Dean Park, New South Wales

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Dean Park is a suburb in the City of Blacktown, in Western Sydney, in the state of New South Wales, Australia.

The suburb takes its name from the Dean family. William Dean (1776 or 1778/79-1847) was granted 200 acres (81 ha) beside Eastern Creek. His family owned the Bush Inn on the Western Highway.^[1]

Dean Park is also the home to William Dean Public School named in honour of the former European settler originally granted the land.

The suburb was originally planned and developed in the early 80s. Some of the street names are aboriginal in origin such as Yarramundi Drive.^[2] It is said that other street names take on the names of the original site developers, the Hoyle brothers (Nathan, Kenneth and Wayne).

Notable former residents of Dean Park include former Guantanamo Bay inmate Mamdouh Habib and the heroic Frank Flores. Mr. Flores died in 2004 during a bus hi-jacking in the Philippines where he tried to protect more vulnerable people on the bus and was shot by gun wielding high jackers.^[3] Following his death, Frank Flores Park was named in his honour.^[4] A memorial prize is awarded annually by the Dean Park Neighbourhood Centre to young residents of Dean Park who, over the course of the year, excel in a particular field and reflect a general level of excellence. Frank was a keen member of the Dean Park Neighbourhood council.

Another favourite son of Dean Park is National Rugby League (NRL) Grand Final champion Luke Swain (Swainy). Luke won the NRL final within his first year of playing first grade rugby league with Western Sydney side Penrith Panthers in 2003. Luke is a second rower with tremendous heart. In his youth Luke played a variety of sports and excelled in cricket. He chose to pursue a career in rugby league and currently is signed to the new Gold Coast Titans franchise. The career of Luke Swain was nearly tragically cut short when he suffered a spinal injury whilst rough housing with a team mate in a hotel room in 2004. After being told that he may never play sport again, Luke defied all the odds and showed the spirit of Dean Park by making a full recovery.

Some of the youth in Dean Park consider themselves part of the DPG (Dean Park Gang) and such tags can be seen spray painted around Dean Park. "DPG" is also a play on the American equivalent the Dog Pound Gang featuring rapper Snoop Doggy Dog. The DPG is in reality an ineffective and unofficial organisation and should not be taken seriously.