Manly, Northern Beaches: ‘Bang for Buck’ NAPLAN results, median house prices full list

Exclusive data analysis has revealed the Northern Beaches suburbs parents should head to for an A grade education which won’t break the bank. See the full list of ‘bang for buck’ suburbs here.

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Exclusive analysis has revealed Sydney’s northern beaches ranks behind other areas, such as the city’s south west, for an A grade education that won’t break the bank.

NewsCorp has launched ‘Bang for Buck’, a unique data set that identifies high performing state schools and the most affordable property markets within each school’s catchment area.

The formula uses the latest NAPLAN results, PropTrack’s median house price values and school catchment mapping.

Data has revealed some of the best ‘bang for buck’ schools.

The largely affluent Northern Beaches has ranked behind other areas in Sydney, with none of the area’s primary schools making the ‘Bang for Buck’ list’s top ten.

Frenchs Forest Public School topped the primary school list for the area.

The school zone has a median house price of $2,192,000 and a NAPLAN ranking of 46th, placing it 96th overall in the state.

Next was Bilgola Plateau Public School with a slighter higher median house price of $2,546,200. It ranked 157th in NSW.

Seaforth came in close behind, ranking 161st in the list.

These schools were all well behind Richmond Public School, which topped the primary school list in Sydney.

The school zone has a median house price of $885,000 and an average 535.2 NAPLAN score, giving it a 441.9 Bang for Buck score.

The Northern Beaches ranked behind other area in Sydney. Picture: Jeremy Piper

Killarney Heights High School was one of the top ‘bang for buck’ secondary schools in the region.

The school zone has a median house price of $2,569,400 and a NAPLAN ranking of 14th, placing it 45th overall in the state.

It’s catchment includes Castle Cove, Forestville, Killarney Heights, Middle Cove, Middle Harbour and Roseville Chase.

Overall, Western Sydney, South-West Sydney and Blue Mountains schools were best represented in top 10 suburb lists for the greater Sydney area.

Professor of anthropology and sociology at ECU, Martin Forsey, said research indicated parents will move to be closer to a school with a good NAPLAN result.

“When you look at a strong NAPLAN result, it does seem to affect real estate,” he said, noting that the trend was more prevalent with high schools than primary.

He added that social class and zoning can make an impact on a child’s education.

“And those that are aspirational getting drawn into those zones are reinforcing an educational position from a class position,” he said.

Western Sydney schools were some of the best represented. File image.

Sydney University education professor Helen Proctor said parents shouldn’t define a school just by NAPLAN results, because they only measure literacy and numeracy.

“It’s only one short test on one day, it’s a snapshot of a moment in time,” Professor Proctor said.

“I think you want to look at anti-bullying policies and the wellbeing structures they have in place. Parents should also lobby for good conditions for teachers. Happy educators make a good learning environment.”

She also said a good principal who supports teachers and listens to children can make a real difference.

“I don’t think it’s necessary to pay the big bucks to access an elite private school education, I think public schools do an excellent job.”