How much Gold Coast schools are spending on each student and their net income

Popular public schools are spending around $15,000 on each student, while the Gold Coast’s top private schools are spending upwards of $30,000. Find out how your school fares.

Analysis by the Bulletin has revealed Gold Coast schools are spending an average of almost $15,000 per pupil to educate children.

But elite private school St Hilda’s in Southport is spending about twice as much per pupil.

MySchool figures show St Hilda’s, which caters for girls from prep to year 12, spent an average of $30,084 per student in 2020.

The average across all Gold Coast schools at both primary and high school level was $14,979.

In contrast, $11,555 per pupil was spent at the popular Picnic Creek State School in Pimpama, while Pacific Pines State High School spent an average of $13,200 each to educate its 1836 students.

St Hilda's school in Southport.

The high spend at St Hilda’s, a school which has built a storeyed reputation since its 1912 founding, was made possible by more than $17 million collected from fees, charges and parent contributions. Fees at the school range from $13,005 at prep level to $21,317 for Years 10-12.

The school also pulled in more than $14 million from the Federal government and $2.6 million from the state.

After deductions for debt servicing and money allocated to capital projects it left the school with a net income of $33.3 million.

High per pupil amounts were also spent at Mudgeeraba’s Somerset College ($25,382), The Southport School ($23,314) and Aquinas College in Ashmore ($21,840).

Many state schools were not far behind. Queensland Academy for Health Sciences in Southport spent $21,839 per pupil, Coomera State School $20,852 and Elanora State High School $18,105.

Palm Beach-Currumbin State High School, which is renowned as a “destination school” thanks to its academic, sport and arts achievements, had an income of almost $36.2 million.

The bulk of PBC’s funding came from the state, which provided more than $25 million of the total, allowing it to spend $13,943 per pupil.

A spokesperson for the Department of Education told the Bulletin it was part of a record $671 million spent on 69 Gold Coast state schools that year.

“The state portion of operating funding for these schools totalled over $671 million. The state also provided these schools with capital funding of more than $99 million,” the spokesperson said.

Data from the Report on Government Services (RoGS) shows real federal/state spending in Queensland’s state schools increased by 11 per cent from an average of $17,963 per student in 2015–16 to $19,932 in 2019–20.

Education Minister Grace Grace. NewsWire / Sarah Marshall

The Department of Education spokesperson said a substantial amount had also been spent to build new schools and refurbishing others.

“Since 2015, the Queensland Government has invested over half a billion in state school

facilities on the Gold Coast, including five new schools, numerous new learning centres and

additional classrooms and other capital works investment to improve and enhance

educational facilities,” they said.

“The 2022-23 State Budget included $199 million for Gold Coast schools, including over $12 million for specialist performing arts spaces at Keebra Park State High School and more than $3 million to deliver four science labs at Varsity College.

“Works underway also include a three-storey learning centre and refurbishment of existing spaces at Pacific Pines State High School, a new two-storey learning centre at Palm Beach

State School, and a new multi-purpose hall at Palm Beach-Currumbin State High School.”

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Originally published as How much Gold Coast schools are spending on each student and their net income