Catholic schools reignite funds war

Fresh from a bruising but ultimately successful battle, Catholic schools are threatening to wage war on a new front.

National Catholic Education Commission executive director Jacin­ta Collins. Picture: Gary Ramage

Catholic schools are threatening to reignite the funding wars, appealing to the federal government for a boost in capital grants to help provide for an expected surge in enrolments in the coming decade.

Fresh from a bruising but ­ultimately successful battle that secured a $4.1 billion increase to recurrent funding, the National Catholic Education Commission has turned lobbying efforts to the growing need for capital to refurbish and expand existing schools and establish new ones.

In Victoria alone, the Catholic system estimates it will have to spend $2.2bn to meet capital needs between now and 2022, while in fast-growing western Sydney that figure is about $1bn over 10 years.

In Western Australia, Catholic schools’ capital works budget for this year and next has been oversubscribed by $35 million already.

Schools, through building levies and other fundraising, currently meet about 90 per cent of those costs. Last year, the Catholic sector spent $1.13bn on existing schools, with the federal government providing $150.9m in grants that were shared with independent schools.

In its pre-budget submission to the government, the NCEC cites enrolment projections across the nation that will put further pressure on school budgets. It singles out advice from the NSW Education Department claiming 7200 new classrooms will be needed to meet demand in the state by 2031.

“Given the increased need for schools, parents and families at Catholic schools will be placed under significant pressure to increase their contributions to the increasing cost of capital works and self-funded new school infrastructure,” the submission says. “This pressure will be particularly felt in low socio-economic areas.

“Students at Catholic schools and their parents and families are entitled to support.

“The NCEC proposes that in this federal budget, the Australian government not only increase the pool of funds available under the act for capital but also review the capital funding program.”

NCEC executive director Jacin­ta Collins said the important issue of the capital funding requirements of schools had been sidelined in the long-running debate on recurrent funding.

Ms Collins, a former Labor senator, said the push by various governments to extend subsidised preschool funding to three-year-olds would require the support of the non-government sector. She said Catholic schools were well-placed to expand to also include a preschool year level.

“We desire to make schools more accessible and more appropriate for families, and that includes extending into early childhood education,” she said.

“But our capacity to do this … is limited by the degree of support we receive from government.”

The pre-budget appeal for more commonwealth support follows the Catholic sector’s recent campaign, largely driven by its former Victorian head Stephen Elder, for additional recurrent funding to support the ongoing operating ­expenses of schools but not capital.

Both the Victorian and NSW governments recently acknowledged the pressures facing the non-government sector, announcing up to $900m combined in extra capital grants.

NSW Teachers Federation president Maurie Mulheron said it was the public school system that was growing fastest, with enrolments up 6 per cent in the past five years, and it was in need of ­additional funds.