As if choosing a suburb to live in Sydney for yourself wasn’t difficult enough, a whole extra layer of complexity and decision-making comes into play once kids come along. Children have a host of extra requirements that adults lack, from schooling to safe public transport, and from play spaces to different medical requirements.
While different families may have slightly different needs, this general pattern of requirements is typically consistent. So what makes a suburb “family friendly” in our book?
Factors we’re looking at include:
- Safety: the suburb’s crime rate and the safety of its public spaces
- Education: access to schools, both sheer quantity and their quality (private and public), as well as availability of childcare
- Public spaces: quantity/quality of playgrounds, parks, and other entertainment amenities suited to kids that are clean and safe
- Commute times: less time needed to commute for parents = more time to spend with the kids; under 1 hour commute to either Sydney CBD, Parramatta, or Macquarie Park
That said, here’s our picks for 10 of the best Sydney suburbs for families:
10. Putney
While it’s not exactly teeming with schools, Putney checks all of the other boxes required for quality family life about as well as physically possible. It’s home to perhaps the best waterfront family park in Sydney, for starters, with Putney Park not only offering some very pretty water views but offering a huge, excellent and diverse array of playground equipment and other public amenities.
Putney also boasts wonderful outdoor areas for active families given its array of quality sports pitches and fields, waterfront biking tracks, and slices of sand and rockpools for the little ones to play in.
School-wise, it’s home to Putney Public School as well as kindergarten amenities within the suburb, while neighbouring options close by both to the north towards Ryde and west in Meadowbank – both only a several-minute drive away – provide more options as well
The suburb itself is highly safe and boasts an incredibly low crime rate, while highly frequent bus services offer a reasonably easy drive into the Sydney CBD. As a fun day out, its ferry offers a scenic and enjoyable ride down into the city and Cirqular Quay as well, which is an adventure in itself.
Putney’s physical position also makes it a viable option for parents needing to commute in either direction – either down into Sydney city, across to Parramatta and the west, or at the close-by tech hub of Macquarie Park.
9. Westmead
A strong pick of Parramatta-region satellite suburbs for those with kids in tow, Westmead represents more of an affordable option to many of the other family-oriented suburbs listed here further to the east. This comes while still offering a bevy of services and amenities conducive to family life, too.
Westmead offers flexibility in housing options to cater to different budget levels, with the southern side of its train station more lower-density and desirable while its north side is more built-up and oriented around apartment living.
The station itself offers the prospect of a 35 to 40 minute commute into the Sydney CBD; alternatively for those working in Parramatta, the tiny drive or hopping on the bus or single stop down the road makes things quick and convenient.
Westmead offers a cavalcade of schooling options both within and adjacent to its borders. The desirable Westmead Public School presents a highly-regarded public option, with private schooling also available and yet more choices in neighbouring Parramatta and Wentworthville nearby.
Spacious and historic Parramatta Park sits right on its edge and offers a mix of both plenty of open space and a duo of excellent, well-equipped playgrounds for the kids. As one of the leading children’s hospitals in Sydney, Westmead Hospital also serves the purpose for not only giving birth to a child, but a go-to destination for any resulting medical issues as well.
Traffic is its main weak point and its denser sections can be noisy, but the prospect of a sub-$900k freestanding home (and far cheaper selection of apartments) while surrounded by good schools may be hard to pass up.
8. Beecroft
While much of the “Hills District” at which this suburb sits at the entrance to could qualify here, it’s Beecroft (and adjacent Cheltenham, really) which stand out for their schooling options.
Part Hills, part North Shore, Beecroft blends together some of the best elements of both as far as living conditions for families are concerned – it has elements similar to, say, an Epping, but in return for less services you’re garnering more peace and quiet and less of a busy-busy vibe in return.
While more development has hit in recent years, it’s still largely leafy and offers spacious homes and greenery without sacrificing much transport connectivity. Its station was already pretty well-serviced; connectivity to the metro via Epping has provided yet more flexibility for getting from A to B.
This comes with a largely relaxed and almost “country” feel to many of its public centres. While there’s no massive flagship park in Beecroft, those that it does have (including its Village Green) are decked out in playground equipment, while its nature reserves offer some pleasant escapist walks draped in greenery too.
In terms of enviable schooling, Beecroft Public School currently has one of the highest entry score requirements of such schools in Sydney – a testament to its desirability. It’s also well-positioned to provide access to a host of other highly regarded public and private schools in its surrounding areas, most of which are easily accessible without having to travel too far to reach.
A strong sense of community and low crime rates round out its offerings, and while price can be an obvious issue the quality of life in return is significant.
