Cost of education means cutbacks for parents
Nearly 50 per cent of Australians with a child or grandchild below 10 years of age feel ill-prepared to meet education costs, a recent survey suggests.
The results show that only 35 per cent have a savings plan for education in place, and that the financial crisis is impacting on parents’ attitudes to education costs.
The Australian Scholarships Group (ASG), which commissioned the survey, noted that education continues to be a priority for parents, but they are making short-term changes to lifestyle to save for education in the current turmoil rather than taking long-term approaches to saving.
“Families are telling us they will make cuts elsewhere in order to continue meeting education costs for their children,” said Michelle Hunder, ASG’s general manager, development.
“Education continues to rank as one of life’s major priorities, but we still haven’t got the message through to parents and grandparents that it requires planning to meet costs irrespective of whether people choose government or independent schooling options.”
ASG said the cost of education has “risen substantially” over the past 15 years and cited statistics from the Australian Bureau of Statistics that show the education fees component of the consumer price index has been increasing at almost double the rate of inflation.
According to the survey results, 45 per cent said they were cutting back on everyday expenses (up 10 per cent on a previous survey), 49 per cent were going without luxuries, 42 per cent had a weekly savings plan, 33 per cent were taking on extra work and 31 per cent were returning to the workforce. All results showed an increase on the percentages in the last survey commissioned.
ASG cautioned parents from the survey to begin saving for their children’s education early, and to look for schooling options that offer value and meet their children’s needs.
ASG estimates secondary school costs will set parents back between $5,938 (government) and $22,436 (private), and primary school between $5,536 (government) and $13,130 (private) per year, while preschool alone will cost between $2,779 (government) and $7,195 (private) per year.
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