Government Funding Supports Huge Resource Advantage for SA Private Schools

Figures published earlier this year show that South Australian private schools have a major resource advantage over public schools. Since 2009, private schools have received large increases in government funding while funding for public schools has been cut. Public schools remain massively underfunded for the challenges they face while Independent and Catholic schools are overfunded. The favourable funding for private schools is a key factor behind the enrolment shift to these schools.

Updated figures published by the Australian Curriculum Assessment and Reporting Authority (ACARA) show that the total income per student in South Australian public schools in 2024 was $21,161 compared to $26,194 per student in Independent schools  and $23,660 in Catholic schools [Chart 1]. The total income per student in Independent schools is 24% more than that of public schools and 12% higher in the case of Catholic schools.

Government funding accounts for 76% of the income of Soutth Australian Catholic schools and 58% of the income of Independent schools. In 2024, Catholic schools received $17,971 per student from the Commonwealth and South Australian governments and Independent schools $15,284.

Commonwealth and South Australian government funding for private schools, adjusted for wage and price increases to reflect the real increase in human and material resources, increased by  much more than for public schools between 2009 and 2024.  It increased by $4,265 per student in Catholic schools and by $3,773 per student in Independent schools compared to $2,221 per student in public schools [Chart 2]. The percentage increase for Catholic and Independent schools was three times that for public schools. Government funding per student for Independent schools increased by 60.7% and by 57% in Catholic schools compared to just 20.2% in public schools.

Commonwealth Government funding for Catholic schools increased by $3,429 per student and by $3,052 for Independent schools compared to only $1,148 for public schools. South Australian Government funding for public schools increased by $1,073 per student, by $836 per Catholic student and by $721 per student in Independent schools.

The increase in total income per student in private schools was double that of public schools. Total income per student in Catholic schools increased by $4,108 and by $4,297 in Independent schools compared to $2,038 in public schools.

Private schools have an additional resource advantage because they educate a much smaller proportion of socially disadvantaged students than do public schools. This means that a lower proportion of private school income is absorbed by disadvantaged students and more is available for less disadvantaged students.

Total income per student in SA Independent schools is 25% higher than for public schools.Yet, research by Save Our Schools shows that only 15% of Independent school students in SA are from low income families compared to 34% of public school students (2023 figures). Independent schools enrol only 11% of all low income students in SA while public schools account for 77% of these students.

Moreover, only 5% of Independent schools in SA are disadvantaged schools (defined as having over 50% of students from the lowest socio-educationally advantage quartile) compared to 28% of public schools. Independent schools account for only 3% of all disadvantaged schools in SA, while public schools account for 92%.

Total income per student in Catholic schools was 12% higher than in public schools in 2024. However, only 19% of Catholic school students were from low income families compared to 34% in public schools in 2023. Catholic schools enrol only 13% of all disadvantaged students in SA compared to 77% of these students by public schools. In addition, only 7% of Catholic schools are disadvantaged (over 50% of students from the lowest socio-educationally advantage quartile) compared to 28% of public schools. Catholic schools account for only 5% of all SA disadvantaged schools compared to 92% by public schools.

The Report on Government Services 2026 shows that 77% of students from low socio-educational families in SA, 84% of Indigenous students and 78% of remote and very remote area students are enrolled in public schools.

Clearly, government funding in SA is not being directed at the students and schools most in need. It is disgraceful that governments continue to give Independent schools a huge resource advantage over public schools when it is public schools that do the heavy lifting in overcoming socio-economic disadvantage to improve equity in education, increase work force skills and strengthen social cohesion.

Historical trends

The pattern of government funding, fees and other income and total income per student have varied between school sectors over the period of 2009 to 2024.

Government funding

There was no change in real government (Commonwealth and SA government) funding for public schools between 2009 and 2019 [Chart 3]. From 2019 to 2024, it increased by $2,093 per student.

Commonwealth Government funding for public schools fell between 2009 and 2012 from $1,747 to $1,578 per student [Chart A1 below). It then steadily increased to $2,976 in 2023 but fell to $2,895 in 2024. SA Government funding fell from $9,256 per student in 2009 to $8,758 in 2019, a decline of $498 per student. It increased by $1,571 per student between 2019 and 2024.

In contrast, government funding for private schools increased steadily over the whole period of 2009 to 2024,

Government funding for Catholic schools increased from $7,481 per student in 2009 to $11,746 in 2024 [Chart A2 below]. During COVID, government funding of Catholic schools was only a little below that of public schools – $11,951 per student compared to $12,037. The increase in funding since 2009 was almost entirely due to increased Commonwealth Government funding which increased from $5,810 per student to $9,239. In contrast to other states, individual SA Catholic schools received a large increase in Commonwealth Government funding in the COVID year of 2020 when funding increased by $2,235 per student.  

