Parents across the Illawarra region seeking to send their children to a public school outside their local catchment area will soon have access to clear, publicly available information on which institutions have available spaces. This new transparency initiative, set to commence from the start of the 2026 school year, is designed to empower families with more choice within the public education system.
Three-Tier System for School Placements
The NSW Department of Education will implement a new classification system, categorising every public school into one of three distinct groups based on its capacity to accept students who live outside its designated local area. This move marks a significant shift towards greater clarity in the enrolment process.
A school listed with 'availability' for non-local enrolments will have room across most or all year groups for out-of-area students. Those marked with 'limited availability' will have some spots open in certain year levels. Finally, schools with 'very limited availability' will only consider applications from non-local students under exceptional or special circumstances.
Applying this framework to the current landscape in the Illawarra reveals that seven schools are already in the 'very limited availability' category, with a further 11 schools having 'limited availability' for the upcoming enrolment periods.
Guarantee for Local Students and a Push for Public Education
Education authorities have been quick to reassure families that this new measure will not impact a child's right to attend their local school. A spokesperson for the Department of Education explicitly stated, "All students will still be guaranteed a place at their local in-area school." The process for managing non-local enrolments will only begin after all local students have been accommodated.
Acting Education Minister Courtney Houssos, announcing the policy on Tuesday, emphasised that the NSW Government aims to provide parents with better information to inform their decisions. "This is about being really transparent and clear with the community and with parents: these are the opportunities," Ms Houssos said.
She confirmed that this transparency is a strategic component of a broader goal to boost enrolment in public schools. The Department has a target to increase the public school enrolment share from 62.9 per cent in 2023 to 65.5 per cent by 2034, using this metric as a key indicator of system success.
"Under the previous policy settings, we were saying you can go to your local public school, you might have a chance of getting an out-of-area enrolment," Ms Houssos explained. "But really ... parents have told me they felt like the only choice was their local public school, or they had to look for a Catholic or for an independent school ... we want more people to be looking not just at their local public school, but looking more broadly across the public school system."
Moving Away from Previous Restrictions
This new approach replaces a policy introduced by the previous government in late 2019, which strictly capped out-of-area enrolments based on the number of permanent buildings at a school. The removal of this physical infrastructure cap allows for more flexible placement based on actual current capacity.
This enrolment policy change follows another recent significant adjustment announced by the government, where public selective high schools and primary school opportunity classes will offer equal places to boys and girls from 2027, addressing a notable gender disparity in those streams.
With approximately 84 per cent of NSW public schools currently having some capacity for non-local students, the forthcoming public data for the Illawarra and statewide is expected to provide a valuable resource for families planning their children's educational journey from 2026 onwards.
