New national polling reveals that Independent school families are under enormous financial strain, with many forced to make significant sacrifices just to keep their children in the school that best meets their needs.
As education funding becomes an election issue, parents are warning politicians: school choice matters, and they will vote accordingly.
The research, commissioned by Independent Schools Australia (ISA) and conducted by Insightfully* in March 2025, surveyed over 500 current and prospective Independent school parents nationwide. The findings show just how much families are sacrificing, and the political risks for any party considering poor policy.
Families under pressure – Cost of living bites
- 55 per cent name cost of living as the biggest election issue with education second at 22 per cent (education as an election issue is much lower among the general population).
- 75 per cent of parents think the national economy will not get better over the next 6 months with 38 per cent of parents saying it is headed in the wrong direction.
- 78 per cent of parents would need to seriously adjust their household budget if fees increased by 15 per cent or more.
- More than a quarter (26 per cent) of parents nationwide would have to cut back on essentials like groceries, medicine, and transport to keep their children in an Independent school.
- 14 per cent would cut housing costs by moving or letting out a room.
ISA CEO Graham Catt said the polling proves that Independent school families are not immune to financial pressures and are already stretching their budgets to prioritise education.
“The idea that families who choose Independent school are wealthy elites who are unaffected by the cost-of-living crisis is completely false,” Mr. Catt said.
“These are families working extra jobs and often cutting back on essentials just to keep their children in the school that’s right for them.”
- “The cost-of-living crisis is already pushing many families to the limit, regardless of the school they choose or the sector it is in.”
- “That’s why we need a commitment from politicians that they won’t support bad policies, based on ideology and misleading information, that hurt Independent schools and the hundreds of thousands of families they serve.
- “For example, we have seen the introduction of a payroll tax in Victoria for non-government schools that has forced many to increase fees and cut programs.
- “We have also seen a Commonwealth teacher scholarship program that forgives the debt of a graduate teacher who takes a job in the best resourced public school in a capital city, but doesn’t do so for a graduate who works in the smallest, most remote Independent school, or with disadvantaged children. How can that be supporting equity and fairness?”
- School choice could influence the election in key marginal seats
The polling also found that education could be an issue at the ballot box, particularly in electorates with high numbers of Independent school families.
- Independent school parents voting intention – 37 per cent primary for Coalition, 34 per cent Labor, 12 per cent Greens, 11 per cent independent, five per cent PHON.
- 46 per cent of Independent school parents (current and future) would be less likely to vote for a party that reduces funding for Independent schools students, 41 per cent say it would have no impact on their vote.
- After seeing comments from the Australian Greens’ labelling Independent schools as ‘elite’ and ‘overfunded,’ support for the party dropped 3 points among all parents and 5 points among Green soft-voter parents.
ISA’s School Choice Counts campaign has identified 14 key seats where Independent school families could be a factor on election day.
- Queensland – Brisbane, Griffith, Ryan, Capricornia, Moreton
- Victoria – Melbourne, Wills, Goldstein
- New South Wales – Wentworth, Mackellar, Blaxland
- Tasmania – Bass
- South Australia – Boothby, Sturt
- Western Australia – Curtin, Tangney
- Northern Territory – Solomon
“This data confirms that school choice isn’t just a personal decision, it’s a voting issue,” Mr. Catt said.
“That’s why the School Choice Counts campaign matters. Families deserve to be heard, and they deserve certainty in education policy, support and funding.”
ISA is running targeted advertising in these electorates, ensuring that Independent school families know exactly where political parties stand on education funding.
Download the full policy document here.
“This election, politicians will have to decide whether they stand with families or against them. Our message is clear: we will fight for school choice. And we won’t let Independent school families be ignored,” he said.
“Our parents are watching.”
Visit schoolchoicecounts.isa.edu.au to see the full suite of policies and learn more.
*About the Research
Independent research agency, Insightfully, fielded the research from February 17 to March 3 among n=503 current and prospective Independent school parents nationwide who are registered voters. Data are weighted based on ABS and AEC statistics. The survey results are representative of the views of those parents to within a total margin of error of
+/-4.4% (at the 95 per cent confidence interval).
