Qld private schools: The eye-watering salaries principals and executives are earning

Private school principals and executive staff are earning salaries the envy of ministers with the remuneration packages of key management personnel at more than 100 Queensland schools revealed for the first time. SEARCH THE LIST

Regional private school executives are earning more than their Brisbane counterparts, with new data revealing pay packets exceeding $300,000 per person on average.

The remuneration packages for key management personnel at more than 100 Queensland schools can be revealed for the first time due to new annual reporting requirements.

Schools executives in Cairns, Townsville, Toowoomba, and Rockhampton are on average earning more than $300,000 each annually – beating most of the Brisbane private schools.

For the first time, the Australian Charities and Not-For-Profits Commission required schools to reveal the combined salaries of their key management personnel in their 2022 annual reports, which were submitted in the second half of 2023.

Most also disclosed how many key management personnel they have, and the majority also provided their 2021 executive pay packets as well for comparison, but this was optional.

Only total figures were disclosed, individual salary breakdowns were not required.

Key management personnel are people with authority and responsibility for planning, directing and controlling the activities of the school, directly or indirectly.

Generally, this includes the principal/headmaster, deputy principals, business managers, heads of curriculum, or other supervisors.

Brisbane Grammar School had the highest total key management personnel remuneration package with $3.01m, split between 10 executives. Picture: AAP Image/Josh Woning

Brisbane Grammar School had the highest total key management personnel remuneration package with $3.01m, but this was split between 10 executive employees, meaning an average pay packet per person of around $300,000.

St Hilda’s School on the Gold Coast, St Andrew’s Anglican College on the Sunshine Coast and Brisbane’s St Margaret’s Anglican Girls School rounded out the top four, all paying their key management personnel a combined salary of more than $2.5m in 2022.

St Hilda’s School on the Gold Coast. Picture: Richard Gosling

The highest average salary per individual was seen at Toowoomba Grammar School with $354,333 to each of its three key management personnel.

Close behind, Rockhampton Grammar School and Townsville Grammar School came out with an individual average of around $349,000 and $343,00 respectively.

Then came Brisbane’s Anglican Church Grammar School, which paid its seven key management personnel a combined total of $2.31m, averaging out to $330,000 each.

Toowoomba Grammar School, which had the highest average salary per individual. Picture: Dave Noonan

But not far behind was the likes of The Cathedral School of St Anne and St James in Townsville with $1.22m between four executives, equating to $306,526 each on average.

Peace Lutheran College in Cairns paid two executives $296,195 each on average, while St Luke’s Anglican School in Bundaberg averaged $261,000 to each of its five leaders.

The Cathedral School of St Anne and St James, Townsville.

Other notable top 20 entrants were the Sunshine Coast’s Pacific Lutheran College with $251,000 on average per executive, Canterbury College in Logan averaged $227,000, and Heights College in Rockhampton paying $220,000 on average to its two leaders.

Peace Lutheran College in Cairns paid two executives $296,195 each on average. Picture: Brian Cassey

The total remuneration figures disclosed can include a range of benefits – base salary, allowances, leave entitlements, provision of a work car, partial remission for school fees, fringe tax benefits, accrued long service leave, or superannuation contributions.

Most schools did not provide any notes with their figures.

But The Glennie School in Toowoomba did say that their key management personnel were restructured and reduced in 2022, hence why the remuneration figure was lower.

Trinity College at Gladstone also included a note that they reduced their key management personnel from five in 2021 to four in 2022, again explaining the drop in overall pay.