NSW Schools Info

[Riekie]

There are basically 4 options for schooling in NSW:

Public

Private

Catholic

Home Schooling

The school year runs from end of January to middle December. The terms for this year for NSW are:

31 Jan - 13 April

1 May - 30 June

17 July - 29 Sept

16 Oct - 21 Dec

School hours are mostly from 9 to 3 (give & take 30 minutes). They have a short recess in the morning and a longer (usually 40 Min's) lunch break at lunchtime. Getting used to pack half a schoolbag of food to last the whole day is a bit tricky and I used to overdo it in the beginning. All schools have canteens where you can buy hot lunches and lots of other stuff, so if you're not into packing lunch, you can give your child lunch money.

They do wear a school uniform and in primary school, a hat (which forms part of the uniform) is compulsory in all weather. They have a "no hat no play" policy which means that if your child does not have a hat, they'll have to spend recess & lunch in a shaded, supervised area.

The website for the NSW Education Department : www.schools.nsw.edu.au There's a lot of info on this site!

If you are PR, you don't pay for public schools (just a small voluntary contribution to the P&C every term) P&C is the governing body of the school and all parents are invited and allowed to attend their meetings and be involved in the decision making process for the school. If you are not PR, you have to pay for your child to attend a public school. The current amount is $4500 p.a. You must pay it upfront unless you can prove that you don't have the financial means, in which case you can apply to pay it monthly.

Private Schools vary between $1800 and as much as $20 000 p.a.

Catholic schools are not as expensive as private schools and you can claim some of that contribution back.

I have no knowledge on how home schooling in NSW work. Maybe someone else can come in here?

If you enrol your child in a public school, you receive an annual "back-to-school" allowance of $50 (cheque)to assist in purchasing your child's stationary etc.

If there's anything I did not cover, please shout. I have the PDF file for the application to enroll your child in a public school if you are not PR - email me, & I'll send it to you.

[Ajay]

I've also discovered that you can, under certain circumstances, get an exemption from paying the school fees if you are on a 457 visa. Each case is handled on its merits, but it appears that if you have a valid reason for one parent to have to stay at home (i.e to look after younger child(ren) not yet old enough to attend school), then you have a pretty good chance of qualifying for the exemption.

Four colleagues from my work applied - 2 got a full exemption (one has 5 kids and only 2 old enough for school - I agree, his wife needs her head read!! - and the other has 3 kids and only 1 is old enough for school), 1 got approval to pay the fees monthly instead of annually (she has 2 children of school-going age but she was the only bread winner at the time - hubby has since found a job) and the other lady was turned down (2 school going kids and hubby also employed).

You'll never know if you don't try, and don't be shy to find out! No one looks down on you!

Hope this saves some money for others in the future - wish I'd known before I coughed up

[sa2auz]

For those of you checking out schools etc in NSW just a few points to remember. Don't always assume the private/religious schools are better - our areas schools with the best results - Public Schools. Also most schools have composite classes, these are classes with mixed years (grades). Eg there might be one class of year 3, one class of year 3 and 4 mixed (a composite class) and then one year 4 class. Some children cope well with composite classes some don't, chat to the schools and ask them about composite classes. Also most schools don't have a huge number of sports facilities and most children belong to clubs, these usually cost around $160 for the term/season. Dont' worry about the lack of sports facilities at schools though there are so many clubs you won't have enough hours in the day, Rugby League, Rugby Union, Cricket, Kangacricket, Orchestra, netball, playball, gym, music, scouts etc.

Childcare for little ones is pretty expensive we pay $800 a term for 2 days a week but this obviously varies from area to area and school to school