You may want to have a look at this website. It's more of a whitewater kayaking website, but I know there's a few sydney-siders who take their playboats out in the surf.
www.adventurepro.com.au/paddleaustralia/
What is your current skill level? Can you roll a kayak? Learn that first in a pool, and once you're doing that alright, practice on the other side. If a wave tips you over you'll get surfed upside down sideways, and it's not always going to be on your strong side for rolls. So practice a few rolls on your off side.
Also just take it slow, start on some smaller waves and work your way up. The hardest thing in medium to big surf is getting out over all the white wash. It simply takes practice to get better at this and get confidence as well! Taking a swim really isn't something you want to do if you can avoid it. Simply because when your kayak is full of water, it weighs a tonne. Even if your close to shore it can be a struggle to get it the last few metres to the sand. I've had my kayak full of water and pulled it onto shore, but the weight combined with the wet sand meant I couldn't even tip it over to empty it! I had to wait for another wave to wash up to help me.
Having said that, the more you get out there, the quicker you'll learn. And it's great fun, so get out there! Even though it's a bit colder in winter now, you generally get better surf, so don't use that as an excuse. If you're getting cold, make sure to upgrade your gear to keep you warm.