NSW · Cessnock Council
Kearsley, 2325
Current weather
16.3°CClear sky
66% humidity · 11.5 km/h wind · 21.5° / 13.2° today · 3.3 mm rain
Updated
Desirability score
- Green suburb
- Excellent transport
- High desirability
Suburb profile
In Cessnock, Kearsley keeps a rural calm, a smaller community with room to breathe and a strong local rhythm. Life revolves around the local community, with the wider region offering trips and services when needed. Wide horizons and a country quiet give the area a restorative, unhurried atmosphere.
Families and commuters make up much of the community, with a strong presence of young families throughout. Life here is grounded in local routine rather than big-city choice, and that is part of the charm. Local parks and tree cover add a welcome outdoor dimension to suburban life.
Buses and nearby services make commuting and cross-suburb trips straightforward. Homes are relatively affordable, which helps families and first-time residents put down roots.
On the desirability index, the suburb sits below average overall, mainly because local dining and lifestyle amenities and schools and education lag similar regional towns, despite relative strength in housing affordability. Limited access to some essential local services also trimmed the result.
Population
- Population
- 838
- Median age
- 38
- Median household income / week
- $1,467
- Dwelling vacancy
- 6.7%
- Unoccupied private dwellings
- 21 of 313
- Median monthly mortgage
- $1,614
- Employment rate
- 56.6%
- Dwelling mix (houses / semi / flats)
- 25 / 5 / 4
Contributes to desirability score · Community (5%)
Employment, household income and age diversity (2021 Census)
Data sources & freshness
- 2021 Census — General Community Profile — Australian Bureau of Statistics · Period: 2021 · Updated on site · 2021 Census release
The 2026 Census runs in August 2026; suburb-level updates are expected from mid-2027.
Housing
- Flats / units (January to March 2026)
- $463
- Houses (January to March 2026)
- $570
- All types (January to March 2026)
- $550
- Rental bonds lodged (January to March 2026)
- 271
Median weekly rent from NSW DCJ rent tables. Figures can be unreliable where few bonds were lodged in the quarter.
Contributes to desirability score · Housing (15%) · Future Growth (7%)
Median price, rental yield and vacancy Recent price momentum
Data sources & freshness
- DCJ rent tables — NSW Department of Communities and Justice · Period: January to March 2026 · Updated on site · Quarterly releases
Crime & safety
- Total offences (Jan 2025 to Dec 2025)
- 90
- Against the person
- 28
- Against property
- 36
- Rate per 1,000 residents
- 107.4
- Person-crime prevalence
- About 1 in 30 residents
- State safety percentile
- 75.9th (lower crime is better)
- Increase (daily rate)
- +2.6%
Reported offences increased compared with the previous period.
Reported offences by period
Most common offence types
- Breach Apprehended Violence Order198
- Breach Bail Conditions379
- Domestic Violence Related Assault299
- Intimidation, Stalking And Harassment371
- Malicious Damage To Property332
Contributes to desirability score · Safety (18%)
Crime rate and year-on-year trend
Data sources & freshness
- BOCSAR postcode crime statistics — NSW Bureau of Crime Statistics and Research · Period: Jan 2024 to Dec 2024 → Jan 2025 to Dec 2025; Jan 2025 to Dec 2025 · Updated on site · Rolling 12-month windows
Schools & preschools
- Schools & preschools
- 1
- Median school ICSEA
- 897
- Kearsley Public SchoolPrimary
Contributes to desirability score · Education (15%)
School and preschool counts, median school ICSEA
Data sources & freshness
- ACARA school locations — Australian Curriculum, Assessment and Reporting Authority · Period: 2025 · Updated on site · Annual ACARA release
- School ICSEA scores — Australian Curriculum, Assessment and Reporting Authority · Period: 2025 · Updated on site · Annual ACARA release
Public transport
31 public transport stops in this suburb
- Allandale St Before Mulbring St
- Caledonia St At Ellalong St
- Caledonia St Before Ellalong St
- Caledonia St Opp Government Rd
- Caledonia St Opp Kearsley Hotel
Contributes to desirability score · Accessibility (15%)
Public transport stop coverage
Data sources & freshness
- Timetables Complete GTFS stops (© Transport for NSW, CC BY 4.0) — Transport for NSW — Open Data Hub · Period: current · Updated on site · GTFS static feed (updated nightly)
Planning & development
Development applications from NSW Planning Portal (lodged 2020–2026).
