The costly shift from primary to secondary education

IF your child is about to start high school get ready — it’s about to get expensive. Here’s what you can expect to be paying for the shift from primary to secondary education.

Technology is a major cost for parents of secondary school students.

IT’S that time of year again. Year 6 students are planning graduation ceremonies, high schools are hosting orientation days and parents are wondering how the primary years went by so fast.

If 2019 is the year your child starts high school there is something you should know — it’s about to get expensive.

Parents may be shocked at the cost shift between primary and secondary education, especially at “free” public schools.

Australian Scholarship Group regularly publish estimated education costs for Australian schools.

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ASG’s 2018 report shows that, on average, estimated schooling costs for a public education in metropolitan Australia jumps from $3136 in primary years to $4628 for secondary.

Costs are even higher in Victoria’s metro areas with a jump from $3489 for a public primary education to $5170 for public secondary.

Uniform and booklist costs, as well as school fees all increase at high school.

Price hikes between primary and secondary are experienced across all school types. Average costs at Victorian faith-based schools jump from $6650 for a primary education to $13,476 for secondary and private education costs almost double from $15,918 to $29,098.

So why the jump?

ASG chief executive Tim Mitchell-Adams says some of the cost differences are easy to account for, such as higher school fees, uniform and booklist costs, but it’s unplanned costs that often trip parents up.

“I think the things that really catch people unaware is all the stuff that’s over and above,” Mr Mitchell-Adams says.

These include mounting extra-curricular costs, tutoring fees, higher travel costs, event, excursion and camps costs as well as technology and the high price of keeping kids connected, he says.

“The notion of free education is far from the truth,” he says.

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Australian Institute of Family Studies director Anne Hollonds says what’s new for families today is technology.

“It’s well known that kids cost more as they get older, but parents now have these technology costs — that’s completely new,” Ms Hollonds says.

Ms Hollonds says in the past decade, the amount parents pay to keep their kids — and themselves — connected has increased dramatically, along with housing, food and energy costs while wages have stayed the same.

Technology costs for schooling have been increasing drastically over the past decade.

“Parents manage by cutting back on living expenses — buying second-hand clothing, buying lower-grade food, cutting out family holidays,” Ms Hollonds says.

“Technology is absolutely not a luxury cost anymore, it’s a part of life now.

“They can’t get their assignments done in high school unless they have connectivity so it’s not an option not to have it.”

Ms Hollands says multiple pressures on families can leave some disadvantaged.

“The more layers of disadvantage you have got the tougher it can be for kids,” she says.

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Unity Life and Super executive general manager Adnan Glinac.

Australian Unity’s Education Savings Fund offers parents a way to save with tax benefits. Mr Glinac says it’s never too late to start saving.

“In the short-term they will need to make some sacrifices, but the mere fact of making a start … to have a plan to start growing the savings bucket, little by little that is the best way to get there,” Mr Glinac says.

“The aim should be to help absorb the costs, not necessarily pay for everything.”

Mr Glinac says asking grandparents, friends and relatives to contribute to the fund at birthdays or Christmas can help grow the fund.

“For example, instead of buying a $100 toy, spend $50 on the toy and put $50 into an education fund,” he says.

The Smith Family is one organisation working to improve educational outcomes for children in disadvantaged families.

The Smith Family Victorian general manager Anton Leschen says 1.1 million Australian children and young people are living below the poverty line. For disadvantaged families, rising education costs as children get older are a huge burden.

The Smith Family can help with education costs for disadvantaged families.

“Education is the first luxury to be lost when faced with financial and social disadvantage,” Mr Leschen says.

To ease the cost burden, some children choose cheaper subjects rather than the subjects they are passionate about, which later causes them to drop out of study because they are disengaged, he says.

The Smith Family sponsors disadvantaged families through its Learning for Life program to help ease the cost burden and keep kids in school.

Without The Smith Family’s support Kamilya Lovett says she would have been forced into debt to cover the education costs for her four children.

Her oldest child, Chenoa, 13, started high school this year and her son Blake, 12, will start year 7 in 2019.

“With primary school, I thought I was struggling then. So when it came to high school, I wasn’t really prepared,” Ms Lovett says.

“They don’t use textbooks these days, it’s all iPad, so that was an upfront cost of $500 right off the bat. You are looking at a lot of money just to get started.”

Ms Lovett says a payment plan for Chenoa’s high school cost the same as the amount she pays to the primary school for the other three children combined.

When it comes to high school costs, parents should expect the unexpected, says Australian

View Australian Unity’s Education Calculator to find out how much high school could cost you.

Find out more about sponsoring a child’s education through The Smith Family.