Fairfield High School, Sydney
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Fairfield High School is a government-funded
co-educational Mixed-sex education, also known as mixed-gender education, co-education, or coeducation (abbreviated to co-ed or coed), is a system of education where males and females are educated together. Whereas single-sex education was more common up to ...
comprehensive secondary
day school A day school — as opposed to a boarding school — is an educational institution where children are given instruction during the day, after which the students return to their homes. A day school has full-day programs when compared to a regular s ...
, located in Fairfield, a south-western suburb of
Sydney Sydney is the capital city of the States and territories of Australia, state of New South Wales and the List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city in Australia. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Syd ...
,
New South Wales New South Wales (commonly abbreviated as NSW) is a States and territories of Australia, state on the Eastern states of Australia, east coast of :Australia. It borders Queensland to the north, Victoria (state), Victoria to the south, and South ...
, Australia. Established in 1955 through the merge of two adjacent single-sex high schools: Fairfield Boys High School and Fairfield Girls High School, the school caters for approximately 1,100 students from
Year 7 Year 7 is an educational year group in schools in many countries including England, Wales, Australia and New Zealand. It is the seventh full year (or eighth in Australia and England) of compulsory education and is roughly equivalent to grade 6 ...
to
Year 12 Year 12 is an educational year group in schools in many countries including England, Wales, Northern Ireland, Australia and New Zealand. It is sometimes the twelfth or thirteenth year of compulsory education, or alternatively a year of post-comp ...
. The school is operated by the
New South Wales Department of Education The New South Wales Department of Education, a government department, department of the Government of New South Wales, is responsible for the delivery and co-ordination of early childhood education, early childhood, Primary education, primary sch ...
.


Overview

Fairfield High School is a comprehensive local high school located in the heart of the
City of Fairfield The Fairfield City Council is a Local government in Australia, local government area in the Greater Western Sydney, west of Sydney, in the state of New South Wales, Australia. The council was first incorporated as the "Municipal District of Smit ...
. Situated in the south western suburbs of Sydney, the school is located on the fringe of the Fairfield Central business district along
The Horsley Drive The Horsley Drive is a urban sealed road located in the City of Fairfield in Greater Western Sydney, Greater Western Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. The road's northwestern terminus is located at the entrance of Western Sydney Parklands in ...
. On the opposite side of the road is the
Fairfield Public School Fairfield Public School is a government-funded, co-educational, primary day school, located in Fairfield, a western suburb of Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. Established in 1889 and opened by Sir Henry Parkes, the school caters for appro ...
and many students graduate from the public school into the high school. Prospect Creek runs northeast of the school, along its oval. There is a large
footbridge A footbridge (also a pedestrian bridge, pedestrian overpass, or pedestrian overcrossing) is a bridge designed solely for pedestrians.''Oxford English Dictionary'' While the primary meaning for a bridge is a structure which links "two points at a ...
(Eva Wesley Stone Pedestrian Bridge) over the Horsley Drive which allows safe access over the road. The $2 million bridge was opened in March 2002 and was named after Eva Wesley Stone, a
centenarian A centenarian is a person who has reached the age of 100. Because life expectancies at birth worldwide are well below 100, the term is invariably associated with longevity. The United Nations estimated that there were 316,600 living centenarian ...
Fairfield resident who attended Fairfield Public School and had died in 2001 at the age of 106. Fairfield High School offers a comprehensive education in a
coeducational Mixed-sex education, also known as mixed-gender education, co-education, or coeducation (abbreviated to co-ed or coed), is a system of education where males and females are educated together. Whereas single-sex education was more common up to ...
setting following the NSW curriculum. It contains an Intensive English Centre which caters for newly arrived students from overseas. The school provides for the needs of these students on entry into the Australian high school setting. The school's library features two computer labs for full classes where students can use before school, at lunch period and via the Homework Club. The Fairfield High School building is also used for adult education classes through MacArthur Community College.2023 Annual Report Fairfield High School
NSW Government The Government of New South Wales, also known as the NSW Government, is the executive state government of New South Wales, Australia. The government comprises 11 portfolios, led by a ministerial department and supported by several agencies. Th ...
. Retrieved 2 December, 2024.
Fairfield is one of the most densely populated suburbs in Sydney containing residents from all over the world. The community is one of the most
multicultural Multiculturalism is the coexistence of multiple cultures. The word is used in sociology, in political philosophy, and colloquially. In sociology and everyday usage, it is usually a synonym for ''ethnic'' or cultural pluralism in which various e ...
communities in Sydney.