57 planning-related records
2026· 3 proposals
March 2026
- Erection of a new structure; Carport2A LAKE ROAD KEARSLEY 2325Determined
February 2026
- Dwelling house; Erection of a new structure21B GOVERNMENT CIRCUIT KEARSLEY 2325Determined
- Erection of a new structure; Dual occupancy (detached)39 ALLANDALE STREET KEARSLEY 2325Determined
2025· 14 proposals
December 2025
- Dwelling house; Alterations or additions to an existing building or structure30 POKOLBIN STREET KEARSLEY 2325Determined
November 2025
- Shed; Erection of a new structure21B GOVERNMENT CIRCUIT KEARSLEY 2325Determined
- Dwelling house; Alterations or additions to an existing building or structure17 GOVERNMENT CIRCUIT KEARSLEY 2325Determined
October 2025
- Subdivision128 CALEDONIA STREET KEARSLEY 2325Withdrawn
August 2025
- Shed; Erection of a new structure3A LAKE ROAD KEARSLEY 2325Determined
July 2025
- Secondary dwelling; Subdivision; Erection of a new structure; Dual occupancy (detached)71 ALLANDALE STREET KEARSLEY 2325Determined
June 2025
- Subdivision7 JEFFRIES STREET KEARSLEY 2325Determined
- Subdivision15 GOVERNMENT CIRCUIT KEARSLEY 2325Determined
May 2025
- Subdivision128 CALEDONIA STREET KEARSLEY 2325Determined
- Shed; Erection of a new structure37 POKOLBIN STREET KEARSLEY 2325Determined
- Dwelling house; Erection of a new structure1 ALLANDALE STREET KEARSLEY 2325Determined
- Dwelling house; Erection of a new structure39 CONGEWAI STREET KEARSLEY 2325Determined
March 2025
- Shed; Erection of a new structure119 CALEDONIA STREET KEARSLEY 2325Determined
January 2025
- Dwelling house; Erection of a new structure; Dual occupancy (detached)43 KEARSLEY SELECTIONS ROAD KEARSLEY 2325Determined
2024· 6 proposals
November 2024
- Alterations or additions to an existing building or structure; Balcony, deck, patio, terrace or verandah (screened enclosures)2 ALLANDALE STREET KEARSLEY 2325Determined
July 2024
- Dwelling house; Erection of a new structure79A ALLANDALE STREET KEARSLEY 2325Determined
May 2024
- Demolition; Dwelling house; Alterations or additions to an existing building or structure27 CONGEWAI STREET KEARSLEY 2325Determined
March 2024
- Subdivision; Erection of a new structure; Residential Accommodation34 ALLANDALE STREET KEARSLEY 2325Determined
- Subdivision21 GOVERNMENT CIRCUIT KEARSLEY 2325Determined
February 2024
- Shed; Erection of a new structure58 CALEDONIA STREET KEARSLEY 2325Determined
2023· 10 proposals
December 2023
- Subdivision65 CALEDONIA STREET KEARSLEY 2325Determined
September 2023
- Dwelling71 ELLALONG STREET KEARSLEY 2325Determined
June 2023
- Dual occupancy53 CALEDONIA STREET KEARSLEY 2325Determined
- Shed49 ALLANDALE STREET KEARSLEY 2325Determined
May 2023
- Telecommunications and communication facilities21 GOVERNMENT CIRCUIT KEARSLEY 2325Rejected
April 2023
- Other47 CALEDONIA STREET KEARSLEY 2325Withdrawn
- Shed8A GOVERNMENT CIRCUIT KEARSLEY 2325Determined
March 2023
- Dwelling2 ALLANDALE STREET KEARSLEY 2325Determined
February 2023
- Dwelling; Demolition; Garages, carports and car parking spaces367 NEATH ROAD KEARSLEY 2325Determined
January 2023
- Shed239 NEATH ROAD KEARSLEY 2325Determined
2022· 7 proposals
October 2022
- Dual occupancy53 CALEDONIA STREET KEARSLEY 2325Determined
- Shed32 ALLANDALE STREET KEARSLEY 2325Determined
September 2022
- Subdivision of land39 CONGEWAI STREET KEARSLEY 2325Determined
August 2022
- Alterations and additions to residential development10 ALLANDALE STREET KEARSLEY 2325Determined
- Shed18 DUNLOP STREET KEARSLEY 2325Determined
- Shed27 CONGEWAI STREET KEARSLEY 2325Determined
July 2022
- Dwelling2A POKOLBIN STREET KEARSLEY 2325Determined
Contributes to desirability score · Future Growth (7%)
Development and planning activity
Data sources & freshness
- Online DA development application register — NSW Department of Planning, Housing and Infrastructure · Period: 2020–2026 · Updated on site · Daily open-data feed (applications from Oct 2018)
Amenities
19 nearby amenities within ~1.5 km
- Allandale St before Mulbring StBus stop
- Caledonia St after Ellalong StBus stop
- Caledonia St at Ellalong StBus stop
- Caledonia St before Ellalong StBus stop
- Caledonia St opp Ellalong StBus stop
- Caledonia St opp Government RdBus stop
- Caledonia St opp Kearsley HotelBus stop
- Kearsley Community Hall, Allandale StBus stop
- Kearsley Public School, Caledonia StBus stop
- Lake Rd after Allandale StBus stop
Names and addresses from OpenStreetMap. Unnamed venues show as their type (e.g. Cafe).
