Two more Canberra public schools will not accept out-of-area enrolments next year as some schools approach full capacity.
Belconnen High School and the Evelyn Scott School primary school years have been listed as category A schools for 2025 which means only families living in the priority enrolment zone will be able to enrol, with some limited exceptions.
An Education Directorate spokesman said category B schools were able to consider out-of-area applications as they had more capacity.
"School categorisations are a central element of the directorate's approach to managing school capacity," the spokesman said.
"School categorisations support the directorate to meet our obligation to guarantee every ACT child or young person from kindergarten to year 12 a place at their local public school."
Students with particular legal or personal wellbeing circumstances can enrol outside of their priority enrolment area, regardless of school category or capacity.
For the 2025 school year, there are 35 schools in category A and 57 schools in category B.
The 2024 school census conducted in February showed Belconnen High was at 100 per cent capacity with 600 students enrolled.
Evelyn Scott School has grown rapidly since it opened in 2021. At the start of 2024 it had 498 students in the primary years and 164 in Years 7 to 10. It will now be a category A school for preschool to Year 6.
Pressure on colleges
Some families have had out-of-area enrolment applications rejected for The Canberra College, despite it being listed as a category B school.
The college located in Phillip was at 95.2 per cent capacity at the beginning of 2024.
Some out-of-area students currently at Melrose High School have had their enrolment applications knocked back despite it being a feeder school for Canberra College.
Families were advised that only in rare, individual circumstances children will be offered a place at a school outside their priority enrolment area based on student wellbeing.
Gungahlin College is also facing enrolment pressures as the Education Directorate plans for a second college for the district.
A directorate spokesman said in response to high demand in Gungahlin, all category B colleges were able to enrol students from Gungahlin College's priority enrolment area, subject to capacity.
"In addition, Dickson College is in a [priority enrolment area] shared zone with Gungahlin College, which means that students in the Gungahlin College [priority enrolment area] are also considered in-area for Dickson College," he said.
A new college is planned to be built in Nicholls by the end of this decade.
