FUNDING OF INDEPENDENT SCHOOLS

Some of the publications listed below are in PDF format.

Independent Updates 2009

ISCA published two Independent Updates in 2009 aiming to inform the public of important facts about the funding of schools and the Building the Education Revolution.

Independent Update Issue 1, 2009 - The Building the Education Revolution

Independent Update Issue 2, 2009 - Important Facts about School Funding

Federal Budget 2008 - Key Points

The 2008 Federal Budget has established a positive platform for the Government by confirming its election promises and providing further details of policies included in the “education revolution”.

A brief overview of funding is available in ISCA’s Independent Updates:

Independent Update Issue 1, 2008 - The funding partnership

Independent Update Issue 2, 2008 - Needs-based funding

Independent Update Issue 3, 2008 - Capital funding

Independent Update Issue 4, 2008 - Students with disability

Independent Update Issue 5, 2008 - Principles of funding

Independent Update Issue 6, 2008 - Choice and diversity

 


A more detailed outline of funding arrangements for schools, covering general recurrent funding, targeted programme funding and capital funding, and including an explanation of the Australian Government’s SES funding model is available in the ISCA publication, Independent Schooling in Australia 2006 - 08.		  

 

ISCA funding priorities for independent schools

2009 - 2012

This paper is a statement of the concepts, principles and assessment criteria which ISCA believes should be reflected in government funding and summarises ISCA's priorities for the 2009-12 funding quadrennium.

 

FUNDING FAST FACTS

Sources of Independent Sector Income, 2007

Graph - Sources of Independent Sector Income 2007

  • For the Independent sector as a whole 60% of schools’ income was from private sources and 40% from government sources.

Enrolments and Funding, 2006-07

Graph - Enrolments and Funding by sector 2006-07

  • Total expenditure by governments on school education was $34.2 billion in 2006-07.  Seventy-nine percent of this expenditure went to government schools which accounted for 67% of student enrolments.  Twenty-one percent went to non-government schools which accounted for 34% of student enrolments.

  • Government expenditure per student in independent schools was, on average, some 49% of that for students attending government schools.

  • The savings to governments in Australia from the education of school students in non-government schools is in the order of $6.1 billion per annum.  Savings from independent schools are in the order of $2.7 billion of this total.

The most up to date publicly available data on total expenditure by government in Australia on school education is for the 2006-07 financial year for government and non-government schooling. For the independent sector, data is for the 2007 calendar year. Percentages may not add to 100 percent due to rounding.

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