One in 10 private school parents spend more than half their take-home pay on their children's education, placing significant burdens on their family budgets, national research commissioned by BankWest has found.
And more than half of Australian parents who send their children to private schools say the cost of education was a financial strain on the family, dispelling the myth that private education is only for the well off.
According to the research, around 53 per cent of private school parents and 47 per cent of Catholic school parents found paying for their children's education was financially tough.
Almost 34 per cent of private school parents allocate more than 15 per cent of their take-home pay to their children's education. An incredible 11.7 per cent of these parents reserve up to half of their take-home pay for fees, while 1.3 per cent dedicate between 50 to 75 per cent of their salary.
According to the research, the average cost of tuition fees for sending a child to private school is $14,201 per year, which is double that of Catholic schools. On average, private school parents spend an additional $2300 per year on uniforms, extra-curricular activities, textbooks and school trips compared to $1600 for Catholic school parents. Public school parents spend an annual total of $1200 for costs associated with school.
The standard of education, discipline, better academic record and resources were the foremost reasons for choosing a private school. Other reasons given for sending children to private school included, more focus on social values, networking opportunities for their children when entering the workforce, religious education and social opportunities for the parents themselves.
As might be expected, parents who attended a public school were more likely to send their children to public schools and conversely, those who attended private schools were more likely to follow on the family tradition.
Parents who attended Catholic schools were unlikely to send their children to private school, and vice versa. In fact, parents who attended private school (and don't continue with family tradition) were more likely to send their children to public schools rather than a Catholic school.
The study also confirmed the perception that older parents were more likely to send the children to private schools as they could better afford it.
The average age of private school parents was 44.6 years, Catholic schools 42.3 years compared to public school on 41.4 years.
The main source of paying for education was from salary, with more than 80 per cent of all Australians relying on their employment for their children's future. Only 6.5 per cent of private school parents saved for tuition fees, with 9.3 per cent of Catholic school parents and 7.2 per cent of public school parents.
BankWest's Head of Retail Deposits Paul Vivian said it was not surprising that older parents were more likely to send their children to private school given they had probably established their careers and had paid more off the family home.
"However, what is surprising is the fact that a very small percentage of families saved for their children's education," he said. "Given the financial strain of paying for schooling, it is baffling that more people don't plan ahead and establish a savings plan."
Mr Vivian said BankWest's Regular Saver Account, which offers a market-leading eight per cent p.a. interest rate when conditions are met, is an excellent product for families wanting to grow their savings quickly.
"This is a fantastic product for people looking for a faster way to save money for their children's education," he said. "Establishing a regular savings pattern now, even before children start school, can have major effects on a family's lifestyle in years to come."
Regular Saver Product features:
* Market leading rate of 8 per cent p.a. variable
* To receive the 8 per cent interest rate customers must: *make a deposit every month of minimum $50, maximum $500;
*make no withdrawals during the month; *the account must be linked to another BankWest account.
* Withdrawals and access to funds are permitted, however in any month a withdrawal is made there will be no interest paid
* Missed payments and early closure will result in no interest being paid for that month
* Annual sweep of balance to linked BankWest account
