Greens MLC Robert Simms wants SA private schools to report more detail on how they spend taxpayer money

New transparency laws could force elite private schools to reveal what they spend public funds on – just like a public school.

Private schools would be forced to reveal how often they suspend students, how many serious incidents occur on school grounds and how many complaints they receive, under proposed new laws.

The Advertiser can reveal Greens MLC Robert Simms will put legislation to parliament that would also require private schools to publish, in their annual reports, more detail about how they spend taxpayer funding.

The proposed laws would apply to any non-government school offering education between Reception and Year 12, but not preschools, kindergartens or childcare centres.

SA Greens MLC Robert Simms wants private schools to make more information about their spending and student behaviour public. NCA NewsWire / David Mariuz

Association of Independent Schools of South Australia (AISSA) chief executive Anne Dunstan. Picture: Supplied

Mr Simms said they would impose a similar level of public reporting requirements as faced by public schools, including consistent reporting on:

SERIOUS incidents involving students, police or ambulance officers on school grounds.

SUSPENSIONS and exclusions of students.

ATTENDANCE rates for each year level, and the whole school.

STAFF make-up and their qualifications.

AUDITED financial statements which show “expenditure on all purposes”.

“South Australian taxpayers have a right to this information and parents will no doubt welcome this transparency so that they can make informed choices about their child’s education,” Mr Simms said.

Public schools are required to report extensive data to the Education Department, which is either published on government websites or subject to Freedom of Information requests.

For example data released last year revealed the number of students suspended or excluded from each government school over the past decade.

However, that information did not paint the full picture of suspensions statewide as independent and Catholic schools are not required to publicly disclose the same information.

Association of Independent Schools of SA (AISSA) chief executive Anne Dunstan said her organisation “does not support increased levels and unnecessary duplication of compliance and reporting”.

Ms Dunstan said independent schools were already required by law to publish an annual school performance report on their website which covered student attendance, national testing results, parent, student and teacher satisfaction and Year 12 student outcomes.

Schools were also required to detail their income, by funding source, she said.

Catholic Education SA executive director Neil McGoran. Picture: Supplied

However, Mr Simms emphasised that his legislation would require more transparency around what is done with that income.

“Private schools in SA are receiving significant public funds and they should have a responsibility to report on how that money is being spent,” he said.

Catholic Education SA executive director Neil McGoran said the federal government’s My School website already listed “a significant amount of data including financial and enrolment data for every government and non-government school in the country”.

This included its number of teaching staff, student demographics and performance in national literacy and numeracy testing.

Non-government schools provide summaries of their income, expenses, assets and liabilities to the Australian Charities and Not-for-profits Commission (ACNC), which are published online.

Dr McGoran said Catholic schools would “welcome a conversation with Mr Simms to discuss the high levels of transparency that currently exist … and to understand what additional information could be provided, and for what purpose”.

Education Minister Blair Boyer said the government would consider Mr Simms’ draft Bill once it was put to parliament.