HUNDREDS of teachers across the Hunter will unite on Thursday, September 12, to rally for fair school funding.
A strong, noisy and visible presence will form outside Edgeworth Public School, Swansea Public School and Francis Greenway High School following new research that highlighted NSW private schools were receiving more government funding than comparable public schools.
Since 2022, six in 10 NSW private schools have been receiving more government funding, a trend that NSW Teachers Federation regional organiser Jack Galvin Waight has labelled as "wholly unacceptable."
"The profession is united that the Albanese government must fulfil its election commitment and fully fund our public schools. Full funding is the only way to ensure every child gets the support they need to succeed," he said.
He said teachers and community members in the federal seats of Paterson, Hunter and Shortland are furious that "our amazing public schools continue to be underfunded".
"Community pressure is mounting on the Federal Government to fix this. Teachers will be protesting outside the gates in their own time, because the future of our kids in the Hunter is at stake," he said.
Local state MPs Jodie Harrison, Yasmin Catley, Clayton Barr, Jenny Aitchison and Kate Washington are excpected to attend the rallies.
In 2013, there were 394 private schools in NSW that received more combined Government funding (Commonwealth and State) than comparable public schools. By 2022, this had increased to 536 private schools.
This is an increase from 46.7 per cent of private schools to 59.6 per cent receiving more government funding than comparable public schools over the decade to 2022.
In 2013 there were 139 private schools in the ICSEA 1050+ group, which includes the top quartile of Socio-Educational Advantage, funded higher than comparable public schools and by 2022 this had increased to 217 schools.
NSW Teachers Federation President Henry Rajendra said public schools do the heavy lifting, educating two and half times the number of students from low socio-educational advantage backgrounds.
"Public schools also educate almost three times as many Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander students. Yet, they are not receiving the funding they need to meet these students' needs," he said.