Demographics

The school has a Family Occupation Employment Index (FOEI) of 183. The school is diverse with 93.5% of students from a language background other than English (mainly from
Syria Syria, officially the Syrian Arab Republic, is a country in West Asia located in the Eastern Mediterranean and the Levant. It borders the Mediterranean Sea to the west, Turkey to Syria–Turkey border, the north, Iraq to Iraq–Syria border, t ...
,
Iraq Iraq, officially the Republic of Iraq, is a country in West Asia. It is bordered by Saudi Arabia to Iraq–Saudi Arabia border, the south, Turkey to Iraq–Turkey border, the north, Iran to Iran–Iraq border, the east, the Persian Gulf and ...
,
Vietnam Vietnam, officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam (SRV), is a country at the eastern edge of mainland Southeast Asia, with an area of about and a population of over 100 million, making it the world's List of countries and depende ...
and the
Pacific Islands The Pacific islands are a group of islands in the Pacific Ocean. They are further categorized into three major island groups: Melanesia, Micronesia, and Polynesia. Depending on the context, the term ''Pacific Islands'' may refer to one of several ...
) and 1% are from an Aboriginal and
Torres Strait Islander Torres Strait Islanders ( ) are the Indigenous Melanesians, Melanesian people of the Torres Strait Islands, which are part of the state of Queensland, Australia. Ethnically distinct from the Aboriginal Australians, Aboriginal peoples of the res ...
background. 40% of students need some level of English as an Additional Language or Dialect support (EAL/D). About 50% of students come from a
refugee A refugee, according to the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), is a person "forced to flee their own country and seek safety in another country. They are unable to return to their own country because of feared persecution as ...
background. The school features 130 teaching staff and 35 non-teaching staff, who are a mix of early career teachers and newly elected executive staff who are new teaching. In addition, the school has a
speech therapist Speech is the use of the human voice as a medium for language. Spoken language combines vowel and consonant sounds to form units of meaning like words, which belong to a language's lexicon. There are many different intentional speech acts, suc ...
, a psychologist, a school lawyer funded by Legal Aid and a
registered nurse A registered nurse (RN) is a healthcare professional who has graduated or successfully passed a nursing program from a recognized nursing school and met the requirements outlined by a country, state, province or similar government-authorized ...
funded by Refugee Health. 2.5% of the department's overall personnel identify as Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander Peoples. In 2023, 21.68% of year 12 students took
vocational A vocation () is an occupation to which a person is especially drawn or for which they are suited, trained or qualified. Though now often used in non-religious contexts, the meanings of the term originated in Christianity. A calling, in the reli ...
education and training. In addition to 90% of all Year 12 students completing Higher School Certificate, 56 year 12 students had early entry offers to university in 2023.


Reception

In 2023, the Tell Them From Me Survey (TTFM) was given to students to evaluate and accumulate data of several characteristics of the school. The survey showed that 55% of the students reported a positive sense of belonging; 72% reported they have positive expectations for success and 51% reported a positive support at school, and 47% reported high prosperity combined with high expectations.


Logo Design

Fairfield High School in 2016 underwent a rebranding process changing the logo and uniforms. The current logo is designed by western Sydney designer Michael Schepis, creative director a
Handle Branding
The new branding and identity draws from its past evolutions and further references the historic
Lansdowne Bridge The Lansdowne Bridge is a heritage-listed road bridge that carries the northbound carriageway of the Hume Highway (route A22 at this point) across Prospect Creek between Lansvale and Lansdowne. Situated in southwestern Sydney it is located on ...
and the bridging of the community and the schools as Fairfield was once divided into an all boys and all girls school.


Notable alumni

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Mark Aarons Mark Aarons (born 25 December 1951) is an Australian journalist and author. He was a political adviser to New South Wales Premier Bob Carr. Biography Aarons was born in Newcastle, New South Wales, but he was brought up in Sydney. He was educa ...
journalist and author *
Jelena Dokić Jelena Dokic (; ; born 12 April 1983) is an Australian tennis commentator, sports analyst, former professional player and public speaker. Her highest ranking as a tennis player was world No. 4, in August 2002. She won WTA Tour events on all su ...
Australian/Serbian tennis player *
Wayne Merton Wayne Ashley Merton (born 18 October 1943), a former Australian politician, was a Member of the New South Wales Legislative Assembly representing the electorates of Carlingford between 1988 and 1991 and Baulkham Hills between 1991 and 2011 for ...
Australian politician, Minister for Justice 1992–1993 and an elected member for the New South Wales Legislative Assembly *
Isaac Ntiamoah Isaac Ntiamoah (born 27 October 1982) is an Australian track and field sprinter. He was a member of the Australian 4 × 100 m relay team that equalled the Australian record when they qualified for the finals at the 2012 London Olympics. In the ...
athlete; represented Australia at the 2012 Olympics *
Mar Mari Emmanuel Mar Mari Emmanuel (born Robert Shlimon; 19 July 1970) is an Iraqi-born Assyrian Australian Assyrian Australians (), refers to ethnic Assyrians possessing Australian nationality. They are descended from the Northern Mesopotamian region, ...
Ancient Assyrian Church of the East bishop and
influencer A social media influencer, or simply influencer (also known as an online influencer), is a person who builds a grassroots online presence through engaging content such as photos, videos, and updates. This is done by using direct audience intera ...


See also

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List of government schools in New South Wales A list is a set of discrete items of information collected and set forth in some format for utility, entertainment, or other purposes. A list may be memorialized in any number of ways, including existing only in the mind of the list-maker, but ...
*
Education in Australia Education in Australia encompasses the sectors of early childhood education (preschool) and primary education (primary schools), followed by secondary education (high schools), and finally tertiary education, which includes higher education ( ...


References

{{Public high schools in New South Wales, state=autocollapse Public high schools in Sydney Educational institutions established in 1955 1955 establishments in Australia City of Fairfield