very outdoors focused. Just check on the specific schools you choose as sport of some form is a mandatory for most private schools on Saturdays but not all public (State) schools. Interesting about science as my son also studies science up to year 10 & then into electives of biology etc. from then. Not like when I was in school & had to do chemistry, physics & biology! Good luck with your move - I'm sure you'll find a school that suits your requirements... Been here 8 years now & it feels like home.

A few friends kids go there from Northern Beaches so catchment is further than just north shore. It's reputation is for drama & music- seems to be main reason for going the compared to other schools. They don't wear uniform & it has a reputation for being quite alternative so if you have kidsvwho re interested in drama or music could be good option. It also had amazing HSC results last year so would imagine more mainstream kids will be trying to get in there who may previously have avoided it due to its arty reputation. Hope that helps

Sorry don't want to mislead you...they still do all the sports etc. but don't have their own pool (although have plan to build one)or onsite rugby & soccer fields, only basketball courts. The fields & pool are all a short drive away. They do tennis & swimming at school. My son plays in a number of school sports teams but not on Saturday mornings - all sport is after school or in school. With some of the prestigious schools, they have all the sports fields onsite but of course, you pay a huge amount more in school fees for the privilege & it is compulsory to play sport for the school on Saturday mornings, regardless of ability. As for what students do after HSC, the same as any other school really - doctors, lawyers, teachers, scientists, journalism... you name it any career you want. Academic results are excellent so the students still go onto the best universities as anyone else with ability could, regardless of school.

If you want tobe in a beachside suburb it's expensive ( in fact some of the most expensive real estate in Sydney) but if you go back from beachside to suburbs like Cromer Elanora Heights, prices drop substantially but you're still only 5 mins from beach

Collaroy Plateau is a good one.

Our son started in Pittwater House but we moved him after 18 months as not happy with school? We moved him to St Luke's which is a great school- good academically & with a lovely nurturing feel but not too big like the big Sydney private schools (eg Knox, Shore, Scots etc.) which are single sex & have about 2000 kids in them. St Luke's is not on a par with big schools in terms of facilities but is a great option locally on Northern Beaches. Good discipline too. Our son is very happy there in high school now & staying until 18.