By Lucy Carroll
Two of Sydney’s most prestigious private schools will phase out co-education in their junior campuses, bucking the trend of independent schools shifting to having girls and boys taught together.
Eastern suburbs school Kincoppal-Rose Bay, which is co-ed in primary and a single-sex girls’ school from year 7, told parents last week it will stop accepting boys in its junior school.
In a letter to families, principal Erica Thomas said the school had for years “struggled to secure significant numbers of boys” at its primary campus, known as Barat-Burn, despite offering kindergarten scholarships.
Kincoppal-Rose Bay told parents last week it will phase out co-education in its junior school, Barat-Burn.Credit: Louie Douvis
Kincoppal, an independent Catholic school, first enrolled boys in its junior school in 1914. Thomas said the final intake of boys entering kindergarten will be in 2028.
Private boys’ school Shore has also confirmed it will no longer enrol girls at its preparatory kindergarten-to-year 2 Northbridge campus from next year. Shore’s prep school has been co-ed since 2003.
The decisions by the two high-fee schools come amid a rush of single-sex private and Catholic schools switching to co-ed, with all-boys institutions Newington and Cranbrook preparing to admit girls from 2026.
Shore principal John Collier says the school will no longer accept girls’ enrolments at the Northbridge kindergarten-to-year 2 campus after years of declining demand. Credit: Wolter Peeters
Shore headmaster John Collier said parents are increasingly anxious to enrol their children in a kindergarten-to-year 12 school where they do not need to switch after primary years.
Kincoppal and Shore are among a few private schools to offer co-ed in primary and single-sex education in high school. The King’s School runs a co-ed junior campus and boarding school at Moss Vale.
“What we’ve seen over many years is the gradual decline [in girls’ enrolments],” Collier said. “So the market has decided, and parents of girls have decided, that this is not a viable option for them. Essentially, we are following the lead of parents, which has made the whole thing inevitable, and council have recognised that.”
Collier said the school has fewer than 10 girls enrolled in years 1 and 2 this year. “Parents want a long-term proposition for their daughters, and many are opting for high-quality girls’ schools in this area.”
He said a major concern was having enough girls to have strong social and friendship groups, and that girls’ enrolments had steadily declined over the past decade.
In 2018, the school announced it would stop offering co-ed at its kindergarten-to-year 2 campus, but backlash from parents meant the decision was reversed. From year 3, Shore is an all-boys school.
“From years 3 to 12, there is absolutely no demand for co-education,” Collier said.
A Shore spokesperson said the kindergarten-to-year 2 classes will transition to “an all-boys structure” from next year, and the early learning centre will remain co-educational. They said the decision was well-received among parents.
Kincoppal-Rose Bay will phase out co-ed in its junior school.Credit: Louie Douvis
At Kincoppal, the school said its board’s decision to phase out co-education in primary came after “extensive consultation, research and careful consideration”.
The final intake of boys entering kindergarten will be in 2028, with the last co-ed year to graduate in 2034.
“We are fully committed to the 38 boys who are currently enrolled in kindergarten to year 6, as well as all those who are enrolled to commence in future years,” Thomas said in her letter to parents.
“We have made considerable efforts to increase the number of boy enrolments by offering the strongest calibre of teachers, refining our holistic education, introducing scholarships to attract boy enrolments and endeavouring to build year 7 pathways with a range of schools.
“More recently, increased competition from other schools and the removal of year 7 pathways have contributed to low enrolments of boys and a poor outlook for the enrolment of boys for the foreseeable future.
“To secure a high school place in many independent schools, boys are often required to take a place in primary.”
Thomas said the school first enrolled boys in 1914 and male enrolments ranged from less than 10 per cent to 30 per cent during its history. The school now has 280 students in its junior school.
Both schools have struggled to reach gender balance in the junior schools, and in 2019, Kincoppal announced it would offer 30 scholarships for children entering kindergarten and years 1, 2 and 3 in an attempt to increase male participation.
In recent years, both schools have applied via the state government’s planning portal to increase student numbers. Shore has approval to increase capacity by 450 students as part of campus upgrade plans, but a school spokesperson said its “current ambition is to add only another 26 students, between kindergarten to year 12”.
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