NSW parents fork out hefty fees for spots at most prestigious schools

Parents are forking out more than $1000 for non-refundable application fees to secure a spot for their newborns at Sydney’s most competitive elite schools, as waitlists blow out beyond 2028.

Some families are forking out more than $1000 in non-refundable application fees for their newborns at Sydney’s most elite private schools. File picture: Getty

Parents are forking out more than $1000 in non-refundable application fees to secure a spot for their newborns at Sydney’s most elite schools, as waitlists blow out beyond 2028.

Families and educators have told The Daily Telegraph that competition has become “tougher than ever” to enrol in the state’s most exclusive private or Catholic schools.

One mother, who has a nine-month-old boy and lives in Cammeray in Sydney’s lower north shore, said she had already paid for school application fees at three leading high-fee colleges.

“It’s an extremely stressful process,” she said. “You are now thinking about enrolling your child before they’re born.”

“I paid $400 for an application fee for Shore and at least $700 in other school application fees. It’s a nervous waiting game but my husband and I thought it was better to be organised and have a few options for him.”

Parents are racing to get their children on elite school waiting lists as soon as they have a birth certificate. File picture: iStock

Shore, one of the state’s most competitive schools for enrolment, says on its website that enrolment application offers are prioritised from the waitlist, which is held in order of the age of the child on the day of application.

“In the middle of the year after your child’s birth our Admissions Team issues the initial round of offers into each intake year; kindergarten, year 5 and year 7,” the school said. “These are known as the ‘Baby Offers’.”

The school, which charges almost $20,000 in annual fees for pupils in its early learning centre, also has an additional enrolment application fee of $1500, which is payable upon acceptance of an offer into the school.

Sydney Church of England Grammar School (known more colloquially as Shore) is one the state’s most in-demand schools.

Northern Beaches Christian School principal Tim Watson said the K-12 coeducational school had a growing waiting list and was accepting applications for 2028 and beyond.

Mr Watson said some parents of newborns were applying to secure a spot at the school.

“The earlier parents get in the better … if you leave it longer then you’ll find yourself down a wait list for scarce places,” Mr Watson said.

The principal of the Terrey Hills’ school said it was important for parents to think about what college best suited their child’s needs when undergoing the application process.

Northern Beaches Christian School principal Tim Watson said his school had a growing waitlist.

Another mother, from Leichhardt, said she paid a $400 application fee for her daughter at Presbyterian Ladies’ College (PLC) in Croydon.

“We were encouraged to apply as soon as we had my daughter’s birth certificate,” she said.

“It’s tougher than ever to get a place in schools such as PLC and others in Sydney.”

Public school enrolments have declined across the state, with recent ABS school enrolment data showing an additional 49,000 students in NSW enrolled in private schools compared to a decade ago.

Catholic schools added an extra 16,000 students over the same period.

Association of Independent Schools of NSW chief executive Margery Evans said some independent schools had been forced to turn away more than 100 applicants each year because, unlike government schools, they were not allowed to exceed the enrolment limit set by their local council.

“Since 2000, almost two-thirds of all the enrolment growth in NSW schools has been in independent schools, mostly in new and expanding schools in outer suburban Sydney,” she said.

Catholic Schools NSW chief executive Dallas McInerney said parents were having conversations about their child’s future much earlier.

“It’s quite common that some families will have an application into three schools to keep their options open if they are knocked back from one or two of them,” Mr McInerney said.

“Our schools in the growth corridors in the northwest and southwest of Sydney are in strong demand.”

NSW Parents’ Council president Rose Cantali said she was aware of several “very stressed parents” who had applied for independent schools in recent months.

“There’s been a lot of support groups of WhatsApp and social media pages where parents are sharing their experiences and asking parents for advice on the enrolment process into private schools,” she said.

Originally published as NSW parents fork out hefty fees for spots at most prestigious schools