NSW · Cessnock Council
Stanford Merthyr, 2327
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
- High desirability
Suburb profile
Stanford Merthyr is a well-connected smaller community in Cessnock with everyday amenities close at hand. Still within reach of the city while offering more breathing room, it suits those who want balance over bustle. Working households and growing families are the backbone of local life, with a strong presence of young families throughout.
Everyday errands and local outings are straightforward, with the wider metro area adding variety. Reasonable public transport access helps with commuting and getting around locally. Homes are relatively affordable, which helps families and first-time residents put down roots.
Steady development is bringing new homes and gradual renewal to parts of the suburb.
The desirability score is below average, weighed down by weaker transport and access and local dining and lifestyle amenities against similar metro suburbs, even with housing affordability holding up better. Limited access to some essential local services also trimmed the result.
Population
- Population
- 575
- Median age
- 41
- Median household income / week
- $1,337
- Dwelling vacancy
- 6%
- Unoccupied private dwellings
- 14 of 234
- Median monthly mortgage
- $1,539
- Employment rate
- 52%
- Dwelling mix (houses / semi / flats)
- 22 / 8 / 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
- Houses (January to March 2026)
- $520
- Rental bonds lodged (January to March 2026)
- 53
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)
- 59
- Against the person
- 18
- Against property
- 25
- Rate per 1,000 residents
- 102.6
- Person-crime prevalence
- About 1 in 32 residents
- State safety percentile
- 72.5th (lower crime is better)
- Increase (daily rate)
- +9.6%
Reported offences increased compared with the previous period.
Reported offences by period
Most common offence types
- Breach Apprehended Violence Order67
- Domestic Violence Related Assault66
- Intimidation, Stalking And Harassment102
- Malicious Damage To Property75
- Motor Vehicle Theft58
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
- 950
- Stanford Merthyr Infants 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
9 public transport stops in this suburb
- Kurri Kurri Bowling Club, Tarro St
- Minmi St At Maitland St
- Mulbring St After Maitland St
- Wallsend St At Waratah St
- Wickham St Opp Stanford Merthyr Public School
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).
28 planning-related records
2026· 2 proposals
June 2026
- Demolition; Subdivision; Erection of a new structure; Manufactured home15 WICKHAM STREET STANFORD MERTHYR 2327Determined
April 2026
- Demolition; Swimming pool5 MINMI STREET STANFORD MERTHYR 2327Determined
2025· 3 proposals
November 2025
- Demolition; Subdivision; Erection of a new structure; Manufactured home15 WICKHAM STREET STANFORD MERTHYR 2327Determined
July 2025
- Shed; Erection of a new structure92 MAITLAND STREET STANFORD MERTHYR 2327Determined
January 2025
- Secondary dwelling; Subdivision; Erection of a new structure; Dual occupancy (detached)104 MAITLAND STREET STANFORD MERTHYR 2327Determined
2024· 4 proposals
December 2024
- Dwelling house; Alterations or additions to an existing building or structure48 MAITLAND STREET STANFORD MERTHYR 2327Determined
- Secondary dwelling; Subdivision; Erection of a new structure; Dual occupancy (detached)6 WICKHAM STREET STANFORD MERTHYR 2327Determined
September 2024
- Demolition6 WICKHAM STREET STANFORD MERTHYR 2327Determined
July 2024
- Shed; Erection of a new structure8 WALLSEND STREET STANFORD MERTHYR 2327Determined
2023· 2 proposals
October 2023
- Dwelling house; Alterations or additions to an existing building or structure21 BLOOMFIELD STREET STANFORD MERTHYR 2327Determined
June 2023
- Dual occupancy2 ANVIL STREET STANFORD MERTHYR 2327Determined
2022· 6 proposals
October 2022
- Garages, carports and car parking spaces8 WICKHAM STREET STANFORD MERTHYR 2327Determined
- Demolition; Shed7 BLOOMFIELD STREET STANFORD MERTHYR 2327Determined
April 2022
- Garages, carports and car parking spaces95 MAITLAND STREET STANFORD MERTHYR 2327Determined
March 2022
- Garages, carports and car parking spaces24 ANVIL STREET STANFORD MERTHYR 2327Determined
January 2022
- Alterations and additions to residential development9 WALLSEND STREET STANFORD MERTHYR 2327Determined
- Balconies, decks, patios, terraces or verandahs47 MAITLAND STREET STANFORD MERTHYR 2327Determined
2021· 4 proposals
October 2021
- Alterations and additions to residential development12 ANVIL STREET STANFORD MERTHYR 2327Determined
June 2021
- Garages, carports and car parking spaces48 MAITLAND STREET STANFORD MERTHYR 2327Determined
February 2021
- Dual occupancy; Alterations and additions to residential development; Subdivision of land20 WICKHAM STREET STANFORD MERTHYR 2327Withdrawn
- Alterations and additions to commercial development3 TARRO STREET STANFORD MERTHYR 2327Determined
2020· 7 proposals
December 2020
- Shed11 COLLIERY STREET STANFORD MERTHYR 2327Determined
November 2020
- Shed51 WALLSEND STREET STANFORD MERTHYR 2327Determined
October 2020
- Dwelling12 WALLSEND STREET STANFORD MERTHYR 2327Determined
- Shed9 BLOOMFIELD STREET STANFORD MERTHYR 2327Determined
May 2020
- Demolition12 WALLSEND STREET STANFORD MERTHYR 2327Determined
April 2020
- Dwelling43 WALLSEND STREET STANFORD MERTHYR 2327Determined
February 2020
- Other5 TARRO STREET STANFORD MERTHYR 2327Determined
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
8 nearby amenities within ~1.5 km
- Bench
- Kurri Kurri Bowling Club, Tarro StBus stop
- Minmi St at Maitland StBus stop
- Mulbring St after Maitland StBus stop
- Wallsend St at Waratah StBus stop
- Wickham St opp Stanford Merthyr Public SchoolBus stop
- Playground
- Sports field
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
- Stanford Merthyr 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)
- 4
- Parks (OSM)
- 3
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
- 24.1/100 — Below average
- National rank
- 6167th in Australia
- State rank
- 1922nd in NSW
- Peer rank
- #402 among Metro Sydney · Established suburbs
- Cohort rank
- #838 among Metro Sydney 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
- Benchamenitiesbench
- Kurri Kurri Bowling Club, Tarro Stamenitiesbus_stop
- Minmi St at Maitland Stamenitiesbus_stop
- Mulbring St after Maitland Stamenitiesbus_stop
- Playgroundamenitiesplayground
- Sports fieldamenitiespitch
- Wallsend St at Waratah Stamenitiesbus_stop
- Wickham St opp Stanford Merthyr Public Schoolamenitiesbus_stop
- Breach Apprehended Violence Ordercrime67
- Domestic Violence Related Assaultcrime66
Data sources & freshness
- BOCSAR postcode crime statistics — NSW Bureau of Crime Statistics and Research · Updated on site · Rolling 12-month windows
- 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.