Canberra - Schools / Suburbs

[AniOz]

Hello everyone!

 

We (2 Adults and 2 kids) are making our way to Canberra in about 4 months time , and we have a few questions about the Canberra city / surrounding area :

 

Schools: Where are the good primary schools?

Suburbs : Where are good family suburbs that have rentals of $400 - $500 pw ?

 

Any suggestions / insight of the general area will be much appreciated!

 

thanks  

 

[IamInACT]

G'day AniOz ..... 

 

Its so hard to say .... When I was looking originally is not where I landed up. I say in the North (Amaroo). we really like it here ($580). The North(Gunghalin)is really integrated with the public transport and has a diverse community which is great. really anywhere is okay but you might when to choose you suburb based on the school you want you kids to attend as there feeder areas. Best to look at is www.allhomes.com.au 

 

Schools, Questions first  ... how old are your children? then there is public, Independent Christian , Catholic and private?  My kids have always been at Brindabella Christian College (year 8, 5 and P3 (3 year old))

 

happy to try and help.

 

 

[AniOz]

Hello IamInAct  

 

Thank you so much for your advice.

We will most likely start with the government schools. My kids are 5 and 9.

 

We are looking for areas that are quiet, but close proximity to main facilities and schools.

 

We have been looking at allhomes.com.au and realestate.com.au and have seen some nice places to rent ($500) , but I guess only when we are there would I get a better feel

 

Are there any notable areas I should stay clear from?

 

 

Thanks so much for your help  

 

 

 

[IamInACT]

Its hard to say ... yes there are most certainly area to stay away from ... (if anyone stays in these areas mine sorry) Bonner, Moncrieff, certain places in  ngunnawal, Chislom , Charwood there are others

 

We have never looked outside of the North, for me where we live in Amaroo is close to the Yerribee pond so walking distance to the Gungahlin town center and it is quiet and more developed in terms of verges and trees etc which makes it nice and leafy in the summer and baron in the winter. it is also in walking distance to Amaroo school.. Gungahlin will have the Light rail from April that will take you directly to Canberra Civic (centre of town).

 

For public transport google maps can show you where the buss stops are, show when choosing a rental you can use that to see how you can get around for the first while. The Bus and Train use tap off and on system which is easy to use.

[AniOz]

@IamInACT

 

Thanks so much  this puts a few things in perspective.

 

I will definitely check out the north.

 

 

 

 

[Fidjet]

Hi. I'm in the South, and when you get here you will learn North vs South is a big deal, to most people. Basically, you need to decide what do you like, there will be nice suburbs in both but they are very different. Also, EVERYTHING in Canberra in 20min drives away so don't tress to much about where you are, find a good school and then a house you like in the catchment area.

I don't have kids so can't comment on Schools but I know Theodore Primary has been in the news because of vilance in the school. Also, most of our friends have their kids in a Christian or Catholic school, there main reason for this is a better type of education, smaller classes and more personal attention. And most of them don't like how public schools in the act teach about gender ect, so just do your homework and see how they will teach your kid and what. One friend is a School Chaplin (in a public school, so legally she is not allowed to mention any form of religion) an she was shocked to learn that a kid can choose his or her gender and approach the school for assistance in "correcting it" without parents consent.

 

South is "older" meaning you still individual houses and space between them. South is also a lot greener, South has fewer people so less traffic, Less people also means it is quieter and more bird and animal life, all things we wanted so we moved South.  

 

We looked at the North initially, it is cheaper, they do have A LOT better public transport and most of our "novelty shops" are there, my Dr is there ( I tried 6 or 7 before I found one I like), my hairdresser (same story) , boardgame shop, SA food shop, and a couple of other things are all Northside.

 

The houses and neighbourhoods in the North are newer, and mostly built almost complex style, all the places look the same and have been copied and pasted from each other. The properties are very small (so gardening is easier) but we wanted space around our house, Noth side houses are very on top of each other. Typically if you look out your window you will see your neighbour's house RIGHT THERE. If I look out the window I see trees and hillside and some of the most amazing sunsets I have ever seen in my life! Also, go in the house and get an idea of the size of the bedrooms, most of the Northside properties we went will advertise 3 bedrooms but then one is hardly big enough for a single bed. I remember one was a 3 bedroom with the master bedroom 2.2 x 2 m with walk-in robe and the other two rooms each measured 1.2m  by just shy of 2m, with no robe they had a "spacious hallway cupboard"... I'm sorry that is nor a berdoom, that's what you get is you split a bedroom in half to try and up your property value. 

 

Good luck and enjoy the ACT. 

[AniOz]

@Fidjet

 

Thanks so much for your response!

 

I am so glad you have mentioned the house sizes and the clusters built. We will definitely be mindful about this when we are looking around for a rental.

I guess its not only looking for good schools and being in the catchment area, but also finding a place to stay that is decent and manageable with 2 kids.

 

Glad to hear everything is 20mins away too