7. Oatley
One of the many family-oriented suburbs in the region that’s not-quite Sutherland Shire due to its quality schooling options and safety mixed with access to nature, Oatley offers a solid balance between greenery, personal space, educational offerings, and amenities.
While it’s not the greatest suburb for shopping in the world, Oatley still has more than enough to get by on a daily basis, while Hurstville is just a short drive away for bigger-scale retail needs.
Outside of that one concern, the rest of Oatley presents an excellent mix that ticks all the boxes one could want for family life. Perhaps most obvious for the kids is the great Oatley Park Adventure Playground – still-relatively-new addition to the already-lovely Oatley Park that’s decked out in a diverse mix of play equipment including flying foxes, tube slides, and much more. The park itself was already top-notch, with plenty of shade, barbecue and abundant seating as well.
Oatley also sits in a position that offers many of the benefits of Shire living while being located both physically and connectively closer to Sydney city. Commute-wise, it’s roughly a ~30 minute commute into the CBD by train, without sacrificing for nature or crowds in return.
The waters of the Georges River provide a scenic aspect and opportunities for marine activities, while the space on offer means on-street parking and decent sized backyards for the kids to play in are a key benefit as well.
Oatley also boasts a duo of high-achieving public schools in both Oatley and Oatley West, while nearby offerings in the likes of Hurstville, Peakhurst and Penshurst open up options for education even further.
6. Ashfield
A popular option for those who don’t mind their family life a little bit busier in exchange for more convenience, Ashfield represents a decent compromise between proximity to Sydney city and affordability of property compared to those Inner West suburbs immediately to its east.
Sure, Ashfield is always going to be noisier, busier and suffer from more traffic issues than some of the other higher-end suburbs on this list – but it also provides a more reasonable commute for city workers, and doesn’t have tumbleweeds blowing through it once the weekends roll around, either.
This translates into an easier time getting to and from school here as well. The suburb boasts a great degree of schooling access in addition to the schools it contains themselves. Sandwiched between Croydon, Summer Hill and Haberfield, Ashfield presents numerous options for both pricey and affordable schooling while not really compromising on quality of education either way.
Ashfield’s public transport connectivity makes getting to and from schools for kids once they’re of age a breeze, alleviating much of the necessity for parents to soak up hours of their day stuck in the “school traffic nightmare” suburbs with less connectivity endure.
It also doesn’t hurt that the suburb sits a mere 8km from the Sydney CBD, and has express train connectivity to boot; again, more time of a morning or evening for parents to spend time with the kids.
With both solid public schools and acclaimed options such as Trinity Grammar, St Vincents and more all here, combined with its robust shopping facilities and wide public spaces, Ashfield is versatile and can suit a more diverse range of demographics other than just the truly cashed-up.
5. Normanhurst
It may not get as much of a mention as some of the bigger “brand name” North Shore suburbs in Sydney, but Normanhurst offers a wide range of advantages for families looking for somewhere in the area that’s (slightly) more affordable.
The suburb boasts all the signature and desirable characteristics of this region – being highly leafy and green, low crime rates, and replete with nice public spaces – along with one of the greatest selections of education options as well. Its parks aren’t amazing but are still well-kept and functional, and offer a smattering of playground equipment as well
Normanhurst’s demographic is largely a mix of of families and retired couples, and its lack of a main shopping area or district means while it lacks slightly in convenience, it stays cleaner and less busy compared to some of its more developed neighbours. With Hornsby only a very short drive away, larger shopping opportunities are within easy reach as well.
The main drawcard for families will be its schools, however. Normanhurst is home to not only highly-regarded selective schools (Normanhurst Boys High School) for the boys, as well as Loreto Normanhurst (an acclaimed Catholic option) for the girls, but also a duo of public schooling options and preschool.
Throw in more great options in neighbouring Thornleigh as well, and you’ll be spoiled for choice in terms of quality education here.
Given it’s only around 25 minutes to Parramatta and still under an hour (by train) into the Sydney CBD, you’re not sacrificing too much distance for all of these benefits, either.
4. St Ives
An ideal choice of suburbs for families who love the bush and nature in general – as long as you’re going to take advantage of it and not stay home all the time – St Ives offers a huge amount of greenery both maintained and rugged at your doorstep. Even the beach isn’t too far away.
Wildlife can be spotted here aplenty, from wide arrays of bird life to possums and more, without being ridiculously far from the Sydney CBD (still under 20km away).
As a result, it’s great for those with outdoors-y kids, not only because of its proximity to national parks but due to its other amenities as well. Skate parks, off-road bike tracks, numerous sporting facilities and more all round out St Ives’ active offerings, and it’s all wrapped up in a package that is still largely peaceful despite some increased recent development.
