Melbourne Families Are Forking Out The Most Across The Country For Public Education

If you live in Melbourne, it’s going to cost more than $100,000 over 13 years to send your child to public school from 2024.

The Futurity Investment Group’s Education Index, released on Wednesday, found it would cost $108,879 to send one child to public school – 17 per cent above the national average of $92,710.

In comparison, it was most affordable to send a child to public school in regional and remote Tasmania, at $72,083 across 13 years.

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The index said in Melbourne, actual school fees made up only five per cent of the total cost of government education ($387 a year), while tuition ($1,431), electronic devices ($1,047), musical instruments ($828) and textbooks ($357) contribute heavily to overall costs.

Other fees considered in the overall cost included camps and excursions, transport, uniform, stationery among others.

Nationally, school fees contributed four per cent of the total education cost for a child commencing school in 2024, with 96 per cent spent on additional costs.

Futurity boss Sam Sondhi said families were being stretched by rising cost-of-living and interest rates.

“With less discretionary money to spend, it’s going to be a challenge for many families to pay for the total cost of education, which has jumped six per cent in the past year,” he said.

“It’s forecast school fees and a host of major school expenses including outside tuition, school camps, transport, uniforms, electronic devices and sports equipment will increase upwards of 14 per cent in the next five years, and by almost 30 per cent in the next decade.”

Meanwhile when it came to catholic education, it cost the most in Canberra at $208,871 and the most affordable in regional and remote Tasmania at $161,042.

It was most expensive to send a child to an independent school in Sydney at $377,993 and most affordable again in regional and remote Tasmania at $223,415.

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