This submission sets out a set of practical, evidence-based measures that will strengthen equity, empower families, and support sustainable sector growth.
Independent schools are an essential part of Australia’s diverse educational landscape. The families who enrol their children in Independent schools seek stability, security and educational options that align with their values. For many parents, the choice of school is one of the most important decisions they make for their children. Independent schools provide families the opportunity to choose a learning environment that meets their specific needs and aspirations.
To ensure their needs and aspirations are met, ISA makes the following recommendations:
- Maintaining and extending existing federal funding schemes, for example the Choice and Affordability Fund, for all students to keep school fees affordable for families and preserve their ability to choose, as cost of living pressures continue to impact
- Ensuring genuine open and comprehensive consultation for the 2027 Schooling Resource Standard (SRS) review
- Introducing a Disadvantaged Student Safety Net to support highly vulnerable students and ensure they receive a guaranteed minimum level of support through the current funding model
- Providing secure and stable funding for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander boarding students and boarding facilities that addresses their unique additional needs
- Ensuring that Independent schools have the resources they need to accommodate growth in student numbers sustainably by increasing the Capital Grants Program funding pool
- Undertaking further data collection and analysis to accurately determine the costs of regional and remote education, consider an increase in regional loadings within the funding model, and providing additional capital funding to support regional and remote schools, and
- Providing funding for a national, sector‑blind AI pilot to support whole‑school approaches to embedding AI in teaching and learning.