View source for Frenchs Forest

{{Use Australian English|date=August 2019}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=October 2024}}
{{Infobox Australian place
| type      = suburb
| name      = Frenchs Forest
| city      = Sydney
| state     = nsw
| alternative_location_map = Australia NSW metro Sydney
| pushpin_map_caption = Location in metropolitan [[Sydney]]
| coordinates = {{Coord|-33.7490|151.2331|format=dms|type:city_region:AU-NSW|display=inline,title}}
| image     = Frenchs Forest NSW Australia.jpg
| image2    = 
| local_map = yes
| zoom      = 12
| caption   = Frenchs Forest from the air, with Forestway in the centre
| lga       = [[Northern Beaches Council]]
| postcode  = 2086
| est       =
| pop       = 14,267
| pop_year  = {{CensusAU|2021}}
| pop_footnotes = <ref name=census>{{Census 2021 AUS|id=SAL11571|name=Frenchs Forest (State Suburb)|accessdate=19 August 2024|quick=on}}</ref>
| elevation = 149
| area      = 9.1
| stategov  = [[Electoral district of Davidson|Davidson]], [[Electoral district of Wakehurst|Wakehurst]]
| fedgov    = [[Division of Warringah|Warringah]], [[Division of Mackellar|Mackellar]]
| near-nw   = [[Belrose, New South Wales|Belrose]]
| near-n    = [[Belrose, New South Wales|Belrose]]
| near-ne   = [[Oxford Falls, New South Wales|Oxford Falls]]
| near-w    = [[Davidson, New South Wales|Davidson]]
| near-e    = [[Beacon Hill, New South Wales|Beacon Hill]]
| near-sw   = [[Forestville, New South Wales|Forestville]]
| near-s    = [[Seaforth, New South Wales|Seaforth]]
| near-se   = [[Allambie Heights]]
| dist1     = 20
| dir1      = north
| location1 = [[Sydney central business district|Sydney CBD]]
}}

'''Frenchs Forest''' (pron. frenches) is a suburb of northern [[Sydney]], in the state of [[New South Wales]], Australia. Frenchs Forest is 
20&nbsp;kilometres north of the [[Sydney central business district]] in the [[Local government in Australia|local government area]] of [[Northern Beaches Council]]. Frenchs Forest is part of Sydney's [[Northern Beaches]] region and also considered to be part of the [[Forest District (Sydney)|Forest District]], colloquially known as ''The Forest'' by its locals.

During the 2010s, the suburb underwent [[Zoning|rezoning]] which includes a new hospital, town centre, new relocated high school, 2,200 new homes and $500 million to upgrade the roads around the new [[Northern Beaches Hospital]].<ref name=":0">{{cite news |url = http://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/newslocal/manly-daily/high-rise-new-pool-and-school-move-plans-revealed-for-frenchs-forest/news-story/6d4d9ba3cbc99e4ef6bdb2c6be3eb579 |title = Future of Frenchs Forest revealed |access-date = 2017-09-26 }}</ref>

The rezoning was completed in time for the hospital opening in 2019.<ref>{{cite news |url = http://www.abc.net.au/news/2016-12-01/frenchs-forest-high-school-may-move-under-northern-beaches-plan/8082662 |title = Northern beaches development plan may see Frenchs Forest high school moved |date=2016-12-01 |publisher = ABC News|location=Australia|access-date = 2016-12-02 }}</ref><ref>{{cite news |url = http://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/newslocal/manly-daily/high-rise-new-pool-and-school-move-plans-revealed-for-frenchs-forest/news-story/6d4d9ba3cbc99e4ef6bdb2c6be3eb579 |title = Future of Frenchs Forest revealed |access-date = 2016-12-02 }}</ref>

==History==
===Aboriginal culture===
{{unreferencedsect|date=August 2025}}
Prior to the arrival of the [[First Fleet]] in [[Port Jackson]] in 1788, the area of land we now know as Frenchs Forest, and surrounding Warringah areas, was the home of the [[Dharug]] language group of the Garigal [[Indigenous Australians|Aboriginal]] clan. Evidence of their habitation remains today in the form of rock engravings, rock art, open campsites, rock shelters, scarred trees and middens. The word ''Warringah'' has many interpretations including "sign of rain", "across the waves" and "sea".

