AEU federal president, Correna Haythorpe said the data clearly shows the inequity that exists in school funding between the public and private sectors and reinforces the urgency of the current bilateral agreement negotiations between the Albanese Government and state and territory governments.

“ROGS has shown once again that the gap in funding … is increasing, with government spending in private schools outpacing government funding for public schools by 22 per cent over the last decade,” Haythorpe said in a statement.

“Resources delayed are resources denied.

“For too long, public schools have carried the burden of resource shortages, and yet public schools educate the vast majority of students with the greatest need.”

Association of Independent Schools of NSW Chief Executive Margery Evans disagrees, however, and says in contrast the latest school funding data shows that the government funding gap between government and non- government schools has widened even further in favour of government schools.

“Despite this, the Australian Education Union (AEU) has yet again misrepresented the data in an attempt to suggest that non-government schools receive more public funding their government school counterparts,” Evans said in a statement.

Nationally, Evans said, the ROGS data shows that government schools received an average of $24,857 per student – up from $23,548 in 2021/22, and in contrast non-government schools received an average of $14,561 per student – down from $14,678 in 2021/22.

“So the national funding gap has grown from $8,870 to $10,296 per student in favour of government schools,” she said.

Evans said the fact that the union does not mention dollar amounts in its media release is telling.

“The AEU likes to hide behind percentages over a 10-year timeframe, which are meaningless unless the underlying dollar amounts are known,” she said.

The report stated that nationally in 2022-23, government recurrent expenditure on school education was $85.9 billion, a 4.4 per cent real increase from 2021-22, with state and territory governments providing the majority of funding (68.5 per cent).

Government schools, the report said, accounted for $64.8 billion (75.4 per cent), with state and territory governments the major funding source ($54.4 billion, or 84 per cent of government schools’ funding).

Non‑government schools accounted for $21.2 billion (24.6 per cent), with the Federal Government being the major funding source ($16.7 billion, or 79 per cent of non‑government schools funding).

While the ROGS urged caution when comparing expenditure data for government and non‑government schools, the AEU said it shows that private schools have received greater growth in real government investment than public schools over the last decade, in both total and per student funding.

The union claimed the report found that:

  • Over the last decade from 2012-13, total per student funding to public schools has increased by 24.5 per cent at an average of 2.45 per cent per year.
  • Private school per student government funding has increased by 30.2 per cent over the last decade at an average of 3.0 per cent per year – 1.22 times the rate of the public school increase.
  • Combined State/Territory and Commonwealth government funding to private schools has grown 22 per cent faster than it has for public schools.

Haythorpe said all governments have a fundamental responsibility to address the growing disparity in government funding.

“There must be bi-partisan support for full funding of public schools. We call on Leader of the Opposition, Peter Dutton to declare the Coalition’s position and commit to support for all public schools to be fully funded at 100 per cent of the Schooling Resource Standard (SRS) by delivering a minimum 25 per cent from the Commonwealth,” Haythorpe said.

Meanwhile, The Greens have said they will invest $10 million over four years to develop a National Inclusive Education Plan which will chart a pathway to abolishing segregated schooling and ensure that every school is a welcoming and supportive environment for all kids, regardless of need.

Greens disability spokesperson Senator Jordon Steele-John says, “a national inclusive education transition plan must be co-designed, child-centred, and include milestones, key performance indicators, and monitoring and accountability”.  

The announcement comes as more and more families experience school refusal/'school can’t', and in the wake of the Disability Royal Commission report which recommended phasing out separate schools for students with disabilities.

Greens primary and secondary education spokesperson Senator Penny Allman-Payne said having previously been a government school teacher for three decades, she has seen how the nation’s “under-resourced education system” increasingly favours testing and surveillance over kids’ needs, and “has become less inclusive”.

“Inadequate support for students with disabilities and additional needs forces many families to look for alternatives,” Allman-Payne said.

“For parents and carers left with no choice but to homeschool children who simply cannot attend school, this has a massive impact on their finances and their careers, while their kids miss out on critical social and developmental experiences.”

This announcement builds on the Greens earlier election commitments to deliver 100 per cent Schooling Resource Standard funding to every public school by July 2025, create a Commonwealth infrastructure fund for public schools, abolish school fees, and providide families with annual $800 payments for every child that attends a government school.

The National Inclusive Education Plan, Allman-Payne said, will be co-designed by disabled people and advocacy groups, families, teachers and their unions, and education experts.

“Every young person in the country, regardless of their needs, deserves to attend a fully resourced and truly free public school in which they feel safe, welcome and supported,” she said.

“But currently, inclusivity in schools is managed on an ad hoc and individual basis. We need an overarching national plan to ensure that no child is excluded from school.” 

Greens disability spokesperson Senator Jordon Steele-John agreed, arguing the current education system is not working for so many disabled people.

“Kids don’t feel able to go to school,  classrooms are physically inaccessible, and educators aren’t given the resourcing they need, Steele-John said.

“An end to the cycle of segregation is possible, and making our education system accessible will go a long way to achieving an inclusive society.”

Despite the lack of national resourcing and leadership, many schools across Australia are leading the way in best-practice inclusive teaching models, the senator said.

“We need governments to take a greater role in supporting and funding best-practice inclusion of all students.

“Educators must be given the resources, training and ongoing professional development they need to make the transition to inclusive education a success.”