kitten_

We are moving out to Sydney at the end of this year, I have two children, one who will be almost 4 when we go and one who will be 6. I am struggling to understand what years they will go into at school. Also can anyone suggest a good school in the Dee Why/Seaforth area?

Thanks

Katherined0

A friend of mine is a speech therapist and does alot of work in schools with children. I know she speaks very highly of Seaforth Public school and considered moving so that her kids could be in catchment.....

kitten_

Thanks... I am confused about one other thing, if you can help? My daughter will be 6 when we move there in November, will she go into year one or kindergarten?

tchouk

Hi... which year she goes into depends on what month her birthday is? The school year starts end of January, so she will be going in at the end of the year. My son is 7 at the end of the month and in Yr 1.

yanH

She'll go into kindergarten, but only for a few weeks as the school year ends in December. She'll then start in year 1 at the end of January.

kitten_

Thanks for your replies, she will be 6 just before we get there.

Katherined0

The "almost 4" year old will not be of statutory school age until January 2011, but if she is 5 before 31st July, then you have the option of sending her "early" in January 2010. Many parents choose to send their children "early" especially if they have birthdays in Jan/Feb.

emigratingherberts

My daughter will be 5 in February and she will start kindergarten in January although I could have kept her back another year if I wanted to. My sons are 13 and 9 and are in the same years as they would have been back in England, years 8 and 4. Basically they are just 1 term behind the UK as the year here starts in January instead of September. You can keep kids back a year if you like - it just depends on the child. As we are going back to the UK we thought it would better to keep them in their correct years although they are all some of the youngest ones in the class.

My friends kids go to Seaforth Public and she is very happy with the school. Mosman Public also has a good reputation although you would have to come across the bridge for that which is a bit of a mare.

paddyo

Where will you be living then? Dee Why and Seaforth are about 20 mins apart by car. Our son is 3 and goes to a Long Day Care centre near Warringah Mall and then my wife goes to work in Seaforth, its a nice place. He is due to start school in 2010 as he will be 5 in that year.
Dee Why has the beach and some nice cafes/bars along it and also the best RSL club I have ever seen but its not as classy as Seaforth, sorry to any DY habitees!!

michdp

Collaroy Plateau school is also very good, just about 5 mins up the road from Dee Why.

kitten_

We cant decide where to live - I have looked into the burbs out there and have settled on the Northern Beaches area in general. I like the look of the houses in Seaforth and Dee Why but its not set in stone. I would love to live near the beach as I live in Swindon now and long for some sea air. Having said that as long as the kids can get into good schools I am pretty open on location.

michdp

Hi Kitten
I can certainly recommend the Northern Beaches - we love it! However some areas are nicer than others... Seaforth is nice & very family oriented. Dee Why ... hmmm you do have to be a bit careful (unless you're up on the Headland which is very nice!)as it can be a bit mixed in parts which is why some of the prices look reasonable there - not all parts, you understand but some of the streets aren't so good.
Harbord (or Freshwater as it's controversially now known) is lovely & has some good houses for rental which aren't over the top as well as being very family oriented. Manly rentals tend to be more expensive because it's so popular & has good transport links.
We live in Collaroy which we love but it's just as beautiful further north from us as you go up through Mona Vale & Newport & prices drop accordingly because it's further out of the city. It really depends where you need to be for work. Most catholic schools up here seem to be pretty good if that's your thing & some of the state schools are really good. It's so hard to decide when you're looking at places on the web. It's probably a good idea to keep an open mind & be prepared to drive around & decide when you get here! Feel free to pm me if you need any more information- happy to help. We've been here on the rollercoaster ride for 3 years now & it finally feels like home!!

kitten_

Thanks.... you are right it is hard to see from the net what its really like out there. I have only been to Sydney twice before and both were holidays. Fingers crossed it all works out... I cant wait to get out there!

paddyo

I can totally endorse michdp's comments. I live in Manly, we had no car at first and it suited us perfectly. I was originally hard set on Collaroy but when I got here I soon changed my mind. Nothing can ever compare to actually driving around and seeing the places as they are rather than on a map of google earth! Now, well we have transport and if we had a choice all over again would probably still choose Manly but would also now consider Seaforth, Fairlight, Balgowlah and Brookvale/Harbord.
Are you looking to buy or rent?

the big nowhere

hi,could i just ask how long it would take to commute from collaroy to miller st ( just north of the bridge )...we want to be in a beachy community but are aware that commuting could be a pain..........many thanks.