Quick facts

Founded in 1885, we were originally a choral school for boys. We transitioned to coeducation in 1999 and became fully coeducational from Kindergarten through to Year 12, in 2008.

Our School is situated in two high rise buildings adjacent to Town Hall Train Station and close to major bus, train and ferry routes, making it easy for students to reach us from all over Sydney. Our School attracts students from 234 suburbs across Sydney.

Every year since 2015, our Year 12 graduating group have surpassed the previous year’s outstanding results in the Higher School Certificate and International Baccalaureate Diploma. Our students across both credentials have managed to achieve at very high levels in a large variety of subjects, which points to the excellence of our passionate and dedicated teaching staff, who go to extraordinary lengths to ensure students have every opportunity to excel and reach their potential. In 2023, 63% of the cohort achieved an ATAR above 80. In 2023, the average ATAR of the top 50 per cent of our IB Diploma students was 98. The 2023 Year 12 HSC cohort again performed strongly: the average ATAR for the top 10 per cent of HSC students was 97 and the average ATAR for the top 50 per cent was an impressive 91.

The School introduced the International Baccalaureate (IB) Diploma Programme for Senior College students in 2009 and the International Baccalaureate Middle Years Programme (IB MYP) to Year 7 students in 2016. Since 2016, all Year 7-10 students undertake the MYP. Around 30 per cent of our Year 11-12 students (around 50 students) choose to study the IB Diploma Programme. In 2023, the average ATAR (Australian Tertiary Admissions Rank) of the top 10 per cent of IB Diploma students was a historic high of 99.8 and the average ATAR for the top 50 per cent was a stunning 98.

Each year, around 70 per cent of our Year 11 students choose to study the NSW Higher School Certificate as their graduate credential in Year 12. The 2023 Year 12 cohort achieved historic highs in the HSC. The average ATAR (Australian Tertiary Admissions Rank) for the top 10 per cent of HSC students was 97 and the average ATAR for the top 50 per cent was an impressive 91. The cohort also achieved a record-breaking number of HSC Showcase Nominations, with 27 students nominated and 3 selected for the exhibitions.

The School was founded in 1885 to provide the young male choristers who performed in the daily services at St Andrew’s Cathedral with “a high-class, free education based on Church principles.” 21 boys enrolled. In 2024, we have 1450 students enrolled at our school from Kindergarten to Year 12.

Kirrikee–the “lungs” of our school–is an outdoor education facility on 49 hectares, located at Penrose, Southern Highlands. Our dedicated outdoor education team deliver a sequential programme of age-appropriate camps, tours and experiences for all students, from a day excursion in the city with Kindy through to Snow Camp for Year 9 and the character-defining Year 10 20 day Kosi to Coast hike, a very popular experience for many Senior College students.

In 2021, this historic building, long used for school gatherings, assemblies and chapel, was fully restored. Sitting adjacent to St Andrew’s Cathedral, Chapter House has been transformed into a stunning performing arts venue, with increased seating and state-of-the-art sound and technology.

Our ‘school within a school’ was named Australian School of the Year in 2020 at the Australian Education Awards, with the judges noting it delivers “wonderful, almost unheard of outcomes” for its students. Gawura offers full tuition scholarships to local Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander students from Kindergarten to Year 12, along with exceptional cultural experiences.