===European settlement===
European exploration into Warringah began within the first weeks of settlement at [[Sydney Cove]] in 1788. [[Arthur Phillip|Governor Phillip]] made a number of journeys throughout the area, detailing the landscape, flora and fauna, as well as observing Aboriginal lifestyle and culture. Although [[Beacon Hill, New South Wales|Beacon Hill]] advertises the "Arthur Phillip lookout" at its peak, it is believed by some historians<ref>''[http://library.sl.nsw.gov.au/search/i0959648402 Forest History]'', 1977, paperback {{ISBN|0-9596484-0-2}}</ref> that Phillip's travels actually took him through [[Bantry Bay, New South Wales|Bantry Bay]] and up into Frenchs Forest to gain views over the area.

In 1853, Simeon Henry Pearce<ref>{{cite news |title = First sawmills, then brickworks were drawn inland by the area's natural resource |newspaper = The Daily Telegraph|location=Sydney |date = 17 June 2016 |url = https://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/newslocal/northern-beaches/first-sawmills-then-brickworks-were-drawn-inland-by-the-areas-natural-resource/news-story/7fb66552d6f099c3d0bc9f4b0f960d1d |last1 = Morcombe |first1 = John }}</ref> (1821–1886) and his brother James acquired {{convert|200|acre|km2}} in this area. The property was later known as Rodborough when it was acquired by James French, a police constable,<ref>{{cite web |url = http://www.gnb.nsw.gov.au/place_naming/placename_search/extract?id=JPwGBKtLKW |website=Geographical Names Registrar Extract |title = Frenchs Forest |publisher = Geographical Names Board of New South Wales|access-date=20 October 2015}}</ref> who took over Warringah.

Despite its relative proximity to Sydney, Frenchs Forest remained predominantly rural throughout the nineteenth century and the first half of the twentieth century.<ref>''The Book of Sydney Suburbs'', Compiled by Frances Pollon, Angus & Robertson Publishers, 1990, Published in Australia {{ISBN|0-207-14495-8}}, p.&nbsp;106.</ref> A 1951 article in ''[[The Bulletin (Australian periodical)|The Bulletin]]'' noted: {{blockquote|Ten years ago the Forest and the Chase really gave Sydney a unique charm. Less than 20 miles from the [[General Post Office, Sydney|G.P.O.]] and you were in the midst of almost unsullied bush where you could still see wallabies, rabbits restored to respectability by their distance from grazing lands, and even, towards Whale Beach, koalas; where [[Thelymitra|sun-orchid]], [[Pterostylis|greenhood]] and [[Dipodium roseum|hyacinth-orchid]] flowered low in the scrub with blackeyed-Susan and the wild iris under starry tea-tree or the creamy foam of dwarf-apples; where boronia and wax-flower in their seasons glowed all along the roadsides, or native-holly fit a whole gully with rusty gold. And year by year, while the rangers busied themselves harassing the picnickers who dared snatch a couple of flannel-flowers, the dumpers from the suburbs made the place one gigantic garbage-tip, where if you weren’t merely sick you would probably be bitten among the refuse by funnel-web spiders, redbacks, bulldog-ants and death-adders. A lot of the Forest has itself now become a suburb; it will probably be burnt down annually and need not be bothered about any more. But much remains worth preserving; and all the Chase.<ref>{{cite journal |title=French's Forest |journal=The Bulletin |date=5 December 1951 |volume=72 |issue=3747 |page=6 |url=http://nla.gov.au/nla.obj-526137405 |access-date=1 October 2023 |location=National Library of Australia (Trove)}}</ref>}}

== Geography ==
[[File:NASA_image_STS079-834-6_of_Sydney_cropped_and_modified_to_show_Frenchs_Forest_borders.gif|thumb|right|NASA satellite view of Frenchs Forest within the Sydney area]]

Frenchs Forest is close to the [[Garigal National Park]]. It is elevated (~156 m [[above mean sea level|ASL]]) regularly having high rainfall compared with the rest of Sydney and is spread along ridgelines surrounded by native bushland. The eastern parts have distant views (3&nbsp;km) over the [[Pacific Ocean]] and the temperature extremes typical of Sydney are moderated by this proximity. The western side has views over Chatswood, St Leonards, North Sydney and Sydney CBD, bounded by [[Garigal National Park]] featuring native wildlife, birds, turtles, wallabies, lizards, snakes. Bush tracks include bluff track and natural bridge track.

