FAQs about local school areas

Primary and district schools

If your child is in primary school, their local school is determined by where they live most of the time. Each primary and district school has an intake area. If your child lives in the intake area for that school, it is their local school. You can check your local primary or district school using the intake area map.

High schools

If your child is in high school, their local high school depends on the primary school they attended when they finished Year 6. Each primary school has one or two “intake high schools”. When your child finishes primary school, they are guaranteed a place at the intake high school/s that has been allocated for their primary school. You can check your local high school on the Find your local high school page.

An intake area is a mapped area that is used to work out which school is the local or ‘in-area’ school for students in primary school. All Tasmanian government primary and district schools have intake areas. You can find your local school primary or district school on the intake area map.

Current school intake areas were implemented in 2021 as an outcome of the last Intake Area Review. During the last Intake Area Review, the following factors were considered when determining intake areas:

Highest priority

• Schools have capacity to accommodate local enrolments.

High priority

• School viability is protected.
• Avoid splitting the community.
• Alignment with bus routes.
• Facilitate walking to school.
• Avoid travel through other school intake areas.

Moderate priority

• Zone students to closest government school.
• Align with parents’ travel direction to work.

Intake Area Reviews happen at least every five years, in line with the Education Act 2016. The next Intake Area Review is scheduled to commence in 2024/2025

Tasmanian government high schools (7-12) do not have geographic intake areas. When a student completes Year 6, their local government high school is their intake high school/s.

This means that when your child finishes primary school, they are guaranteed a place at the allocated intake high school/s.

You can find the intake high school for each primary school on the Find your local high school page.

To identify your child’s local high school:

1. Identify your local primary school using your current residential address in Tasmania using the intake area map.
2. Based on the identified primary school, you can find your local high school on the list on the Find your local high school page.

In these circumstances, your child is entitled to enrol at the intake high school for the feeder primary school they attended when they completed Year 6. You can find your local intake high school on the list on the Find your local high school page.

If you have moved and this intake high school is too far away:

• Identify your local primary school using your current residential address in Tasmania using the intake area maps on the Find your local primary school page.

Based on the identified primary school, you can find your local high school on the list on the Find your local high school page.

If you are moving to Tasmania to study or work and have a temporary resident visa, your children can study at your local Tasmanian government school. The Temporary Resident Program (TRP) helps students on temporary visas to enrol in Tasmanian government schools.

To enrol, most temporary residents will need an Authority to Enrol. To receive an Authority to Enrol, tuition fees may be required.

For further information, contact GETI:

• Within Australia, phone (03) 6165 5727
• From outside Australia, phone +61 3 6165 5727
• Email trp@geti.tas.gov.au.

To identify your child’s local high school:

1. Identify your local primary school using your current residential address in Tasmania using the intake area map.
2. Based on the identified primary school, you can find your local high school on the list on the Find your local high school page.

We are currently reviewing current feeder school arrangements.  This includes considering a range of potential options including:

• changes to current feeder school arrangements
• retaining current arrangements
• implementing intake areas for some of our high schools. 

To get involved, you can:

• Have your say by completing an online survey.  
• email us at intake.areas@decyp.tas.gov.au
• call us on 1800 816 057.

We will also contact School Association Committees for primary schools in Hobart, Launceston, Burnie and Devonport to seek their views.

Students in Year 11 and 12 can enrol at the school that best suits their current circumstances and future aspirations. This may be their local high school (7-12), district school (K-12), or one of our colleges (Year 11 and 12 only).

If you already have a child enrolled in a Tasmanian government school, they are entitled to continue at that school until they finish their schooling.

You can apply to enrol at the school via an application for out-of-area enrolment.

The school may accept your child if the school has capacity. However, we cannot guarantee enrolment if it is not your local school.

To see if the school can accept out-of-area enrolments, visit our list of at-capacity schools.

If a school has capacity, your application will be accepted if:

• there are available spaces in your child’s year level
• you meet the criteria for out-of-area enrolment.

You can still apply to enrol at a school of your choice, if the school has capacity, via an application for out-of-area enrolment.

To see if the school can accept out-of-area enrolments, visit our list of at-capacity schools.

If a school has capacity, your application will be accepted if:

• there are available spaces in your child’s year level
• you meet the criteria for out-of-area enrolment.

No, if your child has a sibling already attending a school outside their intake area, they can enrol at the same school as their sibling using a standard enrolment form, if they reside at the same home most of the time. The only exceptions to this are:

• When a high school student enrols at a district school and the school does not have capacity to accept additional sibling enrolments in the primary years.
• When a student enrols at non-local high school to access a specialised program (e.g. Big Picture Program), their siblings are not entitled to enrolment.

Please contact your school principal for more information.

You can still apply to enrol at a school of your choice, if the school has capacity, via an application for out-of-area enrolment.

To see if the school can accept out-of-area enrolments, visit our list of at-capacity schools.

If a school has capacity, your application will be accepted if:

• there are available spaces in your child’s year level
• you meet the criteria for out-of-area enrolment.

1. If a school has capacity and can accept applications for out-of-area enrolment the school will provide you with an Expression of Interest form for you to complete and submit, along with the required evidence. 
2. Schools use the completed form and the evidence you provide to decide whether an application is accepted or rejected.  Decisions are made in line with the prioritisation criteria set out in the Out-of-Area Enrolment Procedure (PDF, 516KB). This ensures a consistent, fair, open and clear approach to assess out-of-area enrolment requests. 
3. After you submit your Expression of Interest form, you will receive a letter of outcome from the school. If the enrolment is for the next school year, you will receive the letter by Week 2 of Term 4.  If the enrolment is for the same year school principals will tell you whether it was accepted within 14 days.

If you would like specific information regarding your school’s intake area:

Contact your school directly. Contact details are available in the school directory.

If you need further help or information:

Please contact Learning Services in your region.

Learning Services Southern Region

• Phone: (03) 6165 6466
• Email: Learning.Services.S@decyp.tas.gov.au

Learning Services Northern Region

• Phone (03) 6777 2440
• Email Learning.Services.NR@decyp.tas.gov.au

If you have questions related to the review of intake areas:

Contact us at intake.areas@decyp.tas.gov.au

• Talk to your local school about what help and information you need.
• To apply out-of-area enrolment, please contact the school to discuss if they have capacity to accept applications.

• For more information on Catholic schools, please visit Catholic Education Tasmania website.
• For independent schools, please visit Independent Schools Tasmania website.