SA Government funding for Catholic schools increased by $836 per student from 2009 to 2024 with much of the increase occurring between 2017 and 2024.

Government funding for Independent schools increased from $6,217 per student in 2009 to $9,990 in 2024 [Chart A3 below].  Commonwealth Government funding increased from $4,817 per student in 2009 to $7,869 and SA Government funding increased from $1,400 per student to $2,121. Independent schools also received significant increase in Commonwealth funding during COVID of $741 per student, which was much less than for Catholic schools. The increase for Catholic schools was three times that for Independent schools.

Commonwealth financial assistance for 92 SA private schools during COVID in 2020 under the JobKeeper scheme amounted to $118 million, an average of about $1.3 million per school.

Government funding for Catholic schools as a proportion of funding for public schools increased from 68% in 2009 to 99% in 2020 and reduced to 89% in 2024. The Independent school proportion increased from 57% to 78% in 2020 and has fallen to 76% in 2024.

Fees, charges and other income

Adjusting for wage and price increases, income from fees, charges, donations, investments and other sources increased by $525 per student in Independent schools between 2009 and 2024 [Chart 4]. Income from these sources fell by $156 per student in Catholic schools and fell by $185 per student in public schools.

Over the period, there was a large fluctuation in income from fees and other private sources in Independent schools and a lesser one in Catholic schools. Income from these sources increased by more than wage and price increases in Independent schools between 2009 and 2017 and then declined to 2020 with little change since.

Total income

The combination of increasing government funding and income from fees and other private sources has enabled private schools to build a substantial resource advantage over public schools since 2009. In 2009, total income per student, adjusted for inflation, in Catholic schools was $386 less than in public schools. By 2011, Catholic schools had a slight in income advantage of over public schools which increased to $1,686 per student in 2024 [Chart 5].

Increased government funding and private income has magnified the resource advantage of Independent schools since 2009. In 2009, the total income per student in Independent schools was $1,082 higher than in public schools. By 2024, this had increased to $3,343. Total income per student was 124% of that of public schools. The resource advantage of Independent schools has declined slightly in recent years because of increased government funding for public schools.

Underfunding of public schools

Public schools remain vastly underfunded for the task they face in educating the large majority of low socio-economic status (SES), Indigenous, remote, very remote and high disability students. As noted above, public schools do the heavy lifting in education but are not funded to do the job.

In 2026, public schools in SA are funded at 90.5% of their Schooling Resource Standard (SRS), the third lowest in the country behind the Northern Territory and Victoria [Chart 6]. The total underfunding for the year is estimated at $380 million. Under the terms of the new bilateral funding agreements, public schools will remain under-funded until at least 2034, although the extent of the underfunding will gradually decline to about $120 million in 2034. By contrast, Catholic and Independent schools in SA are overfunded at 101% of their SRS as revealed in figures supplied to Senate Estimates and in the bilateral funding agreement.

Public schools will remain underfunded until at least 2034 because the new bilateral funding agreement between the Commonwealth and SA governments  allow the SA Government to continue to claim expenditures that are specifically excluded from how the SRS is calculated as part of its share of funding public schools. It can claim capital depreciation up to 4% of the SRS as part of its share of funding public schools but the percentage share allowed will be reduced annually by small amounts until it is eliminated in 2034.

The SA Government is also allowed to claim other non-SRS expenditure as part of its share of funding public schools. It can continue to claim expenditure on the South Australian Certificate of Education Board and the Education Standards Board as part of its share of funding public schools. It can also claim up to 1.8% of its share of funding public schools for what the agreement acknowledges are “non-standard inclusions” in the SRS. This claim includes expenditure on school transport for public school students up to 1.07% of its SRS share for public schools and up to 0.73% on expenditure on the mid-year intake in public schools.

These concessions ensure that public schools will still be underfunded in 2034 even though the 4% allowance will end in 2034.

The Commonwealth and the SA governments stand condemned for their refusal to fully fund public schools by 2034. It means that children starting school this year will not be fully funded by Year 8 and, possibly, will spend their whole school career underfunded if they remain in the public system. The failure to fully fund public schools maintains inequity in education, increases social segregation and restricts national prosperity and social cohesion.

The Commonwealth and SA governments should accelerate the transition to genuine full funding of all public schools. The funding agreements must be revised to give public schools better and fairer funding. The Commonwealth should accelerate the increase in its funding share of the SRS public schools to achieve 25% by 2029 and the SA Government should remove the existing 4% and other expenditure allowances by 2034.

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