=== Climate ===
{{Further|Climate of Sydney}}

Frenchs Forest climate is similar to the [[Climate of Sydney]], albeit with a few minor seasonal differences: winters tend to be cooler and wetter than in the city, while summers tend to be less hot.

{{Weather box
|location = [[Macquarie Park, New South Wales|Macquarie Park]]
|metric first = Yes
|single line = Yes
|Jan record high C = 47.1
|Feb record high C = 41.4
|Mar record high C = 40.7
|Apr record high C = 33.5
|May record high C = 28.5
|Jun record high C = 24.8
|Jul record high C = 26.0
|Aug record high C = 30.1
|Sep record high C = 34.4
|Oct record high C = 39.1
|Nov record high C = 42.0
|Dec record high C = 43.1
|year record high C = 47.1
|Jan high C = 27.7
|Feb high C = 27.4
|Mar high C = 25.9
|Apr high C = 23.4
|May high C = 20.3
|Jun high C = 17.4
|Jul high C = 17.1
|Aug high C = 18.5
|Sep high C = 21.1
|Oct high C = 23.3
|Nov high C = 24.8
|Dec high C = 27.1
|year high C = 22.8
|Jan low C = 16.9
|Feb low C = 16.9
|Mar low C = 15.2
|Apr low C = 12.0
|May low C = 9.2
|Jun low C = 6.5
|Jul low C = 4.9
|Aug low C = 5.7
|Sep low C = 7.8
|Oct low C = 10.8
|Nov low C = 13.0
|Dec low C = 15.6
|year low C = 11.2
|Jan record low C = 8.5
|Feb record low C = 8.9
|Mar record low C = 6.1
|Apr record low C = 2.5
|May record low C = 0.3
|Jun record low C = -1.7
|Jul record low C = -3.5
|Aug record low C = -1.1
|Sep record low C = 0.1
|Oct record low C = 0.9
|Nov record low C = 1.2
|Dec record low C = 6.5
|year record low C = -3.5
|Jan precipitation mm = 115.7
|Feb precipitation mm = 142.1
|Mar precipitation mm = 133.4
|Apr precipitation mm = 107.6
|May precipitation mm = 86.9
|Jun precipitation mm = 114.4
|Jul precipitation mm = 51.7
|Aug precipitation mm = 57.6
|Sep precipitation mm = 59.3
|Oct precipitation mm = 83.9
|Nov precipitation mm = 94.8
|Dec precipitation mm = 84.4
|year precipitation mm = 1135.3
|source 1 = <ref>{{cite web |url = http://reg.bom.gov.au/climate/averages/tables/cw_066156.shtml |title = Climate statistics for Australian locations }}</ref><ref>Current Forestville (nearest recording) rainfall data (Manly Hydraulics Lab){{cite web |url = http://www.mhl.nsw.gov.au/Site-566080 |title = Forestville Rain |access-date = 27 September 2017 |archive-date = 27 September 2017 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20170927112707/http://www.mhl.nsw.gov.au/Site-566080 |url-status = dead }}</ref>
|date = August 2010
}}

== Commercial areas ==
Forestway Shopping Centre is at the intersection of Forest Way and Warringah Road.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.forestway.com.au/ |title=Home |website=forestway.com.au}}</ref> The centre includes an [[Aldi]] and [[Woolworths Supermarkets|Woolworths supermarkets]] and over 50 speciality stores.

Smaller shopping centres are located at Sorlie Road featuring a variety of restaurants and Skyline shops on Frenchs Forest Road East, the name being derived from the 'Skyline [[Drive-in theater|Drive-in Movie]] Theatre' that existed nearby until the mid-1980s.

