| Ambarvale Sydney, New South Wales |
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Thomas Reddall High, Ambarvale |
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| Population: | 7345 (2006) | ||||||||||||
| Established: | 1976 | ||||||||||||
| Postcode: | 2560 | ||||||||||||
| Location: | 55 km (34 mi) south-west of Sydney | ||||||||||||
| LGA: | City of Campbelltown | ||||||||||||
| State District: | Wollondilly | ||||||||||||
| Federal Division: | Macarthur | ||||||||||||
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Ambarvale is a suburb of south-western Sydney in the state of New South Wales, Australia. Ambarvale is located 55 kilometres south-west of the Sydney central business district, in the local government area of the City of Campbelltown and is part of the Macarthur region.[1] The suburb is predominantly residential and contains a mix of public and private housing.
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The history of the region begins over 40,000 years ago and is contained in the continuing culture of the Tharawal people. The surrounding land still contains reminders of their past lives in rock engravings, cave paintings, axe grinding grooves and shell middens.
The suburb draws its name from a property established in 1816 by former convict Samuel Larkin. The property was actually where modern day St Helens Park is located. One of the earliest properties in what is now known as Ambarvale was a dairy farm called Glen Lora. In 1972, the farms were sold for housing and the new suburb was officially opened in 1976.[2]
Ambarvale has an ALDI shopping centre on Woodhouse Drive. This was completed early in 2010, with the old shopping centre being demolished. Beside ALDI, is the Ambarvale Tavern, which has a bistro and gambling facilities. Just north of the suburb is Macarthur Square shopping centre, one of the largest shopping centres in southwestern Sydney.[3]
Macarthur railway station is located just north of Ambarvale, providing connection to Campbelltown Liverpool and Sydney CBD via the South Lineof the CityRail network. Countrylink also services Macarthur providing connections to the Southern Highlands, Canberra, Griffith and Melbourne. Bus services are provided by Busways and Interline Buses, leaving from Kellicar Road (under the bridge). The routes are 870-4, 886-89, 890-98 to and from Campbelltown.[4][5]
The suburb contains two public primary schools, Ambarvale Public and Thomas Acres Public, plus one public high school, Thomas Reddall High School.
The majority of housing in Ambarvale is in the form of detached houses although attached houses and walk-up flats also exist. The majority of dwellings in Ambarvale were constructed in the 1970s and 1980s.
According to the 2006 census, Ambarvale had a population of 7,345 people; mostly young families. The average age is 29 compared to a national average of 37. The median income of $417 per week is marginally lower than the national average ($466). Around a fifth of the houses in the suburb are rented out by the New South Wales Department of Housing but over half the homes are either owned outright or in the process of being paid off.[6]