Hi, my husband has been offered a package today with a company in Kwinana. He already has his 457 Visa approved and we are looking at a move in the next couple of months. I am looking for advice on nice suburbs and primary schools (we've got 6 year old twins) within a commutable distance of Kwinana. I've got the impression Kwinana is not the best place to live. We are looking for an affordable area and are prepared to be realistic.

Wellard, Baldivis, maybe Aubin Grove if a bit further afield. I had to check the school situation in Aubin Grove as there wasn't one there when we emigrated, but they opened a new primary school in 2011. Of those choices, I'd say Baldivis, but I'm biased.

There's some Secret Harbour folks on here as well who will say it's also an option...

Good luck...

How old are the kids and are you talking public or private schools?

There are pockets of rockingham I wouldnt touch with a barge pole, but there are some really good, well established areas too..... I live here, hubby works in kwinana...

Despite what some people say I think Rockingham is lovely, especially on the shore front. No idea about the schools though. Eddie will have an idea on this.

We live in Secret Harbour and I work in Kwinana, takes 20 mins or so the times I go to and from work. Where will your hubby be working?

I like Secret Harbour but it is very quiet. My children are both in Secret Harbour primary and they seem to be settling in well. I'd say come and have a look around before deciding on what it is that you really want.

As Japonica says Baldivis is nice but to me it's still a huge building site. It will, no doubt, be lovely once it's finished but I wouldn't want to live there right now.

It's a good job we all have our own ideas of what we like or we'd all be trying to rent the same house

Schools.... At 6 ..... Isnt the problem locally, its senior schools.. I have one at Rocko Highh and would give my eye teeth to be able to afford a private school, but we dont have $5k + a year spare in our budget right now.....

Primary there are one or two I would avoid... Good ones actually in rocko include Star of the Sea (if you're catholic, and we arent) and Rockingham Beach... You have to live in the right area... Our three youngest went to Bungaree and two of them absolutely thrived, the third is intelectually disabled so has done much much better since joining Rockingham Beach Educational Support Unit...the Rockingham Beach mainstream School is well thought of by parents whose kids go there that we know socially....Some people wouldnt send theirs to Bungaree, but ours got a good "australian" education.. Gorgeous was school captain in his final year and The hopalong kid won their Citizenship award and was on the Town Junior council as well as being stretched academically.... They were valued for their strengths..not constantly reminded of their weaknesses ...which led to huge improvement in their confidence and all round performance....They were both lucky to have a pretty inspirational class teacher in their final year there.... Not ALL teachers are equal ... But he was truely brilliant...The two middle ones definately benifited from Bungaree.....

It all went horribly wrong at the high school for Gorgeous...hence we withdrew him and he is at TAFE.... Hopalong is "ok" but despairs at some of the other kids and how they are impacting on her learning....

Thank you for all the advice, it has helped.

Hi, we are moving over in 5 weeks, with a 6 & 9 year old and heading to baldivis, we will be in the catchment for maykbe rise, which is a new primary school in the process of being completed. We really liked it and bought to be in their catchment, there is also a high school being built.

Whilst on validation last year we looked at Tranby (private), which appeared lovely but no spaces for our 9 year old anyway and also Settlers primary, which we really liked too.

There is alot of building going on, but we thought we could "grow" with it!

(Looking foward to a coffee at steel tree japoinca !!xx )

I'll be there.

I was just saying to Sunshine7 the other day that this suburb is growing so quickly, it's unreal. You'll be amazed at the changes in under one year even. The retirement village is coming along. The new high school will be open next Feb. Every time you drive down Safety Bay Rd, there's new shops in that strip running from the petrol station, going west. Makybe itself has undergone a whole raft of building...last time I walked by there, I saw new classrooms going up.

See you in a few weeks!

You know what.... Drove throu kwinana earlier and Ibreckon kwinana could become WAs next shockingham....

By that I mean an area with an horrendous reputation that has enough invested init to make it "better".... there are "nice" areas to live in ... But still large pockets of trouble.....

The private school.... Technically in wellard, but hey... We all know its really kwinana..... Has space and is building a reasonable reputation....

I reckon that kwinana is a "watch this space" area..... And no I dont mean the industrial areas at the foreshore... I mean the town of kwinana .....