Frenchs Forest Town Centre is a proposed shopping mall, aquatic centre and high-rise residential development.<ref name=":0" />

== Schools ==
Frenchs Forest is home to a number of schools:
* [[The Forest High School (New South Wales)|The Forest High School]]
* [[Davidson High School (New South Wales)|Davidson High School]]
* Frenchs Forest Public School
* Mimosa Public School
* Arranounbai School

== Churches ==
* Frenchs Forest Anglican Church
* Frenchs Forest Uniting Church] (also known as "The Kirk")
* Forest Alliance Church
* Frenchs Forest Baptist

Although named Frenchs Forest Catholic Parish, the three church buildings that make up the parish are located in the adjoining suburbs of Davidson, Forestville & Terrey Hills.

== Transport ==
=== Road ===
The main routes through Frenchs Forest include the east-west Warringah Road (State route A38), connecting Roseville in the west with Brookvale in the east; the north-south Forest Way, starting at Warringah Road in Frenchs Forest and heading north through [[Belrose, New South Wales|Belrose]] to [[Terrey Hills]], connecting with Mona Vale Road (8&nbsp;km); and the north-south Wakehurst Parkway (State route 22), starting at Narrabeen in the northeast, crossing Frenchs Forest Road and Warringah Road in Frenchs Forest, and heading south to [[Seaforth, New South Wales|Seaforth]], leading to the [[Spit Bridge]]. Following any of these three major roads lead to the only three road routes in and out of the Northern Beaches district.

The intersection of Wakehurst Parkway and Warringah Road was the scene of multiple high speed collisions following the opening of the Wakehurst Parkway in 1946. In an attempt to improve safety a ''blinking light''<ref>{{Cite web |title=Image of "blinking light" |url=https://content.api.news/v3/images/bin/7e88d508cea13f957bc2a32a14f61b00?width=1024 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20241130062449/https://content.api.news/v3/images/bin/7e88d508cea13f957bc2a32a14f61b00?width=1024 |archive-date=November 30, 2024 |access-date=October 2, 2025 |website=content.api.news}}</ref> was suspended above the intersection to warn motorists of the danger, which earned the intersection the enduring name of 'The Blinking Light'.<ref>{{Cite news|url=http://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/newslocal/northern-beaches/from-blinking-light-to-gridlock-50-years-of-increasing-congestion/news-story/413786d6c06b8efb59453b2e9e8d4952|title = From blinking light to gridlock|newspaper = The Daily Telegraph|location=Sydney|date = 12 March 2014}}</ref>

===Buses===
[[CDC NSW]] connects Frenchs Forest with [[Chatswood railway station]] in the west, [[Westfield Warringah Mall]] shopping centre at [[Brookvale, New South Wales|Brookvale]] in the east and [[Terrey Hills]] in the north, with bus services running to [[Town Hall railway station, Sydney|Town Hall station]] in the [[Sydney central business district]].<ref>{{Cite web |title=Forest Network Map |url=http://www.forestcoachlines.com.au/images/time/map/Forest-Network-map.pdf |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170215185410/http://www.forestcoachlines.com.au/images/time/map/Forest-Network-map.pdf |archive-date=15 February 2017 |website=forestcoachlines.com}}</ref> [[Keolis Downer Northern Beaches]] runs a number of bus lines through the Frenchs Forest area,<ref>{{Cite web |title=Home |url=https://www.kdnorthernbeaches.com.au/ |access-date=2024-10-08 |website=Keolis Downer}}</ref> including the 160X bus service which connects [[Chatswood, New South Wales|Chatswood]] to [[Dee Why]], and other services to [[Manly, New South Wales|Manly]] and [[Narrabeen]].

==Culture==
* Frenchs Forest Showground<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.northernbeaches.nsw.gov.au/things-to-do/recreation-area/frenchs-forest-showground|title=Frenchs Forest Showground|date=14 June 2012}}</ref> has "off leash" areas for dogs and horse events.

