Soaring private school fees demonstrate failure of public funding policies

Commenting on a story in today's Illawarra Mercury, Dr Kaye said: "Parents with children in private schools have been trapped by massive fee hikes over the past five years.

"On the promise of easing the financial burden of private education, the federal government boosted funding to all non-government schools.

"Instead of keeping fees down, these institutions have increased spending and demanded that parents pay even more.

"After adjusting for inflation, the Illawarra Grammar School increased its fees by more than 25% since 2002, despite a 28% increase in government funding.

"Fees at St Mary's Star of the Sea almost doubled and at Edmund Rice College they rose by 36%.

"The $2.3 billion that state and federal governments gives to NSW private schools each year is not helping parents.

"Instead it is encouraging competition between these institutions to attract more students.

"The massive pots of money available from both levels of government have kick started an arms race to build more expensive facilities.

"Public schools have been left out in the cold. Neither state nor federal governments have been prepared to provide the public system with the same levels of increases.

"It is time for NSW Education Minister John Della Bosca to admit that the current funding arrangements have failed to make private schools more affordable and have failed to supply public education with the resources it needs.

"Nobody is winning from the current funding mix," Dr Kaye said.

For more information:    John Kaye 0407 195 455