Sandy & Arrie Posted February 27, 2012 Report Share Posted February 27, 2012 Hi GuysI am moving to Canberra at the end of March and I can get a ok looking place in Mawson, I also see that there is a public primary school called Mawson Primary.Mawson is not to far from the city..........Any advice on the area or the school??? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cramer Posted February 27, 2012 Report Share Posted February 27, 2012 Hi Sandy,Mawson is a great suburb although house prices are a little more expensive than far north Canberra or further south in Canberra. We dont stay in Mawson but in the suburb right next door called Isaacs. Our 8 year old goes to Mawson primary and loves it, it really is a good school. If you ask the principal she will tell you it is the best school in the universe, which is something that filters down to the kids as they will tell you the same thing.Just off Mawson Road which runs through the centre of Mawson is Southside Shopping Centre which has a Woolworths where we do most of our grocery shopping. Its not a big complex but there is lots to offer including an African shop where you can buy mealie meal etc. Although I have never used them. Never felt the need. There are also hairdressers, travel agents, 2 pharmacies, a gym, Australia Post to name but a few. If the complex is to small you are a stones throw away from the big Mall which is Westfield Woden, about 3km from Mawson. Lots of shops there which you can Google, "Westfield Woden Canberra"There is a strip of land, a shallow drainage canal and a road (Athlon Drive) that separates Mawson from Phillip which is a business area, it also has lots of shops and motor dealers, take aways including Subway, KFC and Pizza Hut (Although Dominos Pizza at Southside is Cheaper, $5-$7 on average for a large Vegorama). From Mawson you can jump onto Hindmarsh Drive and its 9km to Fyshwick, the big business area with the furniture, plumbing, building Etc places, alternatively you can go the other direction in Hindmarsh then onto the Parkway which will take you up to Gungahlin or Belconnen, a 10 to 25 Minute drive depending where you are going. Alternatively from Mawson you can head down Yamba Drive in either direction, South for 9.5km will take you into Tuggeranong town centre and the other direction on Yamba Drive will take you onto Adelaide Avenue and into the Civic (Canberra City Centre), a 13Km trip.There is a Big Bus Station Next to Westfield Woden and Rapid Route Buses (Marked with the numbers in the 300's) run every 7 to 10 Minutes in both directions along Athlon Drive which runs between Mawson and Phillip and the nearest bus stop on this route from Mawson is about 200m from Southside shopping centre although there are stops all along Athlon so it will depend where in Mawson you stay. There are buses that run through Mawson as well from the Woden Bus Station and back if you are not up to a walk.There is the Southern Cross Club, the Helenic Club as well as a pool and an Ice Skating Rink (Where one of our own forumites works) in Phillip and Bordering Phillip and Mawson is Pearce where there is an awesome Indian Food restaurant called Rama's.I could add a lot more here but I hope this helps a littleWade Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lyn Posted February 28, 2012 Report Share Posted February 28, 2012 Agree with Wade, ( his very detailed description) Woden is a great area to live - everything quick and easy to access. And it has established TREES. I know I go on about trees, but Canberra can be very hot, dry, dusty and brown ( as in 2008).I dont mind swinging by and checking out the location for you (any excuse to eat at Ramas) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sandy & Arrie Posted February 28, 2012 Author Report Share Posted February 28, 2012 Wonderful, thank you so much for that Wade it is alway good to get some sort of reassurance of the "unknown"At the moment I am a ball of nerves and I am so scared of making a mistake with my little one..........I feel bad enough for uprooting him as it is. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Orion25 Posted February 28, 2012 Report Share Posted February 28, 2012 Hi Sandy & Arrie,Welcome to ACT soon, we have been here just on a month and Wade and his family have been great to us as well as Lyn they give wonderful advice. All their advice rates VERY high on our scale.We live in Kambah - Tuggeranong and LOVE it, it is very clean and full of trees etc, but I will be honest it is much easier to make the decision on your personal choice once you arrive, we had to get a rental in a specific price range, and decided down south was where we wanted to be.Good luck and keep asking all questions you have, we will all try answer you as best as is possible.T Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cramer Posted February 28, 2012 Report Share Posted February 28, 2012 Wonderful, thank you so much for that Wade it is alway good to get some sort of reassurance of the "unknown"At the moment I am a ball of nerves and I am so scared of making a mistake with my little one..........I feel bad enough for uprooting him as it is. How old is your son?Our 8 year old at Mawson took about 3 months to settle in, stuck to himeself pretty much. We took him out of a school in RSA where he loved his teacher. But we under estimate the resilience of our kids and there ability to adapt. