Captain Roberto Posted November 16, 2014 Share Posted November 16, 2014 (edited) Hi In my quest to research suburbs/areas and schools, I have been looking at a few areas. I have found looking here pretty useful and have gained some good information. We are primarily looking at state/public high schools (as we doubt we'll be able to afford private) - but are happy to get told of others if people think it's useful to know. We like the idea of the northern beaches, but probably no further north than Dee Why, and maybe no more than 10km inland (west of the coast) If anyone can help here, I'd most appreciate it. We are mostly trying to find out names, if they are decent enough, and whether they are selective or non-selective. Or if there are any others that night fit the bill. Thanks. Matthew PS - apologies if I seem like I might be asking the same kind of questions here. I have fond it takes an amount of poking about before a lot of it starts to make sense, but it does work, as it all makes sense after a while. Edited November 16, 2014 by Captain Roberto Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MARYROSE02 Posted November 19, 2014 Share Posted November 19, 2014 I Googled 'public schools in Manly' and found a link to a older PIO thread, including a link to this site, which may be helpful. http://www.australianschoolsdirectory.com.au/ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Prairie Girl Posted November 19, 2014 Share Posted November 19, 2014 I recently met someone whose children went to Killarney Heights High School and they were really happy with it and recommended it. I think that is close to your target area. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Captain Roberto Posted December 5, 2014 Author Share Posted December 5, 2014 (edited) I've done a bit of research here, and it would appear that the only one in the area near the beach between Manly and Dee Why is The Northern Beaches Secondary College - http://www.nbsc.schools.nsw.edu.au/ which looks great, but potentially difficult to get into (my eldest will be 12 when she arrives). There does seem to be a girls campus which appears not to be selective. does anyone know any more in this area? Prairie Girl - thanks for that. We're looking into it. Matthew Edited December 5, 2014 by Captain Roberto tagging issue Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest km75 Posted December 7, 2014 Share Posted December 7, 2014 Hi, Please PM me if you like, happy to help, our kids are not high school age, but know plenty of parents at our school who's kids are starting High School next year, in the area you have Manly Selective, which I imagine is very difficult to get into if not applied at the correct time, Mackellar Girls (the girls high school you mentioned), then there is Killarney Heights, Davidson and Frenchs Forest - all have good reps. If going up north shore, Turramurra High has a great reputation too. Some christian and catholic schools have reasonable fees, and you don't always have to be religious to get in, depending on demand. Hope the move goes well. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sevenseas Posted January 15, 2015 Share Posted January 15, 2015 Hi, Northern Beaches Secondary College has a number of campuses - Mackellar Girls, Balgowlah Boys, Manly Selective, Cromer and Freshwater. Cromer is comprehensive, Freshwater is a senior campus (similar to a 6th form college I believe). My daughter goes to Mackellar and is very happy there. There's also Killarney Heights, Davidson and Forest High. Relatively inexpensive private schools would include Oxford Falls Grammar, Stella Maris and St Lukes. All the best. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Captain Roberto Posted January 15, 2015 Author Share Posted January 15, 2015 Hi, Northern Beaches Secondary College has a number of campuses - Mackellar Girls, Balgowlah Boys, Manly Selective, Cromer and Freshwater. Cromer is comprehensive, Freshwater is a senior campus (similar to a 6th form college I believe). My daughter goes to Mackellar and is very happy there. There's also Killarney Heights, Davidson and Forest High. Relatively inexpensive private schools would include Oxford Falls Grammar, Stella Maris and St Lukes.All the best. It says mackeller is semi-selective with a waiting list. Is/was it hard to get a place? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sevenseas Posted January 15, 2015 Share Posted January 15, 2015 Hi, yes I think Mackellar can be hard to get in. Of the 9 classes in my daughter's year 7 were selective (academic, dance, sport, art, music etc) and 2 were non-selective. So if going for a non-selective place you would need to be living close to the school. Stella Maris is a good alternative. If you are on temporary visas I believe you may need to pay something for state-school education in any case. Stella is a catholic school but they do accept non-catholics. It's in a great location too. Other than that I know that Killarney Heights has a very good reputation especially with languages and a lot of families/children from overseas go there, which could be good from the point of view of fitting in/making new friends. You would need to be living in the catchment area. