Best Geelong suburbs for families with good primary schools
Torquay tops the ranking: 1 of its 2 schools rate above their ACARA peer group. The strongest results cluster between 74 and 101 km of the Geelong CBD.
This ranking scores every eligible Geelong suburb on the share of primary-school students at schools that outperform their ACARA peer group, adjusted for socio-economic advantage, walkability, and safety. Public and private results are ranked separately since the buyer decisions differ.
For each Geelong suburb we compute the share of primary-school enrolments at schools rated above their ACARA peer group, blended with the ABS SEIFA socio-economic index, OpenStreetMap walkability, and a composite safety score. The share is Bayesian-smoothed so a suburb with two-of-two above-peer schools can't leapfrog a suburb with eight-of-ten. A small volume bonus rewards suburbs offering more school choice — parents with two children in different year levels value optionality that a single-school suburb can't deliver.
Best Geelong suburbs for good public primary schools
Public/government-sector primary schools — includes K-6 schools and the primary component of K-12 government schools within the suburb boundary.
Torquay
VIC 3228 · 18,534 residents1/2 above peer schools · very advantaged area · walkable
Ocean Grove
VIC 3226 · 17,714 residents1/2 above peer schools · very advantaged area · walkable
Newtown
VIC 3220 · 10,445 residents1/3 above peer schools · very advantaged area · very walkable
Highton
VIC 3216 · 20,736 residents0/3 above peer schools · very advantaged area · walkable
Belmont
VIC 3216 · 15,066 residents2/6 above peer schools · mid-range socio-economic · very walkable
Hamlyn Heights
VIC 3215 · 6,518 residents0/3 above peer schools · mid-range socio-economic · walkable
Thomson
VIC 3219 · 1,606 residents1/2 above peer schools · below-average income · walkable
Armstrong Creek
VIC 3217 · 11,247 residents0/2 above peer schools · advantaged area · walkable
Grovedale
VIC 3216 · 14,869 residents0/4 above peer schools · mid-range socio-economic · walkable
Mount Duneed
VIC 3217 · 6,182 residents1/2 above peer schools · very advantaged area · very car-dependent
Bell Park
VIC 3215 · 5,602 residents0/4 above peer schools · below-average income · walkable
Norlane
VIC 3214 · 8,682 residents0/2 above peer schools · very advantaged area · walkable
Corio
VIC 3214 · 15,497 residents0/4 above peer schools · very advantaged area · walkable
Lara
VIC 3212 · 19,014 residents0/2 above peer schools · mid-range socio-economic · car-dependent
Ranked from 14 qualifying suburbs.
Best Geelong suburbs for good private primary schools
Catholic and independent primary schools — includes standalone primaries and the primary component of K-12 combined schools.
Torquay
VIC 3228 · 18,534 residents0/2 above peer schools · very advantaged area · walkable
Highton
VIC 3216 · 20,736 residents0/2 above peer schools · very advantaged area · walkable
Newtown
VIC 3220 · 10,445 residents1/5 above peer schools · very advantaged area · very walkable
Armstrong Creek
VIC 3217 · 11,247 residents0/2 above peer schools · advantaged area · walkable
Norlane
VIC 3214 · 8,682 residents0/2 above peer schools · very advantaged area · walkable
Bell Post Hill
VIC 3215 · 5,083 residents0/2 above peer schools · below-average income · somewhat walkable
Corio
VIC 3214 · 15,497 residents0/2 above peer schools · very advantaged area · walkable
Ranked from 7 qualifying suburbs.
40% share of schools above their peer group · 20% socio-economic advantage (SEIFA) · 25% walkability · 15% safety (bushfire, crime, flood risks combined). Plus a small volume bonus rewarding suburbs offering more school choice. See how we calculate for the full methodology.
Common questions about this ranking
What are the best Geelong suburbs for families with good primary schools?
Torquay tops the ranking: 1 of its 2 schools rate above their ACARA peer group. The strongest results cluster between 74 and 101 km of the Geelong CBD.
How is this ranking scored?
Each eligible Geelong suburb is scored on four factors: 40% share of schools rated above their ACARA peer group (Bayesian-smoothed so a tiny suburb with 2/2 can't outrank a suburb with 8/10), 20% ABS SEIFA socio-economic advantage, 25% OpenStreetMap-derived walkability, and 15% safety (bushfire, crime and flood risks combined). A small volume bonus rewards suburbs offering more school choice.
Why are public and private schools ranked separately?
Buyer decisions differ: parents choosing between government-sector primary schools weigh very different factors from parents choosing between Catholic and independent schools. Blending the two hides the signal a reader is actually looking for, so we publish both lists on the same page.
Which suburbs are eligible for the ranking?
To appear on the list, a suburb needs at least 2 qualifying schools inside its boundary and a resident population of at least 500. Suburbs that fall below either threshold are excluded — not penalised — so the ranking isn't dominated by tiny, high-signal outliers.
How often is this list updated?
The top 15 is recomputed automatically after each ACARA schools data refresh, so the ranking reflects the most recent published NAPLAN-adjusted peer comparisons. See the footer of this page for the last computed date.
Same list in other cities
- Best Sydney suburbs for families with good primary schools
- Best Melbourne suburbs for families with good primary schools
- Best Brisbane suburbs for families with good primary schools
- Best Perth suburbs for families with good primary schools
- Best Adelaide suburbs for families with good primary schools
- Best Hobart suburbs for families with good primary schools
- Best Darwin suburbs for families with good primary schools
- Best Canberra suburbs for families with good primary schools
- Best Newcastle suburbs for families with good primary schools
- Best Central Coast suburbs for families with good primary schools
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- Best Gold Coast suburbs for families with good primary schools
- Best Wollongong suburbs for families with good primary schools
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Related
Rankings last computed 12 October 2026. Recomputed after each ACARA schools data refresh.
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