Choose to filter for schools with:
- before and after-school care (outside school hours care)
- opportunity classes.
Using the School Finder
The School Finder locates NSW public schools.
All primary schools and most high schools have designated local enrolment areas. Students enrol in public schools based on their home address. All public schools ensure there are enough places for students in their local enrolment area. Schools may accept enrolments from outside their area if places are available.
Please note: school local enrolment areas are subject to change.
Disclaimer: every effort is taken to ensure the information presented by the School Finder is up-to-date. Due to the evolving nature of school information and local enrolment areas, no responsibility can be taken by the NSW Department of Education, or any of its associated departments, if information is relied upon. For example, but not limited to, real estate purchases or rentals where the School Finder is used as a reference source.
Find a school
After accepting the terms of use and opening the finder you are able to search for public schools in NSW. You can either:
- search by level of schooling
- primary or secondary (high school) and then enter your home address
- search by the name of the school.
No information about your search is recorded.
Results
Based on the information entered, the finder will list schools/s in your area or display your local school on a map.
On the map:
- a house icon indicates the home address provided
- the people icon indicates a school.
View information about a school by selecting its icon – information about the school chosen, including contact details, appears below the map. Change your home location by dragging the house icon.
The School Finder will only locate public schools within 105km. If you live further than 105km from the nearest public school, contact rural and distance education for advice.
Filters
To learn more about schools in your chosen area, use the filter menu in the top right-hand corner of the map.
Nearby schools
Open Nearby schools for other schools in the area to appear on the map.
Use the nearby schools drop-down menu to choose from different school types such as:
- primary
- secondary (high schools)
- schools for specific purpose (SSPs) for students with special learning needs
- distance education – for eligible students
- central/community (K–12) schools
- infants (K–2).
To learn more about different school types, visit Our public schools.
Additional filters are available to further narrow down your choice of a primary or high school, such as a selective high school.
Primary filters
Secondary filters High schools
Choose from the following filters for high schools.
- boys
- girls
- selective schools
- Intensive English Centres
- specialist high schools
Visit High schools to learn more about different types of secondary schools.
Enrolment areas
NSW public schools have defined local enrolment areas. These areas are determined by the Department of Education. Designated local schools may not always be the closest public school to your home – schools work with their local community to provide advice on public transport availability.
Out-of-area
Schools may accept enrolments from outside their designated area if places are available. Such applications are subject to selection criteria and department policies. Contact the school for further information about their out-of-area selection criteria.
If the demand for local enrolment exceeds the number of places available, out-of-area enrolments will not be available.
Further information
- To learn more about public schools in NSW, visit Our public schools.
- Enrolment provides advice about enrolling in a NSW public school.
- Visit Distance education for information about eligibility and enrolment procedures.
- Email technical issues with the School Finder to schoolfinder@detcorpcomms.zendesk.com.