NSW · Cessnock Council
Kearsley, NSW, 2325
Desirability index
#721 among Country & regional suburbs
Suburb snapshot
Kearsley is a small locality in the Cessnock area, home to around 838 residents (2021 Census). Recent indicators show 3,329 offences in Jan 2025 to Dec 2025 with relatively stable year-on-year trends (+2%), roughly 3972.6 offences per 1,000 residents, median weekly rent around $550 (flats $463, houses $570), 1 school and preschool site in the area, strong public transport coverage with many public transport stops, a quieter amenity profile than busier neighbouring suburbs, and notable planning and development activity on record. Snapshot data also shows parks or public open space within the suburb.
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
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.
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)
- 3,329
- Against the person
- 1,049
- Against property
- 1,325
- Rate per 1,000 residents
- 3,972.6
- Person-crime prevalence
- About 1 in 1 residents
- State safety percentile
- 56.4th (lower crime is better)
- Year-on-year change
- +2.1%
Most common offence types
- Breach Apprehended Violence Order198
- Breach Bail Conditions379
- Domestic Violence Related Assault299
- Intimidation, Stalking And Harassment371
- Malicious Damage To Property332
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
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
Data sources & freshness
- GTFS public transport stops — State transport authority open-data feeds · Period: current · Updated on site · GTFS static feed
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· 13 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
2021· 6 proposals
6 proposals lodged in 2021. Individual listings are kept for the most recent proposals.
2020· 5 proposals
5 proposals lodged in 2020. Individual listings are kept for the most recent proposals.
Data sources & freshness
- Online DA development application register — NSW Department of Planning, Housing and Infrastructure · Period: 2020; 2020–2026; 2021… · Updated on site · Daily open-data feed (applications from Oct 2018)
Amenities
13 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).
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.
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.
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.
Data sources & freshness
- OpenStreetMap green cover features — OpenStreetMap contributors · Period: current · Updated on site · Weekly refresh
Desirability index
- Desirability score
- 23.5/100
- Cohort rank
- #721 among Country & regional suburbs
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 Sttransport
- Caledonia St At Ellalong Sttransport
- Caledonia St Before Ellalong Sttransport
- Caledonia St Opp Government Rdtransport
- Caledonia St Opp Kearsley Hoteltransport
- Firefighters Parkgovernmentpark
- Alterations and additions to residential developmentplanning10 ALLANDALE STREET KEARSLEY 2325Lodged 16 Aug 2022 · Determined
- Alterations or additions to an existing building or structure; Balcony, deck, patio, terrace or verandah (screened enclosures)planning2 ALLANDALE STREET KEARSLEY 2325Lodged 21 Nov 2024 · Determined
- Demolition; Dwelling house; Alterations or additions to an existing building or structureplanning27 CONGEWAI STREET KEARSLEY 2325Lodged 31 May 2024 · Determined
- Dual occupancyplanning53 CALEDONIA STREET KEARSLEY 2325Lodged 29 Jun 2023 · Determined
Data sources & freshness
- Parks & reserves — State government + ABS LGA boundaries · Updated on site
- Online DA development application register — NSW Department of Planning, Housing and Infrastructure · Updated on site · Daily open-data feed (applications from Oct 2018)
- GTFS public transport stops — State transport authority open-data feeds · Updated on site · GTFS static feed
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