Its shopping village offers a good blend of essentials and mixed retail, and it’s as safe and clean as a whole as one might expect given its upmarket nature. There’s also a communal aspect to St Ives both in terms of attitudes and frequent community events.
Schooling-wise, it delivers in spades as well. St Ives is home to three separate public primary schools that all historically achieve well in terms of academics, with associated preschools near each. Add in its prep school, Catholic and college private options, and coverage for education here is excellent.
3. Waverley
With some of the best public green spaces in all of Sydney right on its doorstep and the beach also a stone’s throw away, there are few family-oriented suburbs in the city that walk the balance between city and coastal life as well as Waverley.
It’s hard to believe the relative madness of Bondi is in such close proximity, as Waverley forgoes any of the tourist tat for a high-end, upmarket and highly family-friendly streetscape along with some truly upper-echelon schooling options.
This choice of schooling covers a range of age groups, and are renowned for their performance with St Charles’ School and St Catherine’s School both annually rated highly in state-wide education rankings. Extend things down to neighbouring Randwick, and the selection only continues to grow.
There’s also a great array of parks to choose from, including multiple with playground equipment. Waverley Park also happens to contain one of the best (and biggest) slides of any park in Sydney which the kids can have repeated fun sliding down.
It’s also undeniably charming in terms of streetscape, with a buzzing little village vibe and multiple sporting events, cafe eating, and small-scale niche shops and restaurants helping to keep things interesting.
Of course, such a central location comes with the duo of downsides for traffic and price, but its proximity to Sydney city means hopping on a bus or dealing with the (relatively) short drive is an easy to stomach prospect for the daily commute.
2. Lane Cove
It’s easy to see why Lane Cove has absolutely boomed in popularity for families in recent years. The suburb offers a helping of greenery and peace and quiet sandwiched between busier and more built up areas like Epping and Chatswood while still retaining a pretty central location for access to Sydney City, and other popular areas for work and shopping like Ryde and Macquarie Park.
It’s become a something of a meme for younger types without kids to refer to Lane Cove as “Lame Cove” due to its perceived “boring” nature, but that’s a case of people at different life stages wanting entirely different things. In addition, with its recent rise in popularity, Lane Cove has also become more lively as a result. It’s no Newtown, but that’s not the point to living in a place like this anyway.
Much of Lane Cove feels like it has evolved specifically with kids in mind; its shopping areas go out of their way to incorporate play equipment, there’s amenities like aquatic centres, libraries and numerous other classes for kids to learn skills, and a silent understanding between residents to keep things quiet at night even in higher-density areas.
If you want a good night’s for yourself and the kids without living out in the sticks, this is about as good a suburb as any to do so.
Schooling-wise, Lane Cove is more set up for those with younger kids than older teens. It’s got a handful of quality daycare, primary and pre schools to choose from, but its nearest highschool is slightly out of the way from the town centre.
Amenity-wise its village continues to develop with more restaurants and cafes being added, and multiple supermarkets to choose from. All of this within a reasonable drive or bus ride into the city makes for a highly desirable spot to raise kids – and meet fellow, like-minded individuals doing just that.
1. Wahroonga
Noticing a pattern here? There’s a reason why many parents choose to pay a premium pricetag to live on the Upper North Shore; not only for the obviously upmarket and green living conditions, but the fact they it’s almost completely encircled by quality schooling options.
Wahroonga is perhaps the greatest embodiment of this, with a number of elite private schools all in close proximity wrapped up in a high-end, leafy, and quiet package. Options such as Prouille Catholic School, Abbotsleigh and Knox School all lie among the upper crust of educational options on the north shore and sit within the top ranked of New South Wales as a whole, while Wahroonga Public School is also one of the best of its kind.
Prolific amounts of childcare round out its offerings, making for a cross-section of education that’s hard to match.
Demographically, Wahroonga boasts one of the highest percentages of families with children of any suburb in Sydney, and that’s not simply due to its schools. The suburb itself is largely picturesque – even its train station is pretty – with multiple large parklands, ovals, playing fields and plenty of options for outdoor activity in general. Wahroonga Park right next to the station itself even boasts excellent playground equipment for the kids.
Its inherent “village” atmosphere is both welcoming and safe, and its array of nice coffee shops and restaurants make for pleasant local variety in dining. Streetscape-wise, there’s multiple different pockets to the suburb that each offer something slightly different in terms of housing outside of just its impressive mansions as well.
With good rail connectivity that offers the prospect of a 40 minute train ride into the city, it’s a relatively painless commute that allows for more time to spend with the family. The quality of life for families in Wahroonga does come with a premium pricetag, but it’s very much a “get what you pay for” proposition here.
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