Northern Beaches’ fifth smallest school, Brookvale Public School (PS), is fighting against the NSW Department of Education’s revised 2026 intake areas, saying it will put pressure on the school’s enrolments and ability to maintain funding and staff.
Late last year, the NSW Department of Education released new high school intake areas for the Northern Beaches as part of the state government’s 2023 election promise for all students in NSW to have guaranteed access to a co-educational public high school by 2027. These changes trickled down to primary schools, with several school intake areas being adjusted and planned to take effect next year.
“The new enrolment intake area will see growth in student numbers at Brookvale PS,” a NSW Department of Education spokesperson told Manly Observer.
However, Brookvale P&C strongly disagrees.
“Brookvale Public School has around 310 students enrolled in 2025, including the 15 students who joined our newly established Opportunity Class (OC) this year,” a P&C representative told us.
“Over the past five years, our enrolments have steadily declined; we had over 350 students in 2020. As it stands, less than 20 children are registered for Kindergarten next year, and with 45 Year 6 students graduating at the end of this year, even after factoring in an additional 15 OC students, we expect to fall below a total of 300 students from 2026 onwards.
“This puts real pressure on our school’s ability to maintain staffing, funding, and the quality of programs the school can offer.
“And yet, instead of measures to support us, we’ve seen our catchment area reduced.”
According to the Department, the new intake area for Brookvale PS will see a net increase of 100 dwellings, however, Brookvale P&C explained that the area being added includes fewer families than the areas being removed.
“Brookvale PS has capacity for up to 450 students,” the P&C representative added.
“It’s difficult to understand why the Department would choose to reduce our intake area at a time when we’re already under pressure. It’s not just counterproductive, it’s really difficult to comprehend.”
Brookvale P&C wrote to the Department in December 2024 outlining their concerns about “fairness, accessibility and weakening the school’s future enrolments”. The Department responded five months later (in April 2025) outlining the adjustments had provided better alignment between primary and high schools, the new intake areas guaranteed a co-education public high school option for all students, and parents are able to make non-local enrolment applications for their co-education high school of choice. The Department added they had established an opportunity class at Brookvale PS.
“The Opportunity Class established at Brookvale Public School this year provided a boost to student enrolment, with placements doubling next year,” the Department told us. The OC class would add a total of 30 enrolments to the school (15 were enrolled this year).
“We feel let down,” the P&C representative said.
“Our primary school’s intake has been reduced in favour of larger, better-resourced schools.
“These decisions disproportionately affect a diverse and close-knit community like ours and reinforce inequity across the Northern Beaches.”
Michael Regan, Member for Wakehurst, has stepped in to support the school.
“I’m backing the Brookvale Public School community on this,” he told Manly Observer.
“Decisions about school catchments need to be made with local insight and proper consultation, not just from the Department of Education’s head office.
“I’ve requested a broader review, because concerns like this aren’t unique to Brookvale. I’m hearing them right across the electorate.
“Brookvale is a small school doing great things, and it deserves fair and future-focused planning.”
“Brookvale is a small school doing great things, and it deserves fair and future-focused planning.”
This comes at a time when the NSW Department of Education is assessing Kambora Public School’s low enrolments with warnings about closing the school. Kambora PS has asked the Department why more support wasn’t provided from the Department as their enrolment numbers steadily reduced over the years (you can read more about our coverage here). It’s a situation Brookvale PS is trying to avoid.
The high school zoning only adds to Brookvale’s concerns
Before the Department adjusted primary school intake areas, they rezoned public high school catchment areas to ensure all students had access to a co-educational high school. Previously, some students on the Northern Beaches only had access to a single-sex high school (Mackellar Girls or Balgowlah Boys High).
After consulting the community, the Department opted to rezone the catchment areas and changed Freshwater Senior Campus to a full Year 7 to Year 12 high school (which has also been met with criticism from the local community).
Brookvale PS has always been part of Northern Beaches Secondary College Cromer Campus’ catchment and remains part of that catchment; however, Brookvale P&C feel this is another hinderance to families wanting to enrol their students at the school.
According to the P&C, not only is Cromer High at capacity, but it is the furthest and least convenient (by public transport) school for students in Brookvale to access.
“The high school zoning situation adds another layer to our declining numbers,” they explained.
“Brookvale sits literally in the middle of the three high school catchments for Freshwater Campus (1.5km from Brookvale PS), Forest High, and Cromer High. Yet we are only zoned to Cromer High, which is the furthest and least convenient for the majority of our families.
“We are now seeing some parents take the extreme step of moving houses or moving their children to other primary schools just to access a preferred high school zone.”
“We are now seeing some parents take the extreme step of moving houses or moving their children to other primary schools just to access a preferred high school zone.”
The P&C feel the Department’s recommendation (in their response to Brookvale P&C) for families to make a non-local enrolment is dismissive and inadequate.
“Out-of-area applications are rarely approved, so suggesting it as a solution only creates anxiety and uncertainty for our families,” the P&C explained.
“What we are seeking is an opportunity to have a conversation about how best to support Brookvale students and stop the erosion of our school community.”
Their requests for a meeting with the Department have, at the time of publication, gone unanswered.
“Our community was left out of the consultation process prior to these zoning decisions,” they added.
“That lack of engagement, combined with decisions that are actively hurting our school’s sustainability, is what makes this so frustrating.”
Catch up on all the changes to Northern Beaches schools:
Freshie students walkout over Department’s decision to add Years 7-10
Northern Beaches primary school catchment changes follow highschool rejig
New local intake areas for Northern Beaches High School shake up
Parents furious as Department of Education halves Opportunity Class 2025 intake
