Moving to Marsden Park (Shanes Park area) from Balgownie (Fairy Meadow area)
Schools, childcare, demographics and house prices for Marsden Park - Shanes Park and Balgownie - Fairy Meadow, side by side - all from public government data.
Marsden Park (Shanes Park area) has 30,461 people (ABS, June 2025), +11.6% in a year, a median house price of $1.28M, 6 schools and 14 childcare services. Full Marsden Park (Shanes Park area) suburb profile.
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Sources: ABS ERP June 2025 · ABS Census 2021 · ABS SEIFA 2021 · ACARA School Profile 2025 · ACECQA NQS register · Valuer-General Victoria & DFFH (VIC) · DCJ Housing sales Mar 2026 and rent Jun 2026 (NSW) · RTA Queensland rents (QLD) · NSW BOCSAR (NSW) · CSA Victoria (VIC). How we source this data →
Which school is zoned?
The free government school your child can attend in each area - side by side, never a blended average.
Mount Ousley Public School
The government school your child can attend for free by living in Balgownie - Fairy Meadow.
This is the zoned government school for the centre of Balgownie - Fairy Meadow (NSW catchment data) - addresses elsewhere in the suburb may be zoned to a different school.
See the catchment on the mapFee-paying schools can’t be enrolled in by zone - they’re shown for context, not as the area’s school quality.
We show school intake context and catchments, not exam results. We don’t publish a school ranking.
Northbourne Public School
The government school your child can attend for free by living in Marsden Park - Shanes Park.
This is the zoned government school for the centre of Marsden Park - Shanes Park (NSW catchment data) - addresses elsewhere in the suburb may be zoned to a different school.
See the catchment on the mapFee-paying schools can’t be enrolled in by zone - they’re shown for context, not as the area’s school quality.
We show school intake context and catchments, not exam results. We don’t publish a school ranking.
Honest tradeoff
Marsden Park - Shanes Park's government schools have an average ICSEA of 1,089, compared to 1,053 in Balgownie - Fairy Meadow. ICSEA reflects the socioeconomic intake of students, not teaching quality - it is not a ranking of school performance.
Catholic/independent schools are separate from the free government catchment - average ICSEA Marsden Park - Shanes Park 1,080 (3 schools), Balgownie - Fairy Meadow 1,028 (3 schools).
There are 6 schools in Marsden Park - Shanes Park, compared to 10 in Balgownie - Fairy Meadow.
Childcare services matched by suburb name: 14 in Marsden Park - Shanes Park vs 18 in Balgownie - Fairy Meadow.
The proportion of children from non-English-speaking backgrounds is higher in Marsden Park - Shanes Park at 61.3% (vs 18.4% in Balgownie - Fairy Meadow).
Marsden Park - Shanes Park has a SEIFA advantage (IRSAD) of Decile 10, above Balgownie - Fairy Meadow's Decile 6. Decile 10 is the most advantaged nationally.
Median house prices are 7% lower in Marsden Park - Shanes Park ($1.28M vs $1.37M).
Similar suburbs near Marsden Park - Shanes Park
Related moves
What is the population of Marsden Park (Shanes Park area)?
30,461 people lived in Marsden Park (Shanes Park area) at June 2025 (ABS Estimated Resident Population), a change of +11.6% over the year. Balgownie (Fairy Meadow area) had 22,303.
Are houses cheaper in Marsden Park (Shanes Park area) than in Balgownie (Fairy Meadow area)?
Yes. The median house price is $1.28M in Marsden Park (Shanes Park area) and $1.37M in Balgownie (Fairy Meadow area), 7% lower in Marsden Park (Shanes Park area).
How many schools are in Marsden Park (Shanes Park area)?
ACARA lists 6 schools in Marsden Park (Shanes Park area), against 10 in Balgownie (Fairy Meadow area). The zoned government school for an address is shown above under "Which school is zoned?".
Make this comparison yours
The Move Planner adds your kids' ages, school catchment zones on the map, and a shareable link for your partner.
Plan the move: Balgownie - Fairy Meadow → Marsden Park - Shanes Park