No need for school fee hikes: Peter Garrett

THE federal government has rejected warnings by private schools they will have to raise fees if the funding system is overhauled.

Private school fees rise

THE federal government has rejected warnings by private schools they will have to raise fees in response to a planned overhaul of the funding system.

School Education Minister Peter Garrett dismissed the claim after some private schools advised parents that fees will have to rise in 2014 to cover an expected fall in government funding.

"The government has yet to consider the recommendations of the school funding review, let alone provide a response and outline any possible new funding models," he told The Australian.

"But we have said time and again that no school will lose a dollar of funding per student as a result of any changes, and that commitment has not changed."

The review, chaired by businessman David Gonski, handed its final report to Mr Garrett on Tuesday, and the government is expected to release the report and its response after school starts next year.

Any changes to private school funding will not occur until 2014, and the review is believed to have looked at transitional arrangements for schools whose funding levels may change.

But schools such as Loreto Kirribilli in Sydney, which will charge $13,095 for Year 12 next year, are already warning parents to expect higher fees.

"It is anticipated that following the federal government review, there will be a reduction in funding to independent schools," it reads on the school website.

"Compensation by way of fee increases is expected from 2014."

One of the panel members of the Gonski review, Kathryn Greiner, is a member of the Loreto school council.

Even though the level of government funding private schools receive is guaranteed until the end of 2013, it has not stopped them raising their fees next year by an average 5 per cent to 6 per cent. The rate of fee increases is almost twice that of private schools' costs. The labour price index increased 3.9 per cent last year. About 70-80 per cent of a school's costs are teachers' wages.

During the past 10 years private school fees have risen an average of 100 per cent, which is double the rise in their costs, with the labour price index rising 50 per cent since 2001.

A survey of some of the nation's most expensive private schools by public education lobby group Save Our Schools reveals West Australian parents face the biggest increases, about 7 per cent on average.

The largest individual increase on record is at MLC in Melbourne, which is raising its Year 12 fees by 9.5 per cent to $23,490 next year.

Geelong Grammar retains its crown as the nation's most expensive school, raising fees by about 5.5 per cent to $30,820 with Sydney schools SCEGGS Darlinghurst and The King's School not far behind at $27,405 and $26,091 respectively.

School fees in Adelaide have passed $20,000 for the first time, with Prince Alfred College charging $20,550 for Year 12 next year, a 6 per cent increase, while in Brisbane fees have reached $18,000, with Brisbane Girls Grammar charging $18,680: a 6.7 per cent increase.

SOS convener Trevor Cobbold, a former Productivity Commissioner economist, said the fact fee increases outstripped that of costs was further evidence of the need for a new funding system.

Mr Cobbold said it also demonstrated the failure of the existing funding model, which was introduced by the Howard government in 2001. "The SES funding model has failed to reduce fees as promised by the Howard government when the scheme was introduced," he said.