NSW public school enrolments decline again as private schools in ‘exploding’ suburbs swallow up students
New figures have revealed a growing problem for NSW public schools, ringing alarm bells over the future funding of schools.
NSW
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Public school enrolments in NSW have declined for a fourth consecutive year as private schools continue to swallow up a larger share of students, ringing alarm bells for their ongoing funding.
Data from the Australian Bureau of Statistics released on Monday revealed the NSW government school sector lost more than 5,500 students between 2023 and 2024.
The 0.78 per cent decline could equate to a loss of nearly $87 million in per-student funding, based on Schooling Resource Standard base amounts of $13,977 for primary students and $17,565 for secondary students in 2025.
Non-Catholic Independent schools remain the fastest growing sector, increasing their proportion of NSW students from 13.03 per cent to 16.18 per cent over the past ten years.
Systemic and independent Catholic schools enrolled 21.65 per cent of NSW schoolchildren as of last year, exceeding 200,000 students in total for the first time in a decade.
An internal report from Catholic Schools NSW shows non-diocesan schools, sponsored instead by religious institutes and “Ministerial Public Juridic Person School Authorities” grew slightly faster than diocesan schools, with a 1.9 per cent increase in enrolments.
Enrolment growth for both the Catholic and Independent school sectors has been fastest in Sydney’s outer southwest and northwest suburbs, where public school infrastructure has lagged, including Austral, Gables, Edmondson Park and Oakhurst.
Australian Christian College in Marsden Park has been growing by around 20 per cent every year since 2020 and now has over 2100 students, which principal Brendan Corr attributed to massive population growth in the area.
“The suburbs around us are exploding, there is a huge building boom in the northwest growth corridor of Sydney,” Mr Corr said.
“There’s two factors here; the first being there just aren’t enough government school options – the infrastructure has lagged the housing development.
“But I think secondly, the families that are moving into this district are looking for the values- based education that independent schools, particularly faith-based schools, are committed to providing.”
Despite the drop in enrolments, the Minns government increased its budget for public schools in the 2024-25 financial year, with Education Minister Prue Car describing her government’s “commitment to public education” as “second to none”.
“The NSW Government’s most recent budget delivered a record $11.8 billion for public schools, a $900 million increase on the previous year,” she said.
“We have opened 18 new and upgraded schools on Day 1, Term 1 in the areas they are needed most, and we have invested in our teaching workforce, a decision that has resulted in a 40 per cent decrease in teacher vacancies in two years.”
Association of Independent Schools NSW (AISNSW) Chief Executive Margery Evans said the latest ABS figures show her sector has enrolled nearly two-thirds of all new students since the year 2000.
“This is remarkable, especially as Independent schools make up just 16 per cent of all NSW schools,” she said.
“The sector’s growth may well have been even higher, were it not for enrolment caps imposed on many Independent schools who have lengthy waiting lists. Demand for places continues to exceed supply.”
Originally published as NSW public school enrolments decline again as private schools in ‘exploding’ suburbs swallow up students
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