The Ponds, New South Wales

The Ponds is a suburb[2] of Sydney, in the state of New South Wales, Australia. The Ponds is located approximately 40 kilometres (25 mi) north-west of the Sydney central business district in the Blacktown local government area. At the 2016 census, The Ponds had an estimated resident population of 11,731.[3]

The Ponds
Sydney, New South Wales
The Float
Population11,731 (2016 census)[1]
Established2007
Postcode(s)2769
Location38 km (24 mi) NW of Sydney CBD
State electorate(s)Riverstone
Federal Division(s)Greenway
Suburbs around The Ponds:
Schofields Rouse Hill Kellyville
Quakers Hill The Ponds Kellyville Ridge
Quakers Hill Parklea Stanhope Gardens

History

"The Ponds" was a name designed to reflect the geography of the area and was derived from the nearby creek called "Second Ponds Creek", and the growing population. The Ponds was officially designated as a separate suburb in January 2007.[4] The Ponds had previously been part of the suburbs of Kellyville and Kellyville Ridge.

Population

In the 2016 Census, there were 11,731 people in The Ponds. 50.3% of people were born in Australia. The next most common countries of birth were India 14.3%, Philippines 4.3%, England 2.2%, Sri Lanka 2.2% and China 1.9%. 49.4% of people spoke only English at home. Other languages spoken at home included Punjabi 5.9%, Hindi 5.9%, Gujarati 2.9%, Mandarin 2.5% and Urdu 2.1%. The most common responses for religion were Catholic 24.9%, Hinduism 14.8%, No Religion 14.0%, Anglican 9.1% and Islam 8.3%.[1]

According to data from the 2011 census, the Australian Bureau of Statistics ranked The Ponds as the most advantaged suburb of Sydney by the use of twenty-five variables, including income, internet access, number of bedrooms and resident qualifications.[5] With more than 71 per cent of the population aged over 15 years married, census data shows that The Ponds has the highest percentage of married people per suburb in Australia.[3][6][7]

Housing

The Ponds is situated in the North West growth corridor, where the first stage of a major shopping centre and commercial space have opened. A new suburb was designed to make the estate a new community. The first lots of land were released on 31 March 2007.

In 2012, The Ponds developed received two industry awards; taking out first place in the Residential Development and Sustainable Development categories at the UDIA NSW Austral Bricks Awards for Excellence.[8]

Education

The Ponds has two primary schools. John Palmer Public School which opened in 2008 and Riverbank Public School which opened in 2015. It also has a high school, The Ponds High School which opened in 2015. There is also a 'special needs' school, The Ponds School which was also opened in 2015.

Hospitals

Hospitals nearby include Norwest Private, Westmead Hospital, Westmead Children's Hospital, Westmead Private and Blacktown Hospital. In the near future, a hospital will be built in Rouse Hill, which will be less than a kilometre away.

Churches

There are a number of churches nearby, including The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, Every Nation Christian Church, Blessed John XXIII Catholic Church, Our Lady of the Rosary, Rouse Hill Anglican Church, The Salvation Army - Rouse Hill Region , Hillsong Church, NewHope Baptist Church and Life Anglican Church Quakers Hill.

Transport

Road

The main roads in the ponds are The Ponds Boulevard, Riverbank Drive, Ridgeline Drive, Hambledon Road, Stanhope Parkway and Schofields Road. Both the Westlink M7 and the M2 Hills Motorway provide easy road access to the suburb from the south and east, respectively.

Bus

The Ponds is serviced by Busways which provides services to Blacktown (734, 752), Rouse Hill (752), Schofields & Riverstone (734).

Residents can commute to either Kellyville Ridge, Stanhope Gardens or Rouse Hill Town Centre to use Hillsbus services to Parramatta (T63, T65, T66) and the City (607X, 617X, 616/616X), or Busways services to Bella Vista station (745) or Rouse Hill station (731).

Rail
Tallawong Station

Tallawong station on the North West Rail Line is the closest station to The Ponds, providing services every 4 minutes to Norwest Business Park, Castle Hill, Macquarie Park and Chatswood, with connecting Sydney Trains services to Sydney CBD. The line opened on 26 May 2019.[9] Cooee Busways provides an on demand service connecting The Ponds with Tallawong and Rouse Hill stations, whilst route 752 connects The Ponds with Rouse Hill station.

The nearest Sydney Trains station is located at Schofields railway station, providing services to Blacktown, Parramatta, Richmond, Leppington and the Sydney central business district.

Shopping

The Ponds shopping centre opened in 2015. It contains Woolworths as the anchor tenant, a number of cafes and restaurants, a newsagency, a pharmacy and approximately 20 specialty shops as well as a car park. It connects with the former sales and display centre which was renovated and turned into a community resource centre.[10]

Rouse Hill Town Centre is located about 1 km away, and features over 250 stores in addition to Coles, Woolworths, Target, Big W and Reading Cinemas.

Stanhope Village is located 3 km from The Ponds, with Coles, Kmart and several speciality stores.

Additional shopping can be found nearby at Castle Towers and Westpoint Blacktown, located about 12 kilometres (7.5 mi) away.

Based on the data from Australia Post and Star Track couriers, residents in The Ponds receive the most online purchases in NSW.[11]

References
  1. Australian Bureau of Statistics (27 June 2017). "The Ponds (State Suburb)". 2016 Census QuickStats. Retrieved 15 January 2018.
  2. "The Ponds". Geographical Names Register (GNR) of NSW. Geographical Names Board of New South Wales. Retrieved 4 August 2013.
  3. Australian Bureau of Statistics (27 June 2017). "The Ponds". 2016 Census QuickStats. Retrieved 18 September 2018.
  4. "Our suburbs". Blacktown City Council. Retrieved 19 February 2019.
  5. Barlass, Tim (31 March 2013). "Dispelling the myth of a suburban oasis". The Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 27 December 2013.
  6. "Married couples love to live at The Ponds". Rouse Hill Times. 13 March 2013. Retrieved 27 December 2013.
  7. Salt, Bernard (7 March 2013). "Outlying estates are our centres of wedded bliss". The Australian. Retrieved 27 December 2013.
  8. "UDIA: Awards".
  9. Sydney Metro is now open Transport for NSW
  10. "New shops at The Ponds "the place to be"".
  11. "Area's shoppers turn to the internet for clothing".

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