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Captain Roberto Posted January 16, 2015 Author Share Posted January 16, 2015 (edited) Hi, yes I think Mackellar can be hard to get in. Of the 9 classes in my daughter's year 7 were selective (academic, dance, sport, art, music etc) and 2 were non-selective. So if going for a non-selective place you would need to be living close to the school. Stella Maris is a good alternative. If you are on temporary visas I believe you may need to pay something for state-school education in any case. Stella is a catholic school but they do accept non-catholics. It's in a great location too. Other than that I know that Killarney Heights has a very good reputation especially with languages and a lot of families/children from overseas go there, which could be good from the point of view of fitting in/making new friends. You would need to be living in the catchment area. Thanks @sevenseas - we have PR visas and have our eye out on 4 or 5 basic areas / school catchments areas. In a city as big as Sydney there aren't so many public schools that are good that aren't selective. We aren't especially religious so don't know if we could wangle our way into a catholic school. It seems to be a case of finding a balance between affordability, location, commute times and school places. Hopefully we can sort something when it comes to the crunch. Thank for getting back to me. Edited January 16, 2015 by Captain Roberto Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sevenseas Posted January 16, 2015 Share Posted January 16, 2015 You're welcome. Just so you know, Stella does not require you to be religious to attend (we aren't and may send our 2nd daughter there). They have an ethos of contributing to the community and that includes the education of (a certain proportion of) non-Catholic girls. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Captain Roberto Posted January 16, 2015 Author Share Posted January 16, 2015 Ok thanks for that. We'll look it up. I'm still getting used to the many types of schools over there. It's a bit simpler over here I think Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MrsH Posted September 30, 2017 Share Posted September 30, 2017 Hello, revisiting this thread - did you choose a school for your daughter Captain Roberto? We are starting to plan our move to Sydney and are looking at several areas, including the northern beaches (my husband insists he has to be close to the surf!). We have three daughters who would be starting in year 7, year 5 and year 3 when we arrive so keen to get it right. All seem (at this stage) to be fairly bright and averagely sporty. Happy to look at all school options (public, private, catholic - my husband is catholic) to find the right school. Any advice much appreciated. Thank you! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Captain Roberto Posted September 30, 2017 Author Share Posted September 30, 2017 Hey! we’re no experts in all this as there are many options. We we don’t really have spare money to send x 3 kids to private school. Life isn’t cheap here so we had to work within the public school system. I think most public primary schools are good. High schools are ‘maybe’ a mixed bag. But if you’re kids want to work they can pass the HSC wherever they go. We we live higher up the beaches at Newport and our kids go to Newport public school (the younger two) and our eldest goes to Pittwater High School. They are good enough for us. I think you can find out for yourselves when you get here what you like. Depends what you want and can afford. We like living in this area as the lifestyle is good. The schools are better on the north shore but we didnt feel it was a good fit for us there so we moved over here. Sorry its not more specific! You can view league tables of schools based on HSC results which shows where the ‘best’ ones are. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MrsH Posted September 30, 2017 Share Posted September 30, 2017 That's really helpful, thank you. It's all so confusing from a distance. Newport is lovely! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Captain Roberto Posted September 30, 2017 Author Share Posted September 30, 2017 It is hard from a distance. Been there! also what’s right for you is subjective. Most areas around greater Sydney vary quite a bit. I know people living in many different places and they all like where they are. If you have the flexibility to not commit to an area too soon that might help. Then you can try looking for yourselves. Beach wise, northern beaches or Cronulla area both seem good for families. Eastern suburbs a bit pricey for families coming into the area as buying cost mega millions. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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