Lyneham

Lyneham is a Canberra suburb in the Inner North district. It is named after Sir William Lyne, premier of the Australian state of New South Wales from 1899 to 1901. The suburb name was gazetted in 1928, but development did not commence until 1958. The streets of Lyneham are named after artists and people associated with the development of early Canberra.

The style of the suburb has been evolving since development commenced in 1958. Older heritage style homes sit beside modern townhouse developments. Being one of the older suburbs in Canberra, Lyneham residents enjoy its leafy streets and established gardens.

Lyneham boasts many attractions for young and old including nature parks and bushland, proximity to the centre of Canberra, popular cafes including the famous Tilley’s Devine Cafe and Gallery as well as the Front cafe and gallery, and a number of sporting facilities including the National Hockey Centre, Canberra Racecourse and the ACT Netball Centre.

Also located in Lyneham is Exhibition Park In Canberra (EPIC), which annually hosts Australia’s best known car festival, Summernats, the Royal Canberra Show and the National Folk Festival.

St Ninian’s Uniting Church in Brigalow Street is the second-oldest church in Canberra, opened in 1873. It was founded as a Presbyterian Church by the Scottish community, many of whom had come to the area as shepherds.

Schools in Lyneham include Lyneham High School, Lyneham Primary School and Brindabella Christian College.

The part of Lyneham north of Ginninderra Drive was a relatively recent addition to the suburb of Lyneham, being built in the mid to late 1980s, while the rest of Lyneham dates back to the 1960s. North Lyneham’s main feeder road, Cossington Smith Crescent, loops through the area with other streets coming off it. It also has a small shopping centre housing shops, a couple of restaurants and a number of small businesses.

North Lyneham backs onto a bush reserve which separates it from the suburb of Kaleen. The walking trails in the reserve are popular with the local residents and provide scenic views of the inner northern suburbs of Canberra to the east and south and Belconnen and the Brindabella Ranges to the west.