anna collins

We are hoping to emigraste to Perth in November 2010 with kids starting school in Feb 2011. I have a daughter who will be 10 then and a son of 13 at the time. What do people know about secondary schools in and around Perth; we will be living in or near Hocking. I have heard that we might want to go private?

mulben

Check here :
You can search Secondary and Primary ,both Public and Private

http://britishexpats.com/forum/showthread.php?t=648043

sportsendurance

Is this an easy thing to do as I have been told that, certainly for the good schools, you need to put your name down years in advance otherwise you will have to accept a 'lesser in demand' school?
We will be in a very similar position as to your selves except my children will be looking at primary schools

Kayelem

Hi we are moving to Joondalup in June and I too am searching for state secondary and primary schools. My daughter will be 13 in June and my sons will be 10 and 6. I don't know where to start. We thought about looking when we get there as I want the kids and myself to look around schools. I just can't go off internet pictures and reports. I can't find any state secondary schools in Joondalup. My son's teacher moved over last year and is working in a state school in another area and says it is a fab school.

sportsendurance

I stayed in Carramar last year and visited a catholic secondary school located just off Joondalup Drive. Sorry I can't remember the name of the school but I met the Head and some staff. The behaviour of the kids was fantastic and I believe the exam result are also very good. I will want my kids to attend the school if we are to move in that area. I think its next to Edith Cowan University but do a search on catholic secondary schools, oh by the way I'm not a catholic!

northernbird

Mater Dei.

HelenTD

I think you mean Lake Joondalup Baptist College (whoops that not Catholic!). There's also St Stephen's at Carramar, a little further north (another St Stephen's campus at Duncraig). Both can be hard to get into and you might have to wait a year or two. A friend's child was in Year 6 at a Catholic primary school and had applied for a place at Lake Joondalup, but it was looking like he would have to attend a state primary for Year 7 before joining Lake Joondalup in Year 8. Luckily a place became available for him. Another friend got her daughter into St Stephen's fairly quickly, but her son had to wait 2 years - this is because they keep the female/male ratio as even as they can, and they also have different levels of priorities. It's worth putting in an application, all you will lose is approx $100-150 per application - a drop in the ocean when you look at the big picture. Other friends hadn't realised how the state system was and didn't put down their firstborn's name soon after his birth. They didn't make the same mistake with son #2 and he got in at kindy level. As there was already a sibling at the school, son #1 got bumped up the priority level and started there about 6 months later.

The state high schools north of the river, in the West Coast District are:

Balcatta Senior High School
Belridge Senior High School
Carine Senior High School
Churchlands Senior High School
Clarkson Community High School
Duncraig Senior High School
Greenwood Senior High School
Kinross College
Mindarie Senior College
Ocean Reef Senior High School
Padbury Senior High School
Perth Modern School
Shenton College
Wanneroo Senior High School
Warwick Senior High School
Woodvale Senior High School
Yanchep District High School

You'd have to do a great deal of research on some of these schools, such as using this website, and any other resources you can find. Some of these schools do not have a good reputation.

Generally, you have to live within the school's zone to attend. For gifted and talented kids, there are special Education Dept programmes they can attend at high schools that offer that programme. You apply for your kids to sit a test in Year 6, or they can sit it in Year 7, but not both. If you sit the test in Year 7, most of the gifted and talented places will have been offered to those who sat the test in Year 6, but not all those places get taken up, or they don't allocate them all. Some schools also offer school-run (rather than Ed Dept) programmes that also require the kids to sit a test. These programmes tend to offer academic and sports options, ie football at Woodvale, or academic and swimming at Churchlands, , maths, IT and science at Como (SOR). Both levels of gifted and talented programmes are competitive to get into, but it does give the kids more opportunities and support.

Non-govt schools now start high school in Year 7, state schools have to wait until Year 8. If your child turns 13 from 1 January 2010 to 30 June 2010, then they would be starting Year 8 in early Feb this year. If they turn 13 from 1 July 2010 to 30 June 2011, they will be starting Year 7 in early Feb this year.

northernbird

Mater Dei is next to ECU and is on Joondalup Drive, I think the poster meant that one.

HelenTD

Yes, I realised that Lake Joondalup Baptist College was not the Catholic one! There are a few other Catholic and other religion schools dotted around, but I gave up on the idea of trying to get into them, as it seemed too hard. I've more recently heard that we probably would have got in, but we've sorted out high school for the oldest in 2011 and now it's just the younger one to worry about.

I suggested to other mums at school that we should set up a lotto syndicate so try and win private school fees. I'm staggered by the wealth of some families at school who have 2 or 3 kids in the most expensive schools. Rich beyond my comprehension!

northernbird

It is difficult for sure, I have spent years worrying as my catchment school is woeful. I have been lucky enough to secure a private place for my daughter in 2011, I can now sleep at night.

sportsendurance

Yes Northernbird Mater Dei is what I referred to. It's a very good school although there may be a small cost of about 1k to pay per year

northernbird

and the rest. Current fees for 2010 are $3600 per annum plus all the other stuff. Likely to have to pay up to $5000 per year.

irishbloo

Expect to pay around a $1000 for books and around the same for uniform.

polyama

You can search here.
Go to Advanced Search, you can search within the distance from your adderss. You will get a map and a list of schools with websites links.