Contributes to desirability score · Lifestyle (15%)
Food, shopping, recreation and sport (OpenStreetMap)
Data sources & freshness
- OpenStreetMap amenities — OpenStreetMap contributors · Period: current · Updated on site · Weekly refresh
Parks & reserves
1 parks and public open space in this suburb
- Firefighters ParkPark
Data sources & freshness
- Parks & reserves — State government + ABS LGA boundaries · Period: current · Updated on site
Socio-economic (SEIFA)
- IRSAD decile (2021)
- 2/10
- IRSD decile (2021)
- 2/10
SEIFA indexes from ABS 2021. Decile 10 = most advantaged / least disadvantaged in Australia.
Contributes to desirability score · Community (5%)
Socio-economic advantage (IRSAD decile)
Data sources & freshness
- SEIFA 2021 (IRSAD / IRSD) — Australian Bureau of Statistics · Period: 2021 · Updated on site · 2021 SEIFA release
Hazards
- Bushfire planning zone
- Overlay applies
Bushfire overlay checked at suburb centroid via NSW bush fire prone land mapping.
Contributes to desirability score · Safety (18%)
Bushfire hazard overlays
Data sources & freshness
- Hazard planning overlays — State government hazard layers · Period: current · Updated on site
Green cover
- Parks & woodland (OSM)
- 8
- Parks (OSM)
- 1
OpenStreetMap parks and natural woodland features mapped within the suburb boundary.
Contributes to desirability score · Environment (10%)
Parks and green cover (OpenStreetMap)
Data sources & freshness
- OpenStreetMap green cover features — OpenStreetMap contributors · Period: current · Updated on site · Weekly refresh
Desirability Index
- Desirability score
- 30.8/100 — Below average
- National rank
- 5180th in Australia
- State rank
- 1644th in NSW
- Peer rank
- #263 among Country & regional · Established suburbs
- Cohort rank
- #704 among Country & regional suburbs
- Data confidence
- 78%
Data sources & freshness
- Suburb Guide desirability index — Suburb Guide (derived score) · Period: current · Updated on site · Derived from source metrics
Recent changes
- Allandale St before Mulbring Stamenitiesbus_stop
- Caledonia St after Ellalong Stamenitiesbus_stop
- Caledonia St at Ellalong Stamenitiesbus_stop
- Caledonia St before Ellalong Stamenitiesbus_stop
- Caledonia St opp Ellalong Stamenitiesbus_stop
- Caledonia St opp Government Rdamenitiesbus_stop
- Caledonia St opp Kearsley Hotelamenitiesbus_stop
- Kearsley Community Hall, Allandale Stamenitiesbus_stop
- Kearsley Public School, Caledonia Stamenitiesbus_stop
- Lake Rd after Allandale Stamenitiesbus_stop
Data sources & freshness
- OpenStreetMap amenities — OpenStreetMap contributors · Updated on site · Weekly refresh
More in Cessnock Council
Other suburbs in the same local government area.
Comparable suburbs
Similar population and socio-economic profile in other parts of New South Wales.