Baler Primary is a government primary in South Hedland serving a tight-knit community with strong pastoral care.
NAPLAN well below national year-level averages and solid student growth; the result is a C overall.
Baler Primary is a government primary in South Hedland serving a tight-knit community with strong pastoral care. The school offers STEM and Indonesian language programs, alongside visual arts and specialist PE. Students can access the Clontarf Foundation sports program, enrichment learning, and mentoring through Polly Farmer Follow the Dream and Ed Connect. Support services include a chaplain and student services team.
Baler Primary School is also known as Baler PS and BPS South Hedland.
Baler Primary School has an overall SchoolRank score of 28.6/100, rated "Below Average". This score is calculated from academic results, student growth, wellbeing, extracurricular programs, and value for money. Academically, the school scores 29/100, indicating developing performance relative to other Australian schools. The school's ICSEA (Index of Community Socio-Educational Advantage) is 902, below the national average of 1,000. Notably, the school shows strong student growth over time (65/100), meaning students tend to improve well regardless of their starting point.
In 2025 NAPLAN testing at Baler Primary School, Year 3 students averaged 345 across the tested NAPLAN domains, well below the national average of 407 for that year level, and Year 5 students averaged 434, well below the national average of 490 for that year level. National averages are specific to each year level, because NAPLAN scores are scaled so older year levels score higher, a school-wide average can't be compared with a single national figure.
Baler Primary School is a medium-sized government primary school with approximately 592 students. It offers education for years K-6. As a government school, enrolment is generally available to students living within the school's designated catchment zone. Families outside the zone may apply for out-of-area placement subject to availability.
Baler Primary School is a government school, so there are no tuition fees. Families may be asked to contribute to voluntary school fees covering materials, excursions, and activities. The school has a value score of 30/100 on SchoolRank, which compares educational outcomes relative to cost, government schools typically score well on this measure.
Baler Primary School has a student-to-teacher ratio of 15.9:1. This is around the national average of approximately 14:1, meaning class sizes are typical for Australian schools. Support staff make up 40% of the workforce, providing additional learning assistance and pastoral care. The student attendance rate is 83%, which is below the national benchmark.
Baler Primary School is located in South Hedland, WA, classified as a remote school. With an ICSEA of 902 (11th percentile), the school community's socio-educational advantage is below average, which means the school serves a community with greater socio-educational challenges. ICSEA measures the educational advantage of a school's community, not the school's quality, a lower ICSEA school with strong academic scores may indicate particularly effective teaching.