===Events===
* Forest Funday,<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.funday.org.au/ |title=Forest Funday |access-date=13 April 2006 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20050212142438/http://www.funday.org.au/ |archive-date=12 February 2005 |url-status=dead }}</ref> is an annual free fair provided by the combined Christian churches of ''The Forest'' on [[Anzac Day]], 25 April at Frenchs Forest Showground.
* Eurofest<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.eurofest.org.au/ |title=Eurofest |access-date=21 September 2011 |archive-date=12 October 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111012185331/http://www.eurofest.org.au/ |url-status=dead }}</ref> at Ararat Reserve in mid-September involves all the ethnic clubs in the area.

===Clubs===
* The [[Scouting in New South Wales|Scout Hall]].
* The [[Girl Guides Australia|Girls Guides Hall]].
* Ararat Reserve (named after the Ararat plains of Ancient Armenia) on Bantry Bay Road features a number of ethnic clubs.

===Sport and recreation===
* The Warringah Aquatic Centre features an Olympic size indoor heated swimming pool and baseball pitches.
* [[Frank Lionel Watts|Lionel Watts]] Oval provides sports fields for [[cricket]], [[Australian rules football]], [[Association football|soccer]], [[rugby league]], [[netball]] and has a skate park. Immediately next to the oval is a fenced, dog off-leash area, for dogs to run and play.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.northernbeaches.nsw.gov.au/things-to-do/recreation-area/lionel-watts-skate-park|title = Lionel Watts Skate Park|date = 14 November 2019}}</ref>
* A combination cycle/cycle-pedestrian shared/cycle-road path (completed {{circa|1982}}) from the corner of Wakehurst Parkway and Frenchs Forest Road, connecting Frenchs Forest with Dee Why. The signposting/painted lines on roads is aged and can be a little difficult to follow.
* The fenced playground<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.northernbeaches.nsw.gov.au/things-to-do/recreation-area/lionel-watts-reserve|title = Lionel Watts Reserve Playground|date = 14 June 2012}}</ref> for young kids at Lionel Watts Oval (Blackbutts Rd) has a mini-track suitable for toddlers and small kids on tricycles. Rebuilt in 2019.
* Manly Dam Reserve is adjacent to (southeast of) Frenchs Forest, containing pedestrian/mountain bike bush tracks.
* [[Manly-Warringah Radio Society]] using callsign VK2MB is the local club for Amateur Radio Operators & services the Frenchs Forest area, with club rooms at Terrey Hills.

== Demographics==
In the {{CensusAU|2021}} of Population and Housing, the population of the Frenchs Forest postcode area was 14,267 people. The population was 50.4% female, 49.6% male. In Frenchs Forest, 68.8% of people were born in Australia. The most common countries of birth were England 7.3%, China 2.3%, New Zealand 2.2%, South Africa 1.9% and India 0.9%. 80.5% of people only spoke English at home. Other languages spoken at home included Mandarin 2.7%, Armenian 1.6%, French 1.4%, Cantonese 1.3% and Italian 0.9%. The most common responses for religion were No Religion 40.8%, Catholic 23.1% and Anglican 15.3%.

Of occupied private dwellings in Frenchs Forest, 92.5% were separate houses, 4.3% were semi-detached and 3.1% were flats or apartments.<ref name="census" />

==Notable people==
*[[Faith Bandler]] — civil rights activist
*[[Leila Hayes]] — actress 
*[[Isabella Lombardo]] — child with spastic quadriplegic cerebral palsy
*[[James Mathison]] — television presenter
*[[Shelley Oates-Wilding|Shelley Oates]] — Australian sprint canoeist
*[[Donald Shanks (bass-baritone)|Donald Shanks]] — singer
*[[Julie Sutton (mayor)|Julie Sutton]] — former mayor of Warringah Council

== References ==
{{Reflist}}

== External links ==
* {{Commons category-inline}}

{{Clear}}
{{Sydney Northern Beaches suburbs}}

[[Category:Frenchs Forest, New South Wales| ]]
[[Category:Suburbs of Sydney]]
[[Category:Northern Beaches Council]]