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lyn Posted February 29, 2012 Report Share Posted February 29, 2012 IMHO the younger they are, the better. My kids were older 14 / 16 age group when we arrived, all of a sudden there was all this freedom they had not experienced living behind bars and 5pm lockdown everyday. My only regret - we didnt do this sooner !!Mawson Primary has a good reputation (as Im sure Wade will vouch for) - the area you are looking at living in is uneventful !! (ie low crime rate, no burglar bars, the hilight maybe an old drunk stumbling out of Mawson Club - opps might be my hubby !!)I understand it all looks so daunting - so much like hard work, and your heart is telling you to stay put -Look at it as a huge adventure into the unknown. You and your family will do things that you could only dream of doing in SA due to safety concerns.Take a day at a time, and all will be good.If you need any help when you are here, please just PM one of us. Most of us are only too happy to help. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sandy & Arrie Posted February 29, 2012 Author Report Share Posted February 29, 2012 Thanks Lyn & Orion25. I must say the support and information that the people share on this forum is amazing!!!!!!Wade my son is 6 years old and I have uprooted him more than what I should have.......in the beginning he was en still is in a way.........a child that fit into any situasion but now as he gets older it also takes him a bit longer to make friends.But he is a very positive child so that is in his favour.I feel a lot more at ease knowing that the school will be of a good standard.Thanx guys!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cramer Posted February 29, 2012 Report Share Posted February 29, 2012 He will be just fine, my youngest did not make many friends at his school back in RSA and it worried me. Most of his classmates had come through the pre-school system together and he had not come through with them. If 6 and 7 year olds can be cliquey then they certainly were. For the first 3 months here, basically an entire term he seemed to stick to himself, playing shooting games (Which was frowned upon, guns are not considered kids toys) and he slowly warmed up at his pace. He was 7 when he started at Mawson. Now less than a year later he is a different child but I think it is also how you get involved. He is part of the Eastlake Cricket club, Garran Cub Scouts and swims every Saturday down in Tuggers (Tuggeranong). When I look at how much he has grown, both in size and character I know we made the right move Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lyn Posted March 1, 2012 Report Share Posted March 1, 2012 You just want the best for your precious boy - we all want the same thing.Uprooting family is difficult, but you will be doing him a big favour in years to come. Kiddies are well catered for in Canberra, we have parks everywhere for him to run and play and ride his push bike and walk the dog safely.Like Wades little one, you can enrol him in many activities where he'll mix with like minded souls.I wish I had a crystal ball to guarantee you that moving to Canberra with your young man is a brilliant idea. I felt like you do in 2008 - you just dont have the answers and its all so unsettling. I dread to think what kind of life my kids would be living back in SAfrica - the opportunities here are enormous - my son is into ice hockey, has a dirt bike and rides most weekends in the gum forests - is in his second year ASBA (Australian School Based Apprenticeship) my daughter is an ACT figure skater - addicted to ice. They may not have heaps of friends, but they do realise these opportunities dont exist in SA !Good luck with your decision, but I believe your precious boy will be just fine. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sandy & Arrie Posted March 2, 2012 Author Report Share Posted March 2, 2012 Thanks guys!!!!Wade you mentioned your child swimming on Saterday's............Armand is at a swimming school here in SA and I want to continue with that.........it is wonderfull that they can do it during the weekends, as I am not sure how I would juggle work (hopefully I will find a job soon) , school ect........ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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