New Year, New Stress for Families as Back-to-School Costs Rocket

Australian parents are faced with paying around $700 for primary and $1,200 for secondary school costs. And that’s just uniforms and equipment.

Australian Swimmer Ariarne Titmus talks to students at St Patricks College in Launceston, Australia, on Sept. 15, 2021. Steve Bell/Getty Images for TLA

With a return to school on the horizon, Australian families face considerable costs associated with equipping their children with uniforms and equipment, and a new survey shows around a third are struggling to afford it.

The Australian Retailers Association (ARA) estimates that 5.1 million people will spend an average of $525 (US$323) each on back-to-school merchandise, up from an average of $512 in 2024. This will net retailers around $2.7 billion in sales, up $150 million (5.9 percent) over last year, driven by population growth and inflation.

Bricks-and-mortar businesses are set to reap the majority of this amount, with 65 percent of respondents to an ARA/Roy Morgan survey saying they will purchase in-store. One-third intend to buy online and 37 percent will make purchases directly through the school or school suppliers.

One of the most significant costs is digital technology, which is now a requirement in classrooms where once it was an optional extra.

Even the “budget” Chromebook laptop recommended by PC Mag, which rates technology products, will cost around $400. And it apparently suffers from short battery life, which might be an issue for students without access to power points.

‘Ridiculous’ Uniform Costs

Then there are the compulsory uniforms, though the costs vary greatly depending on whether the school is public or private.

For Sydney teacher and mother-of-two Shenaiya Day, that meant $1,500 for her Year 7 daughter, a cost she said was “ridiculous.” That prompted her to look for a second-hand uniform shop, which saved her two-thirds of that cost.

“It’s not just about buying the blazer and the uniform and the socks and the hat. It’s the bag, it’s the PE uniform, it’s the extracurricular uniform, so it all mounts up,” she said.

She encouraged other parents in a similar position to explore simple ways to save.

Day spent $700 on supplies for her son when he started at a local public school, a cost that increased every year until he graduated.

“It’s extremely expensive, and it depends, obviously, if you’re in a public school or a private school, as the costs do vary,” she told AAP.

Founder of The Uniform Exchange, Sue Turner, said an increasing number of parents are turning to second-hand clothes to save on expenses amid rising school fees. They also want to recycle, with excess stock sent to schools overseas.

“We have more interest every year; more and more people hear about what we do,” Turner said.

Her shop on Sydney’s North Shore carries 20,000 uniforms for local schools and runs an online selling platform for parents nationwide.

“We sell everything in the shop at half the price of new, [but] even at [that price], it is still an expensive item,” she said.

Cost Pressures Mounting

Many schools provide exemptions and financial support for those experiencing financial hardship, while some state governments have their own programs to assist.

But even then, parents are struggling.

Research from the national child protection organisation Act for Kids shows that almost one in three families struggle to pay for their children’s basic educational needs, including uniforms, stationery, books, excursions, and school fees.

The survey of almost 1,000 Australian parents also found that 27 percent reported difficulty affording to have the internet at home, while 40 percent found it difficult to pay for extracurricular activities important to their child’s social and physical wellbeing, such as sports, music, and hobbies.

The organisation’s CEO, Katrina Lines, said many children were sadly suffering from the flow-on effects of the cost-of-living crisis.

“It is common for children to experience some form of anxiety about heading back to the classroom as this often involves change, whether that be a new school, teacher or meeting new classmates,” she said.

“It can be quite distressing if, on top of this, they are worried about not having the right uniform or whether they will have the materials to complete school work, including homework.

“We are seeing parents and carers who are under significant pressure, making it harder for them to provide a safe and stable environment for their kids.”

She advised any family faced with these pressures to seek help from the school, community organisations, and government support services.

Children’s charity The Smith Family reports a surge in demand for assistance with school costs, up by more than 12 percent in two years, with 67,000 students in one program alone.

Low-income families were already struggling but inflation has compounded pressures, Chief Executive Doug Taylor said.

“Thirty percent of those young people don’t have a digitally connected laptop at home. That has a significant adverse impact on their on their education,” he said.

“Many public schools are able to support students when they’re at school, but it’s what happens at home that’s also very important in terms of being able to do homework.”

iPads For Year 3

Australian Education Union federal President Correna Haythorpe blamed the situation on a shortfall in government funding. She said when children as young as grade three are required to have iPads at public schools, the cost shouldn’t be passed on to parents.

“Escalating costs are a direct result of the fact that governments, for decades now, have failed to fully fund public schools, and that has shifted the cost burden to parents,” she said. “We also have the situation where teachers are spending escalating amounts.”

Education Minister Jason Clare said he was working with all states and territories to get schools fully and fairly funded, and families could access cost-of-living relief through tax cuts.

Most families can access payments or subsidies to help with back-to-school costs. Such help is available for all children in Victoria, the Northern Territory, and Queensland, public school students in South Australia, and low-income households in the ACT, Tasmania, and Western Australia.

“We will continue to work with the remaining jurisdictions to get the job done,” Clare said.

AAP contributed to this report.