Search the list: Elite schools’ non-refundable waiting fees

Elite Queensland private schools are pocketing hundreds of thousands of dollars a year charging parents eye-watering fees just to put children on waiting lists with no guarantee of success.

Brisbane Grammar School, Queensland’s most expensive

Elite Queensland private schools are pocketing hundreds of thousands of dollars a year charging parents eye-watering fees just to put children on waiting lists with no guarantee of success.

Parents are hedging their bets by forking out for application fees ranging from $150 to $550 to ensure places in multiple schools to give them choice.

To get on the waiting list for the state’s most expensive school, Brisbane Grammar, parents must pay a non-refundable $550 application fee to be a chance of securing a place.

According to its latest annual report, the Spring Hill-based school had more than 2000 applications across 2021 and 2022, and made about $877,000 in “enrolment fees”.

The school, which is renowned for its academic and c-ocurricular programs, also earned more than $1.8m from its non-refundable confirmation fees across both years.

BGS parents are charged $2875 to confirm their child’s spot, payable three years before the child enters the school.

About 150 new students start at BGS in Year 5 each year and another 150 for Year 7.

Brisbane Grammar School declined to comment on the number of unsuccessful applications and on how it spends the money from its fees.

GPS rival Anglican Church Grammar School charges a non-refundable $530 application fee and a $1875 enrolment confirmation fee. The school also declined to comment on how it spent its fees.

Similarly, Toowoomba Grammar School netted more than $670,000 in enrolment and application fees in 2021 and 2022, while Brisbane Girls Grammar School bagged about $816,000 in enrolment fees.

Queensland Independent Schools Parents Network executive officer Amanda Watt said many parents were comfortable in paying applications for multiple schools to ensure their child had several options for a private education.

St Margaret's Anglican Girls School, Ascot

“Parents like to have lots of options and weigh them up as they know their child more and decide which school is best for them,” Ms Watt said.

“They put them down for multiple schools and make decisions later. This gives them comfort knowing they’re placed at schools A, B and C.”

Ms Watt said most private schools were transparent in communicating the costs to parents.

“Schools are pretty up front that the fees are non-refundable,” she said.

“And I think most parents understand that there are pretty significant administration costs that schools have in managing enrolments, which can fluctuate a lot.”

Ms Watt urged any parents feeling the pinch of the current financial times to contact the school to discuss options.

Stuartholme School

It follows new research showing nearly one in three grandparents are financial contributing towards their grandchild’s education.

New research conducted by McCrindle revealed about 29 per cent of grandparents are contributing about $2000 a year per grandchild.

McCrindle social researcher Ashley Fell said the rise in grandparents being enlisted for financial aid showed the challenge that families were being confronted with in the cost-of-living crisis.

“Rising education costs are placing considerable financial strain on grandparents, impacting their ability to support their grandchildren’s educational aspirations,” Ms Fell said.

“This highlights broader societal challenges around access to quality education and emphasises the need for addressing these financial barriers.”