{"id":55359,"date":"2026-07-21T16:16:36","date_gmt":"2026-07-21T16:16:36","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/australia\/55359\/"},"modified":"2026-07-21T16:16:36","modified_gmt":"2026-07-21T16:16:36","slug":"private-school-key-seats-revealed-amid-push-to-wield-power","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/australia\/55359\/","title":{"rendered":"Private school key seats revealed amid push to wield power"},"content":{"rendered":"

Private schools are pooling their political power in an effort to future-proof funding and lock in support for the independent sector.<\/p>\n

A new campaign run by the sector\u2019s peak body, Independent Schools Association (ISA), highlights the financial contribution and potential political impact of 400,000 private school families.<\/p>\n

It comes amid growing public debates about the funding levels of both public and private schools.<\/p>\n

As enrolments in the private sector hit more than 760,000 nationally, the ISA has launched a new campaign focusing on key electorates with the most independent school students.<\/p>\n

The billboard, digital advertising and online video campaign will be run in the NSW seats of Wentworth and Mackellar, Victorian seats Goldstein, Melbourne and Wills, along with the Queensland seats of Griffith and Brisbane. There will also be activity in Canberra, Launceston and Adelaide ahead of the Australian Labor Party\u2019s national conference. <\/a><\/p>\n

ISA research shows Kooyong in Melbourne\u2019s east, represented by independent MP Monique Ryan, has the most private school students \u2013 more than 16,000.<\/p>\n

Four other seats with more than 10,000 private school students are represented by independent members including Allegra Spender (Wentworth) and Zali Steggall (Warringah).<\/p>\n

The campaign is based on ISA research which reveals private families and schools contributed $11.2 billion in 2024 to the education costs spread across the political landscape, including One Nation supporters.<\/a><\/p>\n

ISA polling also shows 49 per cent of private school parents say they would be less likely to vote for a representative who described private or independent schools as mainly for the wealthy or elite.<\/p>\n

ISA chief executive Graham Catt said private school parents were often stereotyped but in reality were \u201ctaxpayers making careful decisions [about education] \u2026 under real financial pressure\u201d.<\/p>\n

Mr Catt said they were often overlooked and elected officials should listen to parents who are voting with their feet by choosing private schools. <\/p>\n

\u201c[Parents] deserve to be seen, they deserve to be heard, and they deserve policy settings that recognise the choices they are already making,\u201d he said. <\/p>\n

The campaign comes as new Australian Institute research released exclusively to News Corp shows 61 per cent of Australians think the government school system needs more funding.<\/p>\n

Almost 40 per cent of respondents said they would send their children to a local public school if there was more funding, according to a nationally representative sample of 2230 people by YouGov.<\/p>\n

The belief, that government schools do not have enough funding, is shared across party lines, as 51 per cent of One Nation voters<\/a> and 53 per cent of Coalition voters thought public schools were underfunded.<\/p>\n

However, the same polling showed 52 per cent thought private schools were overfunded, 22 per cent said the right amount of funding and only seven per cent said they were overfunded. <\/p>\n

Those who thought private schools were overfunded ranged from 60 per cent (Labor voters), to 45 per cent (One Nation) and 39 per cent (Coalition voters).<\/p>\n

Queensland mum Beth McManus said she chose to send her two sons to an independent school because of the additional support on offer. <\/p>\n

\u201cWe were looking for a community and culture that we felt he would be safe in and thrive in,\u201d she said. <\/p>\n

Her son was three when he received an autism diagnosis and Ms McManus said they were concerned the local public school would be too big and loud. <\/p>\n

During a tour with the principal of the Lutheran primary school, she said she \u201chad a really strong sense that the kids seemed happy\u201d.<\/p>\n

But it has come with sacrifices and Ms McManus said the school was filled with families like hers. <\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019re not a wealthy family,\u201d she said. \u201cWe just want the best for our kids.\u201d<\/p>\n

