Hunter River Community School
17 Melaleuca Drive, Metford NSW 2323
Hunter River Community School is a government special school in Metford, NSW with about 70 students. Its ICSEA is 958, where the national average is 1000.
Teaching staff: ACARA School Profile 2025. Source: Australian Curriculum, Assessment and Reporting Authority (ACARA). Terms
Attendance and enrolment
Enrolments by year, 2016–2025. Latest 70.
About this school, from public sources
Public information indicates Hunter River Community School is a NSW government special school in Metford catering to students with medium to high support needs, with around 70 students enrolled. The school's own materials describe its motto "Achieving Together" and a philosophy built on partnership between students, staff, parents, and the wider school community. It offers a range of opportunities across sport, arts and crafts, music, and community-based activities, positioning itself as a model of best practice in special needs education.
Often praised
- strong community partnership ethos
- varied sport and arts programs
- small, supportive student cohort
This note was generated from publicly available online sources (the school's website, official pages and online feedback) as at September 2026. It reflects what is said online, not an assessment by SchoolList AU or any government body, and it deliberately records only neutral and positive points. Confidence: medium. Verify anything important with the school. Report an inaccuracy.
NAPLAN
School-level NAPLAN results are published by ACARA on My School under terms that do not allow them to be reproduced here. See Hunter River Community School on My School · Why some data is missing
Location and nearby schools
Straight-line distances. List every school within 5 to 50 km.
| School | Suburb | Type | Distance | ICSEA | Students |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Arise Christian College | Metford | Independent special | 0.4 km | 971 | 61 |
| Maitland Christian School | Metford | Independent k–12 / combined | 0.5 km | 1,047 | 832 |
| Hunter Valley Grammar School | Ashtonfield | Independent k–12 / combined | 1.5 km | 1,134 | 1,161 |
| OneSchool Global NSW - Maitland | East Maitland | Independent k–12 / combined | 1.7 km | 975 | 108 |
| Aspect Hunter School | Thornton | Independent special | 3.1 km | 1,008 | 290 |
| Linuwel School Ltd | East Maitland | Independent k–12 / combined | 3.3 km | 1,041 | 244 |
| Rise College | Maitland | Independent special | 5.6 km | — | — |
| Alesco Secondary College - Woodberry Campus | Woodberry | Independent special | 5.9 km | — | — |
Schools with a similar ICSEA in NSW
Same sector and type, ICSEA within 25 points. This is the comparison that separates teaching from postcode.
| School | Suburb | Type | Students | ICSEA |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cook School | Loftus | Public special | 66 | 956 |
| Fernhill School | Glenmore Park | Public special | 129 | 956 |
| Les Powell School | Mount Pritchard | Public special | 76 | 956 |
| Newcastle Senior School | Waratah | Public special | 37 | 960 |
| Halinda School | Whalan | Public special | 114 | 955 |
| Glenvale School | Narara | Public special | 159 | 963 |
About this data
- nsw-doe-master
- acara-profile
- nsw-doe-attendance
- nsw-doe-enrolment-history
- nsw-doe-support-classes
- school-website
Figures are from the latest published datasets and can lag the school by a year. Confirm enrolment rules and catchment boundaries with the school or department before relying on them.