Ballarat Specialist School
Updated Oct 2026 · ACARA 2025Lake Gardens, Victoria 3355 · Ballarat LGA
About Ballarat Specialist School
Ballarat Specialist School is a public special school located in Lake Gardens, Victoria (3355), within the Ballarat local government area. It caters for students from U and in 2025 enrolled 453 students (139 girls and 314 boys).
Ballarat Specialist School has an ICSEA value of 950, indicating a socio-educational profile close to the national average of 1000. That places it in the 25th percentile of Australian schools. 7% of students come from the top socio-educational quarter and 53% from the bottom quarter.
The school employs 80 teachers (71.9 full-time equivalent) and 208 non-teaching staff, giving a student-to-teacher ratio of about 6.3 to 1. Enrolments have remained steady over the past five years.
Ballarat Specialist School is a special school. Special schools support students with disability or specific needs and are deliberately excluded from the Success Index and rankings, which would not be a fair measure of what they do.
Student profile
Distribution of students across socio-educational advantage (SEA) quarters, plus community characteristics.
Enrolment trend
How enrolments at Ballarat Specialist School have changed over the past decade.
Free academic assessment
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Schools near Ballarat Specialist School
Closest schools by straight-line distance, with their Success Index.
Ballarat High School
Lake Gardens · Government high school · 7-12
1,461 students · ICSEA 1016 · 217 m away
Loreto College
Ballarat · Catholic high school · 7-12
948 students · ICSEA 1073 · 647 m away
St Patrick's College
Ballarat · Catholic high school · 7-12
1,267 students · ICSEA 1055 · 1.4 km away
Alfredton Primary School
Alfredton · Government primary · Prep-6
527 students · ICSEA 1009 · 1.5 km away
Ballarat Clarendon College
Ballarat · Independent combined · Prep-12
1,896 students · ICSEA 1172 · 1.5 km away
St Thomas More School
Alfredton · Catholic primary · Prep-6
431 students · ICSEA 1087 · 1.7 km away
Wendouree Primary School
Wendouree · Government primary · Prep-6
116 students · ICSEA 917 · 1.7 km away
Ballarat Grammar
Wendouree · Independent combined · Prep-12
1,989 students · ICSEA 1120 · 1.8 km away
Pleasant Street Primary School (Ballarat)
Lake Wendouree · Government primary · Prep-6
350 students · ICSEA 1095 · 1.8 km away
Newington Primary School
Ballarat · Government primary · Prep-6
278 students · ICSEA 1007 · 1.9 km away
Similar schools
Government special schools in VIC with a comparable ICSEA.
Melton Specialist School
Melton · Government special · U
406 students · ICSEA 951
Warracknabeal Special Developmental School
Warracknabeal · Government special · U
29 students · ICSEA 951
South Gippsland Specialist School
Leongatha · Government special · U
67 students · ICSEA 952
Emerson School
Dandenong · Government special · U
371 students · ICSEA 953
Naranga School
Frankston · Government special · U
159 students · ICSEA 945
Peninsula College
Dromana · Government special · U
160 students · ICSEA 957
Frequently asked questions
Is Ballarat Specialist School a public or private school?
Ballarat Specialist School is a public (government) school run by the Victoria education department.
What year levels does Ballarat Specialist School offer?
Ballarat Specialist School offers U. It is classified by ACARA as a special school.
How many students attend Ballarat Specialist School?
In 2025, Ballarat Specialist School had 453 enrolled students (139 girls, 314 boys), a change of 1% over five years.
What is the ICSEA of Ballarat Specialist School?
Ballarat Specialist School has an ICSEA (Index of Community Socio-Educational Advantage) of 950. The national average is 1000, so this indicates a socio-educational profile close to the national average of 1000. ICSEA reflects the school community, not teaching quality.
What is the student-to-teacher ratio at Ballarat Specialist School?
Ballarat Specialist School has about 6.3 students per full-time-equivalent teacher, based on 2025 ACARA staffing data.
Is Ballarat Specialist School co-ed?
Yes. Ballarat Specialist School is a co-educational school enrolling both girls and boys.
What other schools are near Ballarat Specialist School?
There are 10 other schools within 15 km of Ballarat Specialist School in our database. Scroll up to the "Nearby schools" section to compare them by Success Index, ICSEA and enrolments, or use the Compare tool.
Where can I get tutoring near Ballarat Specialist School?
The closest Success Tutoring centre is Success Tutoring Wyndham Vale, about 79 km from the school. Success Tutoring offers a free academic assessment to identify your child's strengths and learning gaps before any sessions begin.