The NSW Teachers Federation joins the Australian Education Union’s call for school funding to be allocated to address educational inequality. The renewed call comes in response to Productivity Commission data released today that shows government funding for private schools growing at a 60 per cent higher rate than funding for public schools.
“Today’s report on Government spending shows the first four years of needs-based funding was working. Under the previous Labor Government, funding inequity was starting to improve,” Australian Education Union Federal President Correna Haythorpe said in a media release earlier today.
She said schools funding was now set to revert back to the long-term trend of chronically underfunded public schools.
Between 2006-07 and 2015-16, government funding to public schools increased at an average rate of 1.5 per cent per year. In the same period, government spending on private schools increased 2.4 per cent.*
NSW Teachers Federation President Maurie Mulheron also highlighted the significant decrease in funding under the new funding model.
“By tearing up the NERA agreement between the Commonwealth and NSW governments, Turnbull has cut funding to NSW public schools by $856 million just in 2018 and 2019,” Mr Mulheron said. “NSW public schools have shown significant improvements in student outcomes with first four years of Gonski needs-based funding, especially in addressing the specific needs of students facing educational disadvantage.
“These figures today confirm that the Government’s new model not only abandons the principles of needs-based funding but also entrenches inequity of funding in Australian education, providing more to the already advantaged, while cutting funding for those most in need.”
Read the original AEU media release here.
*https://www.pc.gov.au/research/ongoing/report-on-government-services [figure 4.7 and 4.8. p4.17