Blacktown area high school

The department has reviewed all feedback regarding co-educational high school options for the Blacktown area, following comprehensive community consultation conducted from Monday 28 October to Friday 6 December 2024.

It has been determined Blacktown Boys High School and Blacktown Girls High School will remain separate single-sex schools, reflecting community preferences.

Adjustments will be made to high school intake areas to ensure all students in the Blacktown area have guaranteed access to a co-educational high school option.

These intake area adjustments are now currently being finalised and will apply to all new enrolments from Term 1 2026. Intake areas are reviewed periodically and may be updated in future years to reflect changing enrolments, capacity and community needs.

Families of current Year 6 students were informed of the new intake areas in early March 2025 via official school communications, including email, school newsletters and updates provided through their current primary schools, prior to the start of the Year 7 Expression of Interest enrolment process.

In response to feedback gathered during the consultation process, the department will also explore co-educational academic, sporting and extracurricular opportunities for students at both Blacktown Boys and Blacktown Girls high schools. The department will work closely with each school to identify and implement suitable initiatives.

Frequently asked questions

What has been announced?

Following a comprehensive review of feedback, Blacktown Boys and Blacktown Girls high schools will remain as separate single-sex schools. Adjustments will be made to surrounding high school intake areas to ensure all students have guaranteed access to a co-educational high school within their intake area.

What is the outcome of the consultation?

The department undertook extensive consultation with the Blacktown community. A thorough review of feedback indicated that the majority of participants preferred retaining Blacktown Boys and Blacktown Girls high schools.

When asked about schooling preferences:

52% of primary parents/carers
50% of early childhood parents/carers
53% of Blacktown Boys parents/carers
69% of Blacktown Girls parents/carers

Indicated a preference for single-sex education.

Support for Proposal A (combining Blacktown Boys and Blacktown Girls High Schools into one co-educational high school) was low across all parent/carer cohorts, with only 20-35% preferring this proposal.

Proposal B (retaining the existing single-sex schools and expanding surrounding co-educational intake areas) was preferred by 60-73% of the parent/carer cohorts.

To meet the commitment of guaranteed access to co-education, intake areas will be adjusted, with changes taking effect from 2026.

The department will explore opportunities to introduce co-educational learning experiences such as, academic, sporting and extracurricular at Blacktown Boys and Blacktown Girls high schools. The department will collaborate with staff to identify opportunities and implement initiatives.

What will the school intake areas be?

The department has heard community feedback on proposed intake areas for surrounding high schools presented during the consultation process.

This feedback is being explored, and final intake areas will be available in Term 1 2025 and shared on School Finder, following further discussion with school principals.

When will the intake areas change?

The updated intake areas have been made available via School Finder and will apply to all new enrolment application from 2026.

What is the co-educational commitment?

The NSW Government is committed to offering all families a co-educational high school option. This means every student in NSW will be guaranteed a place at a designated co-educational public high school by 2027.

The department has been consulting with school communities to understand their views relating to high school enrolment decision-making and to collect feedback on a range of proposals for future arrangements for single-sex high schools.

What was involved in meeting the co-educational commitment?

A comprehensive consultation process took place from Monday 28 October to Friday 6 December 2024 to better understand parent and student decision-making regarding high school enrolment choices for Blacktown Boys and Girls high schools.

Parents, carers, students, staff, special interest groups and the community were invited to share their feedback via:

online surveys
in-person
online workshops.

Two proposals for the future of Blacktown Boys and Girls high schools were presented.

Can the nearby co-ed schools handle the extra students?

When adjusting intake areas, the department considers:

enrolment trends
public transport access
school size and utilisation rate
population distribution within intake areas
historical enrolment patterns (single sex or co-educational schools)
capacity of co-educational schools to enrol students.

As enrolments vary each year, the department will continue to monitor student numbers and school capacity across the Blacktown area.

What was the purpose of the consultation?

The consultation aimed to better understand parent and student decision-making regarding high school enrolment choices, including preferences for education settings and offerings.

Who was consulted and how?

The consultation engaged:

current and future students
teachers and staff
primary and high school parents and carers
community members and special interest groups.

The consultation engagement process included:

13 workshops (online and in-person)
focus groups
online survey.

Schools involved:

Primary schools	High schools
Blacktown North PS	Blacktown Boys HS
Blacktown South PS	Blacktown Girls HS
Blacktown West PS	Evans HS
Lalor Park PS	Mitchell HS
Lynwood Park PS	Doonside Technology HS
Seven Hills West PS	Quakers Hill HS
Shelley PS	Seven Hills HS
Vardys Road PS	Wyndham College
Seven Hills PS
Caddies Creek PS
Hambledon PS
Kings Langley PS
Marayong Heights PS
Marayong PS
Marayong South PS
Quakers Hill East PS
Quakers Hill PS