Education@news.com.au<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Private schools are pooling their political power in an effort to future-proof funding and lock in support for…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":55360,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[52715,52702,43929,45043,52723,52769,41457,5859,52739,52761,52775,17327,47133,52774,46919,38624,52738,40777,47163,48501,52749,50585,50586,52726,52762,52776,52740,52720,52735,39022,52698,36871,15274,47854,52736,52750,52692,22,7458,21,52737,2788,2184,52711,36917,52709,52754,2307,42508,52703,18571,3139,52734,52763,9035,52722,52690,37396,52704,52718,52773,52707,52699,52717,52716,38688,52710,52732,36438,44384,52743,260,52764,52727,52731,45417,52766,52771,52747,52693,2607,48014,39063,1955,52729,50543,52759,52752,52744,5264,52757,11141,52768,52751,52700,52724,12977,9019,52706,52714,38903,52756,51871,4381,45184,52760,45000,38182,52746,43711,52712,52742,52728,52748,52691,52708,42476,52730,52705,52755,52770,52741,52745,52701,52767,51376,52696,52694,52765,52697,37881,3768,52725,38715,52719,52758,52713,52695,52733,52721,52753,52772,22214],"class_list":["post-55359","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-australia","tag-most-private-school-studentsthe","tag-mr-catt","tag-s-east","tag-s-national-conference","tag-s-peak-body","tag-11-2-billion","tag-41457","tag-5859","tag-000-private-school-families-it","tag-000-private-school-students","tag-000-four-other-seats","tag-17327","tag-47133","tag-2230-people","tag-46919","tag-4-pack","tag-52738","tag-40777","tag-47163","tag-48501","tag-52749","tag-50585","tag-50586","tag-a-community-and-culture","tag-a-local-public-school","tag-a-nationally-representative-sample","tag-a-new-campaign","tag-a-really-strong-sense","tag-a-representative","tag-a-tour","tag-a-wealthy-family","tag-activity","tag-allegra-spender","tag-an-area","tag-an-autism-diagnosis","tag-an-effort","tag-an-independent-school","tag-au","tag-australians","tag-austrlia","tag-both-public-and-private-schools-as-enrolments","tag-campaign","tag-canberra","tag-careful-decisions","tag-cent","tag-coalition-voters","tag-digital-advertising","tag-education","tag-education-tile-collection","tag-enough-funding","tag-families","tag-funding","tag-future-proof-funding","tag-goldstein","tag-government-schools","tag-griffith-and-brisbane","tag-growing-public-debates","tag-her-son","tag-her-two-sons","tag-independent-members","tag-independent-mp-monique-ryan","tag-independent-schools","tag-independent-schools-association","tag-isa","tag-isa-research","tag-june-30","tag-key-electorates","tag-key-private-school-seats","tag-kooyong","tag-labor-voters","tag-launceston-and-adelaide","tag-melbourne","tag-melbourne-and-wills","tag-more-funding","tag-more-funding-almost-40","tag-more-than-10","tag-more-than-16","tag-more-than-760","tag-ms-mcmanus","tag-new-australian-institute-research","tag-news-corp","tag-offer","tag-officials","tag-one-nation","tag-one-nation-supporters-isa-polling","tag-one-nation-voters","tag-online-video-campaign","tag-only-seven","tag-our-kids","tag-parents","tag-party-lines","tag-policy-settings","tag-political-power","tag-private-families-and-schools","tag-private-or-independent-schools","tag-private-school-parents","tag-private-schools","tag-public-schools","tag-queensland-mum-beth-mcmanus","tag-real-financial-pressure","tag-reality","tag-respondents","tag-sacrifices","tag-support","tag-taxpayers","tag-the-additional-support","tag-the-australian-labor-party","tag-the-best","tag-the-campaign","tag-the-choices","tag-the-education-costs","tag-the-financial-contribution-and-potential-political-impact","tag-the-funding-levels","tag-the-government-school-system","tag-the-independent-sector","tag-the-isa","tag-the-kids","tag-the-local-public-school","tag-the-lutheran-primary-school","tag-the-most-independent-school-students-the-billboard","tag-the-most-private-school-students","tag-the-most-private-schools","tag-the-nsw-seats","tag-the-peak-body","tag-the-political-landscape","tag-the-principal","tag-the-private-sector","tag-the-queensland-seats","tag-the-right-amount","tag-the-same-polling","tag-the-school","tag-the-sector","tag-the-wealthy-or-elite-isa-chief-executive-graham-catt","tag-their-children","tag-their-feet","tag-their-political-power","tag-their-pooled-political-power","tag-victorian-seats","tag-warringah","tag-wentworth","tag-wentworth-and-mackellar","tag-yougov-the-belief","tag-zali-steggall"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/australia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/55359","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/australia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/australia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/australia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/australia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=55359"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/w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