What, they're not friendly in Sydney? - Herald Sun

Collaroy's Georgia, Tania and Beth Ashdown wouldn't live anywhere else but Sydney / Pic: Craig Greenhill Source: The Daily Telegraph

WITH its beaches, world renowned landmarks and natural beauty, Sydney has been described as one of the greatest cities in the world.

But a new national study to determine the most family-friendly place to live has ranked the Harbour City as one of the worst in Australia.

In the Suncorp Bank Family Friendly Index, crowded urban jungles and state capitals have been upstaged by regional towns, with five of the top 10 being rural areas.

Of the 30 cities in the study, Launceston in Tasmania topped the list as the most family-friendly place to live, closely followed by Canberra and Toowoomba. Sydney was ranked 23rd.

The cities were marked using 10 criteria including unemployment levels, crime rates, broadband in the home, access to health services, schools, childcare, volunteer work, house prices and disposable income.

Suncorp executive manager Craig Fenwick said Launceston emerged as the No.1 city thanks to its low crime rate, smaller class sizes in schools and lower than average cost of housing.

"This is the ideal mix for families when it comes to some of the fundamentals, and they're certainly showing up our international hubs like Sydney and Melbourne," he said.

"Often the state capitals of Australia win international acclaim in lifestyle and liveability surveys, but our survey bucks this trend."

But Collaroy mother of two Tania Ashdown, who was yesterday enjoying the sun on the harbourfront, said Sydney was the perfect place to raise her two daughters.

"It is an amazing place to live and bring up kids," she said. "There is just so much to do for families here - my biggest frustration is that we don't have time to do enough of it.

"I've got a number of friends that have moved out of Sydney and it's never been an option for us. I couldn't live anywhere else."

Of the "big three", Melbourne was ranked ahead of Sydney at 14. Brisbane came in at 24th.

Coffs Harbour, on the state's mid-north coast, was the least family-friendly city. Queensland was the most family-friendly state, with six cities featuring in the top 20.

Rank, City and Score

1 Lauceston (TAS) 130

2 Canberra (ACT) 148

3 Toowoomba (QLD) 156

4 Albury (NSW/VIC) 163

5 Adelaide (SA) 191 and Perth (WA) 191

14 Melbourne (VIC) 233

23 Sydney (NSW) 262

24 Brisbane (QLD) 267

30 Coffs Harbour (NSW) 334